TREE EXPLORER’S Handbook
An Activity Book for Ages 7 - 12
This Book Belongs To:
Look around — you’re never far from a tree! The Bay Area is full of amazing ones, from fog-loving redwoods to ancient oaks that shelter wildlife. Trees are nature’s skyscrapers, giving birds, bugs, and even fungi a place to live! This activity book is packed with fun ways to explore nearby forests — on trails or right in your neighborhood. You’ll learn about local trees, meet the creatures who depend on them, and find out how to help protect them for the future. Illustrations by Anubha Gupta
What Makes a Tree?
A tree is a living plant, usually with a woody trunk, made of different parts that work together to help it grow. Each part has a special role in keeping it strong and healthy.
Use the clues to fill in the blanks with the items from the word bank below.
Leaves Branches Bark Roots Canopy Trunk
The . is the top layer of leaves and branches.
turn sunlight into food using photosynthesis.
Leaves grow on the tree’s many . protects the tree like a tough outer skin.
The . is the tree’s main support pole. grow underground and take in water.
Try a Bark Rubbing!
STEP 1
Peel the paper off of a crayon.
STEP 2
Press this page firmly up against tree bark.
STEP 3
Gently rub the side of the crayon in the box below until the bark’s pattern shows through.
Did you meet your tree in a park, playground, or neighborhood?
Bark: A Tree’s Armor
Smooth bark feels cool and silky to the touch.
Furrowed bark has deep vertical grooves or ridges.
A tree’s bark is like its armor, protecting it from weather, insects, and disease. Just like our skin, bark comes in many textures and colors. By looking closely and feeling different types of bark, you can learn to tell trees apart!
Which bark type below closely resembles the tree you selected for your bark rubbing?
Bark
Fibrous bark looks shaggy with peeling, stringy strips.
Plated bark is made of flat pieces that fit together like a puzzle.
Madrone Valley Oak
Coast Redwood
Ponderosa Pine
What Kind of Tree Is That?
Most trees can be grouped into two main types: broadleaf and coniferous. One way to tell them apart is by looking at the shape of their leaves and branches. By noticing these features, you can start to identify which types of trees you’re looking at!
Coniferous Trees
Leaves, called needles, are thin and pointy
Most are evergreen meaning their needles stay green all year
Tree shape is often like a tall triangle
Most grow cones instead of flowers
Coast Live Oak
Has tough leaves and twisty branches that make great homes for animals.
Monterey Pine
Has special cones that stay sealed shut until heat from a fire or the sun opens them up.
Douglas Fir
Can grow taller than a skyscraper, and has soft green needles that smell wintry.
Read about the differences below.
Then, draw a line matching each California native tree along the bottom of the page to the Broadleaf or Coniferous box.
Broadleaf Trees
Leaves are flat and wide
Many are deciduous meaning they lose their leaves once a year, often in the fall
Branches spread out wide
Often have flowers or fruit
Bay Laurel
Has pepper-scented leaves that Indigenous people use for cooking and medicine.
Coast Redwood
Has soft, flat needles, drinks water from the fog, and is the tallest tree in the world!
Western Sycamore
Has large, hand-shaped leaves and holds the soil along creeks in place with its strong roots.
Become a Den dro chro nol o gist!
When a tree falls or gets cut down, the rings on its stump tell us a lot about its life. This study is called dendrochronology. Scientists called dendrochronologists look at the rings like a timeline to figure out how old the tree is, and can find out what the forest was like hundreds or thousands of years ago!
Thicker rings occur when a tree had plenty of resources (like rainfall) to grow.
Dark spots are often burn scars, indicating that there was a fire that year.
The circle at the trunk’s center marks the first year of growth.
Narrower rings occur during droughts or dry spells.
Each dark circle represents one year of growth. For example, a tree with 20 dark circles would be 20 years old.
Warped bark forms like scars during forest fires.
The Methuselah Tree
Santa Cruz Mountains, Redwood City
Studying tree rings has allowed scientists to discover that trees can live for over 4,000 years! One of the oldest living trees in the Santa Cruz Mountains is the Methuselah Tree, estimated to be 1,800 years old. This means it has lived through countless storms, fires, and changes in the forest. Imagine the stories hidden in its rings!
