The boy in the story gathers the tree's leaves from the ground. Use a die cutting machine to create different colored leaves in shades of green, red, yellow, and brown. Place them in a brown paper bag and ask the child to pick out a handful of the leaves. Ask him to count the number of leaves he pulls out of the bag. For an older child, have him sort the leaves my color and then represent the results using a bar or line graph. If you live in an area where fall leaves are plentiful, you need not make your own leaves, you can simply gather them from the ground.
When the boy is older, the tree in the story provides him with apples to sell. Make a class cookbook with apple recipes. Ask the student to bring in her favorite recipe from home that uses apples as an ingredient. Have each student write her recipe on a piece of paper. Include a photo of the child making the recipe or of the final product. Combine all of the recipes and bind them together. Make copies of the class book and allow the child to take this home. Also, place a copy of the book in the classroom library.
One of the main characters in this story is the tree. Have a child research and study his favorite tree. Ask him to create a science project board showcasing this type of tree. Request that the he Include basic facts and pictures on the board. Provide the child with research material to use on his project board from your local library or garden center. Have him present the board to the class and then display the student projects around the room.
The main lesson of "The Giving Tree" involves giving back to those you love. Ask the child to chose one person in the community to whom he can give something back. The child can choose any person or organization that has done something for either her or her family. An example might include a physician who helped her when she was sick. Have the child create a project to give back to that person to thank him for his community contribution. You might suggest a personalized gift or thank you letter created by the child.