Love Song for a Tree

Positives

• This lesson aligns with Hawai'i's Nā Hopena A'o HĀ-BREATH Framework.

• Students examine nature through the lens of a universal human emotion: love.

• Social, Emotional, Ethical Learning (SEEL) skills are reinforced and extended to their natural environment.

• Students use the often underutilized medium of song to connect with nature and impart the importance of nature, ultimately granting an experience that is more impactful and memorable.

• Familiar pop songs are used as tools to explore the concept of love for nature.

• Students are granted creative freedom and can use their own musical, poetic, and artistic skills to explore an important issue.

• Students walk away with a heightened sense of the importance of nature, our dependency upon nature, our indebtedness to nature, and our responsibility to “love” and protect nature.

Additional Prerequisites

• Teacher may want to preview the videos and listen to any unfamiliar songs prior to teaching the lesson.

• Teacher can create a separate list of appropriate love songs.

• Students should have a basic understanding of the structure of verses and chorus in songs.

Differentiation

• This lesson could align with a science class discussion of the carbon cycle, the role of trees in absorbing carbon dioxide, or the overall importance of trees to our planet in our fight against climate change.

• Music teachers could extend this lesson and focus on tonality or musical patterns found in love songs.

• This lesson could be taught across English language arts and music classes. Students could write the lyrics in ELA class and set it to music in music class.

• Students can choose their own school-appropriate love song and analyze the song according to the five categories: lyrics, keywords and phrases, descriptive language, feelings, instruments, and structure.

• As an extension, students can conduct their own online research to see current updates on the ‘ōhi’a tree and what is being done to save them.

• The initial draft of students’ original love songs can be assigned for homework.

• Students may choose to respond to only one of the initial journal questions.

• Students may write one verse of a song or only the chorus.

Students will learn about the significance of trees in mitigating climate change through this lesson. In order to emphasize the need of protecting both humans and nature, they will identify common native trees in Hawai'i, give descriptions of those species, and create songs. We assessed the lesson materials, and we found that they were credible from a scientific standpoint.

Primary Standards

• Common Core English Language Arts Standards (CCSS.ELA)
  • Writing (K-12)
    • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences.
    • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
• National Core Arts Standards
  • Music - Composition and Theory: Standard 10 - Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art.
    • MU:Cn10.0.C.IIa Demonstrate how interests, knowledge, and skills relate to personal choices and intent when creating, performing, and responding to music.