REDUCING YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT

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1 REDUCING YOUR 4 Stimulus Cards To Build Writing Skills And Environmental Awareness

2 ECO Write REDUCING YOUR ECO WRITE Cards ECO WRITE cards contain images, information and activities to increase awareness of global and environmental issues for students through writing in a variety of genres. The focus is on individual and small group work with discussion at whole class level, using the CD-ROM supplied in this pack to facilitate projection on a whiteboard. CONTENTS Card 1 Card 2 Card 3 Card 4 Card 5 Card 6 Card 7 Card 8 Greenhouse Gas Carbon Footprint Global Warming Saving Energy Saving Water Recycling Composting Transport Card 9 Card 10 Card 11 Card 12 Card 13 Card 14 Card 15 Card 16 Solar Power Burning Fossil Fuels Oil And Gas Plant A Tree Issues With Food Shopping Problems Wind Power Earth Energy Acknowledgements Les Ray Published by ECO Publishing International Ltd., 2010 ISBN The right of Les Ray to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the copyright Designs and Patents Act All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any form or any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except pages marked copiable page which can be photocopied for use within the purchasing institution only. Requests for permission to reproduce any part of this publication must be obtained in writing from the publisher. The publisher can be contacted by at info@ecopublishinginternational.com Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders and obtain their permission for the use of copyright material. The publisher will gladly receive information enabling them to rectify any error or omission in subsequent editions. Printed on recycled paper.

3 ECO WRITE Card 1 Greenhouse Gas

4 ECO WRITE REDUCING YOUR Greenhouse Gas What s the issue? Carbon dioxide is one of the greenhouse gases (1% of the atmosphere). If the proportion of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increases it will become warmer. It could become too warm to support life as we know it. A carbon footprint is calculated to include all the greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere. What you need to know... The Earth s atmosphere is made up of nitrogen (about 78%) and oxygen (about 21%). These gases are important for plants and animals. They have very little effect on the climate. Other gases, e.g. carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone and water vapour have an effect on our climate. Diary writing 1. Imagine the earth s temperature has risen because of the greenhouse effect. The ice-caps are melting; sea-levels have risen. The temperature is hotter. Crops no longer grow properly. There are often tropical storms. Write a diary of your life over a week, describing the difficulties you face and how you are managing. 2. Keep a personal energy saving diary in which to record efforts made to cut down on carbon dioxide emissions. Let s plan it... Use a chart to help plan your detail. What s happening? What s the effect? Use the picture. How does this add to global warming? How might people wish to change this? Think about the characteristics of the diary format: day-to-day account, talking about yourself ( I ), non-formal language, using details personal to you, describing how you think and feel, past and present tense.

5 ECO WRITE Card 2 Carbon Footprint

6 ECO WRITE REDUCING YOUR Carbon Footprint What s the issue? The carbon footprint of an individual, household can be calculated. This enables carbon saving to be measured. It is important that we know this so we can reduce our effect on the environment. A carbon footprint is calculated to include all the greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere. What you need to know... In the UK, Directgov has its own calculator: actonco2. In the USA, the US Environmental Protection Agency site ( gov) has a calculator. The Global Footprint Network ( also has useful resources. See also www. kidsfootprint.org. Report writing 1. Look at the picture. List and then write a report about the effects of what is happening on our environment. What could be changed to stop this damage? 2. Write an account for a history text-book about the effects of burning fossil fuels in the past in cities: for example, smog in London in Victorian times. 3. Write a report about what manufacturers of household appliances such as washing machines are doing to reduce our carbon footprint. Let s plan it... In your introduction think about: who, what, when and where. Each paragraph should be in the sequence of events that happened. Take one point at a time in each paragraph. At the end - what has happened or what may happen next? Use the first or third person. Use the past tense. What words could you use that give a sense of passing time? Use direct quotations from others or reported speech.