Listening Comprehension Activity with Vocabulary: We spent time this year learning about “wh” questions as we discussed visual cues that are paired with each question word and we also learned to use the strategy of rehearsal to help with recall of details.  We have also spent time discussing definitions (word meanings).     This activity targets the following speech and language objectives:

1. Answering questions and recall of details2. Vocabulary Development

Directions:  Please read the story aloud to your child.  After reading the story please ask your child the questions on the bottom of the page.  Lastly, I have highlighted several vocabulary words within the story and you can ask your child to define the word or provide a synonym.  

The Chatty Tree

We know trees are silent and that they cannot talk. What if they could speak? They would have some interesting things to talk about. Think about all the different things trees see and hear each day. They would make great story-tellers! Imagine you are sitting under a big, leafy tee and all of a sudden it starts to talk to you. What do you think you would hear? Here is a story from a chatty tree.

I’m often asked if I like being a tree. I can’t really answer that question because I don’t really have a choice. Some of the questions that I can answer are about my size and how I grow. I can also talk about how I am useful to others.

As I grow I follow a cycle. I’m small right now because I am only about four feet tall. I’m still considered a sapling because when I am fully grown, I will be over thirty feet tall.

Look at me carefully! You only see a part of me. My roots take up as much space under the ground as my branches do up in the air. You have a spine to help you stand big and tall. My roots are very important to me because like your spine they help me stand big and tall. The roots need to be strong so they can anchor me in the ground. If they were weak the wind would blow me over and knock me to the ground. I get thirsty like you and my roots take water from the soil to give me water to drink. The water travels up my trunk like an elevator and spreads to my branches and leaves. If I don’t get water my leaves turn brown and fall to the ground.

My leaves which are like your organs are very important, each one is like a little factory. Each leaf has a job. They are a canopy that shades you from the hot sun. My leaves absorb carbon dioxide to keep the air you breathe balanced and safe. They take the carbon dioxide from the air and mix it with the water that comes from my roots to make a sugary water. The sugary water is my food because just like you I need energy to grow.

In spring, you will see buds starting to grow all over me. Each bud will turn into a pink or white flower. Inside each flower you will see a yellow powder called pollen. Bees fly from flower to flower and collect the pollen. The bees take the pollen back to their hives and use it to feed their young. In addition, when bees collect pollen, some of the pollen from one flower brushes on another flower. When that happens an apple starts to grow from the flower that had the pollen brushed on it. What kind of tree do you think I am?

You guessed it, I am an apple tree! There are several different kinds of apple trees. I grow red delicious apples so my apples will turn red when they are ripe and ready to be picked. In the center of each of the apples that grow on my tree, you will find tiny black seeds. The center of my apple is called the core. Many people eat my apples and throw the core on the ground. The tiny black seeds from my core could grow and become apple trees just like me.

Directions: Please answer the questions below.

1. In the beginning of the story, what is the author comparing the tree to? How do you know?

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2. How are a sapling and a child the same?

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3. Why is the core an important part of the apple?

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4. Why would you expect to see a lot of bees swarming around a hive in the spring?

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5. How does the trunk of a tree help it stay alive?

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6. Why is it important for the tree to have strong roots?

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7. Why do trees need to be anchored in the ground by the roots?

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8. What might occur if you brush against the flowers that are on an apple tree?

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9. What part of the tree is similar to your arms?

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10. We know that trees can’t talk. How would you feel if you could not speak?

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Challenge:

In the story we heard that the roots keep the tree anchored in the ground. Can you think of two different meanings for the word anchor? Draw a picture, write the definition, and use it in a sentence.

Word Anchor Anchor

Picture

Definition

Sentence