What do living things need, and who helps them get it?
Students will be able to
Design a short interactive story featuring a tree using various images, backgrounds, and text.
Code speech recognition to help the tree grow within the story.
Write a 'Tree Keeper Promise' detailing how they will care for trees.
Key vocabulary
rootsseedtrunk
Assessment
Formative
Use milestone checks, organizer responses, and daily test evidence to guide feedback.
Summative
The fact accurately connects a tree need to growth, and the promise describes a realistic action that supports that need. Saying the intended word produces the promised growth response, and the title and pages form a coherent short tree story.
The student journey
From reading to an interactive project
Elementari is a browser-based tool for creating illustrated, interactive stories and projects. Students plan their writing in the Student Kit, then add it to a digital project in the editor, called Studio.
1
📖
Read
The reading provides background knowledge or a model of writing for students to draw on. The lesson plan explains its connection to the project.
📖The Biggest Tree on Earth Started Smaller Than Your Fingernail
In a forest in California stands the biggest tree on Earth. It is called General Sherman. It is taller than a 20-story building, and wider than a classroom. Now here is the amazing part. That giant began as a seed smaller than your fingerna…
Students use the Student Kit's storyboard to plan and draft their project. Choose High Support, Guided Support, or Independent to adjust the writing scaffolds.
Student mission
Grow a talking tree story with your own voice.
2Student Kit · sneak peek
High Support
The Story of ___ the Tree.
Key Words from the Passagerootsseedtrunk
Glossary a kid-friendly definition for every key term
In the studio, students bring the project to life — adding art and following the exact writing and coding steps shown below. The Studio Compass walks them through it, one step at a time.
🧭Studio CompassStep 1 / 6
Pre-Writing with Your Worksheet 📘
Think about what trees needs to grow. Draw your ideas and write a few words on how you will help your tree. Use the worksheet to help ( PDF or Google Doc ).
Key words — tap to learnon pronounce block
Each step checks off & advances on its own
All 6 studio steps · dynamic to the project
1Pre-Writing with Your Worksheet 📘
2Create Your Story Title 🌟
3Write About Tree Needs 🌱
4Help Your Tree Grow with Your Voice 🎤
5Make a Tree Keeper Promise 🌳
6Finish and Share Your Story 🤗
4
🔁
Polish
ongoing
Teacher and peer feedback pin right onto the project — students revise until it's ready to share.
Feedback on the project2 pins
🍎
Add one more sentence here so readers get the full picture.
👍 2Teacher
A
The interaction is clear — it helps the reader follow the project!
Students finish and test their projects. Work submitted through a class goes to the teacher for review; publishing a project makes it public with a shareable link.
Open these resources as web pages, then use Print to print them or save a PDF. The Student Kit supports the writing; Studio provides the on-screen build steps.
A couple of things to gather, a few quick steps to prep — then you're ready to hand it to students.
What you need
One device per student or pair
Internet connection
Student Kit or printed organizer
Working microphone
Quiet space for voice-command testing
A device per student or pair
A microphone (for recording or speech-trigger activities)
Prep before class
1Preview the designated builder story.
2Review the ordered milestones and Student Kit.
3Decide whether students work independently or in pairs.
Teacher background
What you need to know
Key terms
roots
the parts of a tree that grow underground and drink water
seed
the tiny beginning of a plant
trunk
the thick main stem of a tree
Watch for these misconceptions
✕
The sentence lists a resource but does not explain how it supports growth. →Add because and name the root, leaf, or growth process involved.
✕
The spoken trigger word differs from the important word in the sentence. →Circle the exact word the READER will say and select that same word in the pronounce event.
Standards alignment
Aligned to the standards you teach
Every task maps to a specific standard, so planning and reporting are covered.
Tracking 7 frameworks: Common Core ELA, Common Core Math, NGSS +4
Test and debug a program or algorithm to ensure it runs as intended.
1A-AP-12
Develop plans that describe a program’s sequence of events, goals, and expected outcomes.
Also addressed1B-AP-13 · 1A-AP-15 · 1B-AP-11 · 1B-AP-17
ISTE
ISTE Standards for Students
11 standards
ISTE 1.4.a
Students know and use a deliberate design process for generating ideas, testing theories, creating innovative artifacts, or solving authentic problems.
ISTE 1.4.c
Students develop, test, and refine prototypes as part of a cyclical design process.
ISTE 1.6.d
Students publish or present content that customizes the message and medium for their intended audiences.
ISTE 1.5.d
Students understand how automation works and use algorithmic thinking to develop a sequence of steps to create and test automated solutions.
Also addressedISTE 1.3.a · ISTE 1.3.b · ISTE 1.1.c · ISTE 1.6.b · ISTE 1.6.c · ISTE 1.5.c · ISTE 1.3.d
AASL
AASL National School Library Standards
3 standards
AASL I.A.1
Learners display curiosity and initiative by formulating questions about a personal interest or a curricular topic.
Also addressedAASL I.B.1 · AASL I.B.3
NGSS
Next Generation Science Standards
1 standard
NGSS 2-LS2-1
Plan and conduct an investigation to determine if plants need sunlight and water to grow.
Full task-by-task mapping — including Depth of Knowledge — is in the answer key.
Differentiation & accessibility
Choose the writing support
These are the three support options in the Student Kit. Choose the scaffolds students need while keeping the same project.
High Support
More writing scaffolds
Sentence frames break the response into manageable parts
Supplied words and ideas help students get started
Students still have space to write their responses
Guided Support
A starting point for writing
Task prompts and selected sentence starters
Writing cues and word banks where supplied
Space to develop each response
Independent
Less scaffolding
The same project and required writing tasks
Open response space without the support frames
Students develop their own wording
Accessibility, built inPredictable step-by-step structureOne task at a time · Studio CompassHighlighted response areasLow-stimulation printMovement-friendly pacingDesigned so every student can design, write, and code — with ADHD, autism, and dyslexia in mind.
Questions
Teacher FAQ
Do I — or my students — need to know how to code?
No prior coding knowledge is required to start. Students follow on-screen build steps in Studio. Coding difficulty describes the project's complexity; teachers may still need to help students test and revise. The lesson plan supports teaching, and the Answer Key provides sample writing responses.
How long does this lesson take?
About 50, paced into 45-minute class periods. You can spread it out or compress it — students pick up where they left off, so it doesn't have to finish in one sitting.
What devices does this lesson work on?
Use a Chromebook, laptop, desktop or tablet with a modern browser and an internet connection. The project editor does not support phones. Try the build on your class devices before teaching.
What is Studio Compass?
Studio Compass is the step-by-step guide inside the Studio. It shows students what to do next, identifies the exact coding blocks they need, and confirms completed milestones so they can keep moving independently.
How does this lesson support different learners?
The Student Kit has High Support, Guided Support and Independent writing profiles. They change the amount of scaffolding for the same project. Choose a profile in the kit before printing, and use the lesson plan's differentiation suggestions.
Ready when you are
Bring this lesson to your class
Import your class, assign in one click, and watch them build — the whole kit comes with it.
