New
New
Year 2

The festival of trees

I can explain how Jews celebrate the festival of trees.

New
New
Year 2

The festival of trees

I can explain how Jews celebrate the festival of trees.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The festival of trees (Tu B'Shevat) marks the gift of trees as part of creation.
  2. Some Jews celebrate this with a special seder, including different kinds of fruits.
  3. The story of Honi and the tree reminds Jews of having a long-term perspective on caring for the environment.

Keywords

  • Tu B'Shevat - Jewish festival of trees

  • Seder - a meal that follows a pattern or order

  • Steward - someone who looks after something carefully

Common misconception

The festival of trees is only about looking after trees.

It is more widely concerned with caring for the world.


To help you plan your year 2 religious education lesson on: The festival of trees, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Make the most of outdoor areas, local nature parks etc to look at and appreciate the importance of trees for life and health. Pupils could taste different kinds of fruit or create their own fruit 'seder'. Look online for pronunciation of Tu B'Shevat.
Teacher tip

Equipment

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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4 Questions

Q1.
Which Christian festival does this show?
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: harvest, Harvest
Q2.
Which Jewish festival does this photo come from?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: Sukkot
Shabbat
Pesach
Q3.
The festival of Harvest celebrates God's gift of ...
Jesus
Correct answer: creation
Holy Spirit
Q4.
When Jews make a sukkah, what must it be like?
strong and able to keep out rain
Correct answer: able to see the stars from inside it
have room to sleep overnight

4 Questions

Q1.
What activity do many Jews do to mark Tu B’Shevat?
sleep in a sukkah
light candles
Correct answer: plant trees
Q2.
What is this special meal eaten at Tu B’Shevat by some Jews?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: seder
sukkah
shabbat
Passover
Q3.
Can you put the story of Honi and the trees in order?
1 - Honi prayed for rain.
2 - He saw an old woman planting a tree.
3 - He said 'Why are you planting a tree? It will take years to grow!'
4 - The old woman said she was planting the tree for her grandchildren.
Q4.
For many Jews, caring for the world means being a good of creation.
person
helper
Correct answer: steward

Additional material

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