Overview of Lesson		Body of Lesson - Procedure & Assessment
Connection to the Curriculum,Standards and Skills		Activity One and Student Assessment
Grade Level		Activity Two and Student Assessment
Purpose of Lesson		Activity Three and Student Assessment
Primary Geographic Question		Activity Four and Student Assessment
Secondary Questions		Assessment of Lesson
Materials		References

Overview of the Lesson

Plant and animal populations exhibit interrelated cycles of growth and decline.  They also possess measurable indicators of environmental health.  Altering the environment affects all life forms - including humans - and the interrelationships that link them.

Geography Standards

Standard 8:  The characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems on Earth's surface.

Standard 14:  How human actions modify the physical environment.

Alabama Course of Study:  Social Studies Content Standards (Grade 7)

Standard 7:  Evaluate the impact of human activity on the landscape over time.

Standard 12:  Predict the short and long term effects of human activity on the physical environment.

Geographic Skills

Acquiring geographic information: researching, identifying relationships and patterns, determining cause and effect, problem solving, extending. Appreciating environmental differences; using geography to help predict and determine areas of future concern; discover problems within the environment.

Grade 7

To analyze maps, and make graphs in order to better understand the characteristics of a tropical rainforest and observe how altering the environment positively and negatively affects a South American rainforest.

How does altering the environment in a South American rainforest affect life forms including humans and the interrelationships that link them?

How much of the earth's surface is covered by rainforests?

Describe the environment of a South American rainforest.

How has human intervention disturbed the ecosystems that exist in the rainforest?

What changes occur as a result of intervention?

• Transparencies (layers)
• Maps
• Globes
• Video-Rainforest Intruders
• The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry
• Encyclopedias
• Patterns of plants, animals, and trees from the rainforest
• Trade Books
• Butcher Paper
• Construction Paper
• Scissors
• Markers
• Crayons

Activity One

Secondary Question # 1:  How much of the earth's surface is covered by rainforest?

Read The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry aloud to students to introduce them to the rainforest.

Divide the students into groups of 4.  Give each group a globe and each student a map of the world.  Students will work together to locate the following places on the globe and mark it on their individual maps with a red dot.

Costa Rica
Ecuador
Nigeria
Guyana
Indonesia
Venezuela
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Malaysia
Columbia
Congo
Thailand
Suriname
India
Brazil Cameroon

Explain to students that these are places where tropical rainforests can be found and that rainforests cover only 7% of the Earth's surface.

Have students mark the Amazon Basin in South America on their map with a black X.  This rainforest will be the focus of our study.  Show students on the large wall map how the Amazon River snakes through the rainforest.

Assessing Student Learning: Activity One

Observe each group's map.  Students should be able to explain their work.

Activity Two

• Secondary Question # 2:  Describe the environment of a South American rainforest.
• Students will get out their base maps with the rainforests marked.  The teacher will lead a discussion on the environment of the rainforest that students have marked with an X.  Discussion will include:
• average rainfall
• animal species
• layers of the rainforest
• people who live there
• Working in groups, students will create bar graphs comparing local precipitation levels to precipitation levels in a South American rainforest.  Information will be researched through local t.v., local newspapers, informational books, encyclopedias, the Internet, and library resources.

Assessing Student Learning: Activity Two

Display bar graphs around the room  Graphs will reflect methods utilized to graph their information

Activity Three

• Secondary Question #3:  How has human intervention disturbed the ecosystems that exist in the rainforest?
• Show the video "Rainforest Intruders."  Discuss with students how humans move into the rainforest to take land from weak tribal people.  They cut the lumber from the land to sell which causes many species of animals to flee.  This disrupts the balance of the rainforest ecosystems.
• Teacher will simulate how environmental disasters disrupt ecosystems.  An oil spill in the Atlantic Ocean will disrupt the balance of a South American rainforest.  The oil kills sea otters.  Sea otters eat urchins. Without sea otters to eat urchins, urchin population increases.  Urchins feed on seaweed or kelp.  The abundance of urchins would graze down the seaweed.  The protective habitat of fish is now disturbed.  The chain continues.

Assessing Student Learning: Activity Three

Students will complete handout on Threat to the Rainforest.

Activity Four

• Secondary Question #4: What changes occur as a result of human intervention?
• Teacher will invite any speaker to speak to the class about the rainforest.  The focus will be on climate, the decline of the rainforest and medicines that have been discovered as a result of studying the rainforest.

Assessing Student Learning: Activity Four

On chart paper, the class will compare pro's and con's of human intervention to the rainforest.  We will have a class vote on whether or not we believe the benefits of disruption outweigh the negative.

The class will make a rainforest mural.  Students will brainstorm to determine the overall look of the mural.  Materials needed will be identified and supplied by the teacher.  The class will work in groups of four and each group will be responsible for doing any additional research to make their part of the mural accurate.  They must coordinate their product with other groups.  The mural will consist of plants and trees which should include an accurate depiction of the layers, mammals which should reflect only those found in a South American rainforest, insects and reptiles found only in a South American rainforest, and a tribal group that might be found there.  The mural can be colored, chalked, cut out of construction paper and will be placed on a large piece of butcher paper.

Baker, L.  Life in the Rainforests.  Scholastic, 1993, New York.

Chery, L.  The Great Kapok Tree.  Teacher Created Materials, 1997, New York
.
DePauw, D.  Tropical Rainforests.  Evan Moor, 1993, Monterey, CA.

Eisele, S.  (1997) Who Lives in the Rainforest?

StarkNet.  (1997)  Rainforest.

Ward, P. and Ward, B.  Resourceful Rain Forest.  Carson Dellosa, 1998, New York.