National Arbor Day was initiated by settler J. Sterling Morton and his wife Caroline who enjoyed the forest and vegetation of their original residence in Detroit, Michigan. Mr. Morton often wrote about trees in the local newspaper to encourage others to join in his family's effort to plant trees in the area. Students in the eighth grade can reinforce the knowledge of the Arbor Day founder by writing student-written newspaper articles, either set in at the time of the Mortons or designed for present-day audiences. All stories can be combined into an Arbor Day school paper. Alternatively, students can create an oral news report about the founding of Arbor Day and its significance.
While a member of the Nebraska State Board of Agriculture in 1872, Morton proposed to set one day aside for planting trees. He offered a $100 award to the county that collectively planted the most trees, and a $25 award to the farm library that planted the largest number of trees. In keeping with this spirit, have your eight grade class sponsor a tree planting contest at your school. Teh eight graders can make tree-centered art projects such as canvas art, sculptures and three-dimensional displays as prizes to award to the class that plants the most trees during a set amount of time.
Only three short years after the first Nebraskan Arbor Day was observed, other states began to follow suit. By 1920, 45 of the U.S. states initiated a formal Arbor Day, but many at different times and months of the year due to the climate in different areas of the country. The effort is now celebrate in all 50 states annually. Develop an eighth-grade activity to spread Arbor Day to others in the community by instructing each student to devise an original idea for an Arbor Day awareness poster. Encourage area businesses to post the art in their store windows.
April 22 is known as J. Sterling Morton's birth date, and was proclaimed by the state of Nebraska to be the official state Arbor Day. In 1882, the American Forestry Congress celebrated by planting trees before 50,000 people in the Cincinnati area of Ohio. Celebrate Arbor Day in your middle-school classroom by developing a reader's theater presentation on the history of the holiday or plant a tree in honor of someone in the community who has gone beyond expectations to ensure that trees are cared for and green spaces maintained.