Celebrating Autumn with Your Children
Author: Meg H. Partington

As the leaves on some trees trade in their green coats for more perky hues, the young and curious may start asking some questions.

Why do the colors change? Why do some trees have yellow leaves and others have red? Why do the leaves fall off the trees?

If the words “chlorophyll” and “photosynthesis” haven’t passed your lips since elementary school science class, it’s time for a refresher. You can’t go on forever giving Jack Frost the credit for the glorious display of color.

In the spring and summer, leaves are busy manufacturing food for the trees on which they grow, according to the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service’s Web site, www.ces.ncsu.edu. The cells within the leaves hold a chemical called chlorophyll that gives leaves their green color, as well as other chemicals that create other colors.

Chlorophyll changes sunlight, water and carbon dioxide into sugars to feed the trees in a process called photosynthesis, according to the Web site for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, www.dnr.state.mn.us.

In the fall, the days get shorter, the nights get longer and the sun’s intensity decreases, causing the chlorophyll to die. With that gone, the leave’s true colors come shining through, said Ed Hazlett, head teacher at Fairview Outdoor Education Center in Clear Spring, Md.

Weather is a major factor in determining which colors will appear and their intensity. The most vivid colors follow a warm, dry summer and early fall rains, according to the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service’s Web site. Long stretches of wet weather in late fall can lead to drab colors, while drought conditions tend to result in primarily red displays, the site says.

Leaves directly exposed to the sun may turn red while those in the shade may turn yellow, according to the site. Some leaves just turn brown.

Tree species also helps determine leaf color. The leaves on maple trees can be bright yellow to red depending on the species, said Dick Zimmerman, extension horticulture specialist with the West Virginia University Tree Fruit Research and Education Center in Kearneysville, W.Va. A sugar maple’s leaves will turn gold, for instance, while a red maple’s leaves will turn red. Black oak and white oak trees yield leaves of brown in the fall, while a scarlet oak will sport burgundy, Zimmerman said. The leaves of a tulip poplar turn brilliant yellow, he said.

Trees belonging to the cone-bearing, or conifer group, don’t change color. Instead, they only shed some of their needles, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Web site.

After the leaves have decorated the skyline with a palette of color, it’s time for them to fall. Leaves are connected to a branch by the base of a leafstalk, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. A layer of cells develops and gradually severs the tissues supporting the leaf, causing them to fall.

Nature heals the break, though, leaving scars where the leaves used to be, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Above those scars, new leaves will bud the following spring.

There’s one more question that likely will be asked by the young and curious: Why should I bother raking when more leaves are going to fall?

The best answer to that question has no basis in science: Because I said so.

Here are some autumn activities that can be done with children:
* Give children sheets of green paper and send them outside to find a leaf of the exact same color. Doing so will teach them that hundreds of shades of green exist.
* Put paper on top of a newly fallen leaf and rub the paper with a crayon. An image of the leaf will appear. You can do the same thing with leaves that already have dried up; just put them in a microwave on high power for 30 seconds to soften them. To add even more color to your project, do leaf rubbings on sturdy paper and paint over the images with watered-down watercolors.
* Let children draw a tree with a crayon, then sponge paint leaves on with tempera paint, which cleans up easily with water.
* Let children draw a tree or start with a print of a tree on paper. To make leaves, cut 1-inch squares out of colored tissue. Wrap a piece of tissue around the flat end of a crayon, then dip the tissue in glue and press it onto the tree. Continue until the tree is full of colorful leaves.
* Create autumn trees by collecting leaves, the more colorful the better. To make a tree outline, trace a child’s hand (with fingers spread) and arm (up to the elbow) on a large piece of paper. Color the inside of the outline, then glue leaves onto the branches and around the base of the tree.
* Glue a leaf onto the center of a piece of paper, using it as a body. Draw a head, arms, legs, etc., or make it into any design you want.
* To make leaf prints, first put down lots of newspaper on your work surface. Paint one side of each leaf (not too thick). Carefully arrange leaves in one layer, paint side up, on clean newspaper. Place a piece of black construction paper over the top of the leaves and press gently.

— Sources: Ed Hazlett, head teacher at Fairview Outdoor Education Center in Clear Spring, Md.; Dale Wurster, an art teacher at Pleasant View Elementary School near Hedgesville, and North Berkeley Elementary School in Berkeley Springs; Mother’s Home Web site at www.mothers-home.com/activities/autumnacts.htm

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