Project:

INVITATION

How can we introduce students to basic ecological concepts and help them understand the delicate interdependence of plants, animals, and the physical environment? How can we give students an appreciation of the complex architecture and biodiversity of the earth's rainforests? How can we encourage students to think critically about global issues?

TASKS

Students work in teams to explore a virtual rainforest and then research the pros and cons of a proposal to log and mine a large area of rainforest. Representing different points of view, the teams prepare their ideas for discussion and debate the fate of the rainforest in a Town Meeting.

TOOLS

Computers; the Internet; Sherlock; iMovie (optional).

AppleWorks; A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe; Mapmaker's Toolkit; World Book Encyclopedia.

Carmen Sandiego Word Detective (optional); a Web page editor, such as Adobe PageMill or Netscape Composer (optional).

INTERACTIONS

Students research the basics of the rainforest ecosystem in pairs; they then work in their role-playing teams (Botanists, Logging and Mining Company Representatives, Indigenous People, and Wildlife Conservationists) for the remainder of the project. In Phase 2, members of the role-play teams work together to become familiar with their roles, and in Phase 4 they assume their roles in the Town Meeting context, with one group member serving as a main spokesperson. The teacher introduces the project, provides general guidance throughout, and serves as Moderator in the Town Meeting. During the Town Meeting, both students and teacher may interact with audience members.

<STANDARDS

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SITUATIONS

Students do their research in a location with computers and Internet access; they organize their research and create materials in the classroom. The Town Meeting is held in a space that can accommodate the expected number of audience members.

Phase 1 can be expected to take an hour or more, not including preparation of the short report, and Phase 2 should occupy the good part of a day. Phase 3 may take several hours, and the Town Meeting in Phase 4 should be scheduled for a block of time at least two hours long.

ASSESSMENT

For Phase 1, the teacher and students can develop a checklist to help pairs evaluate their short reports. The checklist can be in the form of the following types of questions that might be asked by a person who wanted to learn about rainforests: Where are the world's rainforests located? How much rain does a rainforest receive in a year? How is a rainforest different from a regular forest?

For Phases 2 and 4, the teacher can use a rubric to assess each group's contribution to the Town Meeting according to rationale, persuasiveness, representation of the group's interests, and clarity of delivery.

Tropical rainforests are among the most diverse ecosystems on Earth, but they are also rapidly disappearing. As rainforests are cut down to make use of their valuable hardwood trees and to clear the land for farming, grazing, mining, and home-building, many species are becoming extinct and others are becoming endangered. In addition, the loss of rainforests disrupts the cultures of the peoples who live in them.

In this project, students prepare for and implement a dynamic Town Meeting to address a proposal to log the tropical hardwood trees in a rainforest and then mine the mineral wealth in the earth below. Students work in teams to play the roles of Logging and Mining Company Representatives, Botanists, Indigenous People, and Wildlife Conservationists. They then come together in the Town Meeting to discuss the issues and decide on a plan of action.

Phase 1: Researching the rainforest

Ask students, working in pairs, to use A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe to learn about the rainforest as an ecosystem. They can begin by exploring the "Discovery" section of the program, accessed by clicking the globe in the main menu.

Pairs continue their research by investigating the Field Guide, where they can learn about the plants and animals that live in the rainforest and the ecological connections among them. They can further their investigation by reading the article "Tropical Rain Forest" in World Book Encyclopedia and by visiting some of the Web sites recommended at the end of this project. Using AppleWorks, each pair then prepares a short report based on their research that describes the important features of rainforest ecosystems. These reports should describe the rainforest's multi-level architecture, high species diversity, and climatic features, as well as its importance to humans. Reports can also include maps, created in Mapmaker's Toolkit, that show the location of the world's major rainforests.

Phase 2: Researching the issues

Working now in their role-playing teams, students use A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe and other resources to learn more about the important issues surrounding development of the Earth's remaining rainforests. They become familiar with the points of view of the groups they represent and begin to prepare supporting materials for the Town Meeting:

Botanists: Botanists are concerned about the fragility of the rainforest ecosystem and the impact of logging and mining. They also know about the plant products that can be harvested sustainably from the forest, and want to help the indigenous people make a living in this way. Members of this group can become familiar with their role by exploring in greater detail the "Plant" section of the Field Guide in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe, and by looking in the "Rainforest Resources" section of the program to learn about the rainforest products that can be harvested without harming the ecosystem. Then they can use the Journal feature of A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe to create a Consumer Guide highlighting the sustainable products. Students can use the Step-by-Step Card "Using the Journal in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe" for assistance.

Logging and Mining Company Representatives: The logging and mining companies hope to profit from the proposed development, but they also believe the logging and mining activities will provide the local indigenous people with jobs and a better economic future. Students in this group can use World Book Encyclopedia to research the economies, natural resources, and major industries of developing countries with rainforests (such as Brazil, Congo [Kinshasa], and Indonesia), paying particular attention to the economic role of timber harvesting and mining. Students can use the "Searching World Book Encyclopedia" Step-by-Step Card for help in their research. They can use AppleWorks to create posters and billboards to show the economic benefits of logging and mining for the indigenous community.

