The write start - Jennifer Hallissy 2010

Family Tree
Guidelines for the Activities

AS WE WERE PREPARING to host a big family Thanksgiving dinner, the subject of relatives came up. In an effort to explain all the branches of our family to my son, I drew a family tree. And although he seemed interested enough, to me the lesson seemed a little, well, flat.

It dawned on me that a family tree should be just that. A family tree. From that seed of an idea grew a very meaningful (and beautiful!) activity. We took a break from the busyness to whip up this craft, and boy was I ever glad we did. Our family tree helped us answer some important questions: Are my aunties your sisters? Is my uncle my cousins’ father? Is Nanny Daddy’s mommy? But more than that, it reminded all of us exactly why we really gather together. (Everything else is just gravy.)

MATERIALS

∗ a leaf from nature

∗ piece of lightweight cardboard or card stock

∗ black marker

∗ scissors

∗ one box of natural-colored coffee filters (choose a size slightly

∗ larger than the size of your leaf)

∗ red, yellow, and green liquid food coloring

∗ small paper cups

∗ brown paper grocery bags

∗ paintbrush

∗ marker

∗ alphabet stampers (optional)

∗ white glue

∗ clothespins

∗ medium-sized bucket or flowerpot

HOW-TO

1. Place a leaf on the cardboard and trace around it with a marker.

2. Cut along the marker line with scissors. This will be your leaf stencil.

3. Trace the leaf shape onto coffee filters using the stencil. Cut out coffee-filter leaves with scissors.

4. Completely cover your work area, as food coloring may stain some fabrics or surfaces. Make homemade watercolor paints by adding eight to ten drops of red food coloring to about one-fourth cup of water in a small cup. Repeat for the yellow and green food coloring, each color in its own separate cup.

5. Spread out the coffee-filter leaves on brown paper grocery bags (or newspaper).

6. Dip your brush in the watercolors and dab paint onto the leaves. You will not need very much paint, as the coffee-filter paper diffuses the liquid throughout the leaf. Continue until all the leaves are colored.

7. Let the leaves dry thoroughly, about thirty to sixty minutes, depending on how much liquid they absorbed.

8. When the leaves are dry, label each with a family member’s name, using alphabet stampers or a marker.

9. Crease each leaf vertically down the center. Apply a thin line of glue along the crease and attach the leaf to a clothespin. Let the glue dry.

10. While the leaves are drying, position your tree branch in your flowerpot or bucket. If the tree branch needs to be stabilized in the container, crumple up some brown paper grocery bags and stuff them in around the base of the branch.

11. When the leaves are dry, your kids can pin them onto the tree. They can take them down, move them around, and arrange them over and over again as often as they wish. Remember, if there is a marriage or a birth in the family, add a new leaf.

12. Keep it up year-round, use it as a seasonal decoration, or bring it out for special family occasions.

Variations

For Scribblers: Pre-writers can cut out pictures of family members and glue them on to their leaves, exercising fine motor skills as they snip and squeeze.

For Spellers: Emerging writers can use alphabet stampers or markers to embellish their leaves with names.

For Storytellers: Storytellers are able to grasp family relationships, and they can arrange leaves accordingly.

For Scholars: Scholars can include some demographic data on their leaves, such as birth date, place of birth, age, place of residence, or occupation.