An activity to encourage careful observation of twigs and buds of fruit trees in winter. Objective Identify different parts of a winter twig. Observe orchard plants in winter. The class gathers around a fruit tree. Students choose two different tree types to compare.
All observations are useful.
If there is no mention of the shape of leaf scars, number of bundle scars and the shape and color of the buds, teacher emphasizes them as important twig identification characteristics. Teacher distributes one cutting from orchard tree pruning to groups of 2 - 4 students. Each cutting must have at least one leaf scar and one bud. Groups observe their cuttings and write down three characteristics of the twig. Conclusion Each group labels twigs, shares observations and conclusions with the class, places twigs in water for classroom display.