American
Johnny Appleseed
A real man named John Chapman who walked west for years with a sack of apple seeds, planting trees he'd never sit under, so the people coming after him would find them already grown.
This Week · Caring for the Land · Earth Day
Caring for the Land: who takes care of the land — and how?
For littler ones: Who takes care of the land — the rain, the farmer, or you?
This week, with Earth Day on the calendar, we're wondering about the land — the dirt and the trees, the fields and the orchards that feed us. Who takes care of it, and how? It's a good one to turn over in the car or at the table, because the answer might be the rain, or a farmer, or a kid with a watering can — and everyone at your house will land somewhere different.
This week's stories
American
George Washington Carver: The Plant Doctor
Born into slavery, he grew up to be one of America's great scientists — the man who came to Alabama's Black farmers, whose soil had been worn out by cotton, and figured out how to bring it back to life with peanuts.
Talk about it
- When you think about who really takes care of the land, who comes to mind first — and who do you almost forget?
- Johnny Appleseed planted trees he knew he'd never sit under. Why do you think a person would do that?
- Is there a small piece of land near you — a yard, a park, a planter — that someone takes care of? What would happen if nobody did?
A new question every week.
Listen together in the app — short audio stories for kids 4–10, at bedtime, on the drive, in the drop-off line.
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