I did a report too ! !
It was about Japan!
It was also about fish.
Did you know that Michinomiya Hirohito was interested in fish or at least fish-like, that is to say water-dwelling, creatures? If they remain "creatures" after eating their own brains. Why would they do that? Because they start off as wriggling tadpole things moving around and needing to see where they're going or perhaps navigating by bumping into things, “Ow! I'd better turn left!” (or other response if they don't have language) anyway via whatever means they arrive at their destination.
Then they attach themselves to a rock and become sea squirts, for example. If something fell on them it would hurt, since they can't now move. By digesting their brains and/or eyes that suffering becomes impossible. In this way we know that trees don't feel anything when they're cut down. The mechanism by which sensation is interpreted does not exist in trees because they can't move. When sea squirts can move, some such mechanism does exist. When they become fixed, it dissolves to nothing. Therefore trees are not sentient.