Fourth and fifth grade teachers tasked with educating their students about trees and the benefits they provide have a tool to help liven up their lessons — the 2011-12 Texas Arbor Day Poster Contest.
Learning to identify tree species — specifically our national tree, the oak — is the focus of this year’s state poster contest.
Sponsored by Texas Forest Service and open to both fourth and fifth grade students, the contest carries the theme Trees are Terrific from Acorn to Oak! Designed to boost environmental stewardship by teaching students how to identify different types of trees, lessons prompt students to create an identification key as well as a leaf and acorn collection.
The contest — and included environmental lessons — are correlated to the state curriculum for science and art, said Contest Coordinator Gretchen Riley.
“It’s just a fun way to educate students about the trees that surround us,” Riley said. “It’s not about forests somewhere else; it’s about trees where we live, trees that we see every day. Hopefully, the lesson will instill in them an environmental ethic that they can carry forward.”
Rules
- Both fourth and fifth grade students are eligible to participate.
- Posters may be no larger than 11 inches by 17 inches.
- The deadline for each school to submit its winning poster to Texas Forest Service is Dec. 16, 2011.
Prizes
- The winning student will receive a $500 savings bond and a year-long family pass for Texas state parks, as well as a framed copy of his or her poster and an invitation to the Texas Arbor Day ceremony in April 2012.
- The winning teacher will receive a personal iPad and $250 to go toward classroom supplies.
- The winning school will receive $250 for environmental books or supplies and a tree planted on the campus as part of an Arbor Day celebration.
For more information about the contest or to download the 2011-12 Activity Guide, visit the 2011-12 Texas Arbor Day Poster Contest website. Or, email Poster Contest Coordinator Gretchen Riley at postercontest@tfs.tamu.edu.