Indigenous People: Some of the local indigenous people are opposed to the logging and mining proposal because they fear it will end their traditional way of life and destroy their culture; others are in favor of it because of the jobs that will be created. To appreciate these points of view, students in this group can use the Field Guide in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe to learn about three different groups of people who live in the rainforest. Students can prepare reports on each of these groups and include information about how human development of their rainforest homes has impacted them. This group can look for more information about rainforest peoples living in the Amazon Basin and Indonesia by searching in World Book Encyclopedia and by using Sherlock to search the Internet. Students can use the Step-by-Step Cards "Searching World Book Encyclopedia" and "Searching With Sherlock 2" for help with their research.

Wildlife Conservationists: Like the botanists, the wildlife conservationists are knowledgeable about the delicate balance of the rainforest ecosystem, but they are concerned particularly about the rainforest animals that are endangered by continued human destruction of the rainforest habitat. Students in this group can learn about rainforest animals by exploring the "Animals" section of the Field Guide in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe. They can then use the Journal feature to illustrate and explain how various animals adapt to life in the rainforest, using the Step-by-Step Card "Using the Journal in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe" for assistance. They can also create a poster showing the five layers of the rainforest, with each animal placed in its appropriate niche, and include information about how each animal depends on an intact rainforest ecosystem, with its other plants and animals, to survive.

	Using the Journal in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe
	Searching World Book Encyclopedia
	Searching With Sherlock 2
	Searching World Book Encyclopedia 2001

Phase 3: Preparing for the Town Meeting

Meeting in their role-playing teams, students use the results of their research to prepare questions and statements on topics for a Town Meeting. Each team should prepare a two-minute position statement that summarizes their group's concerns and interests. Teams should also prepare questions for the other groups as well as responses for questions they may be asked. Students can use the Journal in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe or AppleWorks to organize their material.

Work with the whole class to develop an agenda for the Town Meeting. Be sure to include the needs and ideas of each group. Discuss and decide on the rules and format for the meeting.

Ask students to use AppleWorks painting and drawing documents to create posters and postcards inviting family members and other students to the meeting. Students can also use AppleWorks to write a press release or newspaper article announcing the event to the public.

Phase 4: Holding the Town Meeting

As the Moderator, you review the agenda with the audience. You then introduce the topic under discussion and explain what work has been done to date.

Each group nominates a spokesperson to present its position statement along with supporting evidence. After each group has been heard, allow time for groups to pose questions to the other groups. The agenda might include time for questions and comments from the audience as well.

The remainder of the Town Meeting should be spent working out an action plan. By making proposals, discussing them, and voting, the groups should be able to resolve the issue in some way. The resolution can range from voting down the proposed logging and mining plan to accepting it, but as Moderator, you may want to encourage students to craft some kind of compromise that recognizes the interests of each group represented at the meeting.

After the Town Meeting, put the action plan into writing.

Vocabulary: Adaptation, Canopy, Diversity, Endangered Species, Greenhouse Effect, Sustainable, Unsustainable.

Phase 1: The Journal in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe is a word processor where you can compose your reports, complete with text and pictures. The Journal (pencil and paper icon) has two "levels." When you click the Journal icon, a small Note Taker window appears. Here, you can type some quick thoughts and ideas. Each time the Note Taker is closed, the text you typed is saved until you proceed to the next Journal level by clicking the Journal button in Note Taker.

PREPARATION

Working with the whole class, introduce the three rainforest regions: Southeast Asia (Burma, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines), Africa (Congo [Kinshasa] and Madagascar), and South America (Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Guyana). Use World Book Encyclopedia, the Internet, and the Discovery Screens in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe as sources of images and information.

Use the camera tool in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe and Internet resources to collect and print pictures of plants and animals to mount and display in the classroom.

If students are unfamiliar with the Journal feature in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe, make copies of the Step-by-Step Card "Using the Journal in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe."

OPTIONS AND EXTENSION ACTIVITIES

Students can use the Terms Book in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe as a resource to identify words and terms that are new to them. Students can also enter the new terms into the Spellanyzer in Carmen Sandiego Word Detective and practice spelling them.

As a preparatory activity, you can invite students to look for and share examples of poetry that address themes related to rainforests and endangered species. See the "Resources" section, later in this project, for a list of books they can use.

Students can make rainforest picture books to share with younger students. The student authors might want to include their illustrations as line drawings, and invite the younger students to color them. Students can use AppleWorks or the Journal feature in A Field Trip to the Rainforest Deluxe, to make their books.

Students can chronicle the Town Meeting in a Web page. Each group creates a Web page that presents its position and includes links to other Web sites with supporting evidence. A main page can then be created with links to each position page.

Students can create a 2-dimensional rainforest scene as a bulletin board to show the unique balance of the rainforest ecosystem.

Students can write poems to express newfound discoveries, reactions, feelings, or concerns about the rainforest. Or they could write a script for a short play about the rainforest and make a desktop movie of that production, using digital camcorders and iMovie.

If you have digital camcorders and iMovie software, consider having students film part or all of the Town Meeting. A project like this would give students good practice in editing techniques, since much of the footage would ultimately need to be cut to keep the size of the desktop movie manageable and to highlight the important parts of the meeting. For help using iMovie, go to the Desktop Movies in Education Web site.

THE HOME-SCHOOL CONNECTION

Students can invite family members to the Town Meeting and discuss with them the issues presented there. As a follow-up, they can explore rainforest conservation programs on the Internet with their families.

Students can discuss with their families how they can help rainforest conservation efforts by buying certain products and not others. Determining which products are good for the rainforests and which are harmful can become a family research project.