Test Your Knowledge!
Analyze the stump below and use what you’ve learned to answer the questions.
1) How old was this tree when it fell?
Count the dark rings from the center!
Years Old
2) Did this tree survive a wildfire?
Look for a dark scar, then circle the answer.
Count your age backwards from the outermost ring! Yes No
If yes, how old was it when the fire happened?
Years Old
3) If this tree was just cut down, which ring was formed the year you were born? Highlight it with your crayon or pencil.
The Oak Tree: Home to Many
Oak trees act like entire neighborhoods for animals, insects, and fungi! From the branches to the roots, many creatures find food, build homes, and raise their young around oak trees. Draw a line from each oak tree resident to their home.
Mushrooms
Feed on dead, decomposing material
Ground Beetle
Lives in the soil surrounding the roots
Gray Fox
Hides in dens made in hollow trunks or cavities
Oak Titmouse
Builds their nest in cozy oak tree holes
Rhizosphere (Root Zone)
Burrow System
Fallen Acorns
Bark Holes
Dense Leaves
Ground Squirrel
Digs burrows with rooms to store nuts at the base of oak trees
Decaying Stump
Acorn Woodpecker
Drills small holes in bark to store acorns, nuts, and food
Harvester Ant
Collects fallen acorns and seeds from under trees
Great Horned Owl Hides in dense leaves that are higher up to spot prey from above
Pallid Bat
Roosts in deep holes and crevices often formed by burns
Hollow Cavity
Tree Hole
Burnt Crevice
Trees and Fire: Friends or Foes?
Did you know that fires can actually help trees grow? Some trees require fire to spread their seeds and clear away dead plants, making room for new growth. But too much fire, or fire in the wrong place, can be damaging and dangerous.
When Fire Helps Trees
Smaller fires clear out dead sticks on the forest floor, giving new plants space to grow.
Some trees, like pine trees, have cones that need heat to pop open and spread seeds.
When Fire is Damaging
Fires that get too big or hot can kill trees and harm animals. Without enough rain, fires can grow fast and be hard to stop.
Fires close to towns or homes can be dangerous to people.
Forests need care from professionals to stay healthy! When too many dry leaves, dead branches, and crowded small trees pile up, they create fuel for big, damaging wildfires. But when wildfire experts manage forests — through careful tree thinning, good fire, and other restoration efforts — the forest becomes safer and stronger.
Below are two forests after a fire. Circle the differences you notice.
Unmanaged Forest A
Well-Managed, Regularly Burned Forest B
Based on what you’ve learned about fire, circle the correct answers.
Which forest has more small, dry plants that could catch fire?
B Which forest has lush plants and pollinators like bees and butterflies?
Stewards of the Forest
A steward is someone who cares for and protects the land.
Park rangers help protect public lands, teach people about nature, and enforce rules that keep forests safe.
Conservationists this includes scientists, students, and volunteers protect forests by preserving land and thoughtfully caring for trees and wildlife.
Not only do firefighters put out fires, they also set prescribed burns when conditions are safe to clear out dry plants and reduce the risk of dangerous wildfires.
Native Americans have cared for forests for generations. They use small, controlled fires to help plants grow and stop wildfires, and their descendants still practice these methods to protect the land today.
You!
Anybody can be a tree steward by staying on trails, picking up trash, and leaving nature as they found it. Draw a self portrait of yourself as a tree steward!
Take the
Tree Explorer Pledge
After filling out this activity book, rewrite the pledge below and sign your name to become a certified tree explorer!
I will be kind to trees and animals.
I will explore nature with care. I will leave no trace and stay on trail.
Signature: Date:
Protecting Nature for Everyone
Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) protects open space on the Peninsula, in the South Bay, and beyond for the benefit of all. We work with many organizations to care for our forests and local wildlife and give more people access to nature. We also honor Native peoples who have cared for this land for thousands of years. By protecting nature today, we ensure future generations can enjoy it, too.
Visit www.openspacetrust.org/events or scan the QR code to learn more and get involved in POST’s future events!
