Preserve the Rain Forest

Transcription

1 The Rain Forests are very special places on Earth. This teaching module discusses the ecology, value and preservation of the World s Rain Forests 1. Importance of the Rain Forest 2. How the Rain Forests Evolved 3. Dangers to the Rain Forest 4. How we can Teaching Module 6

2 Do you know the Rain Forest? Here are 10 questions about the Rain Forest. Review the following pages and then have your child answer these questions. 1. How old are the Rain Forests? 2. How many of the World s animals live in the Rain Forest? 3. Why do people cut down Rain Forest trees? 4. Do we get some medicines from the Rain Forest? 5. When water leaves the Rain Forest where does it go? 6. Are the Rain Forests getting larger or smaller? 7. Where can you find a tropical Rain Forest? 8. Do people live in the Rain Forest? 9. When Rain Forest trees are cut down, do some animals lose their home? 10. What can you do to help preserve the Rain Forests? 10 Years 50 Years 1 Thousand 100 Million Years None One Half All of Them To get Wood To get land for Farming For Both Reasons Yes No To the Deserts To the Clouds To the Sun Larger Smaller In Alaska At the North Pole In Africa Yes Yes No No Reduce & Recycle Share Both of these /2 3. Both 4. Yes 5. Clouds 6. Smaller 7. Africa 8. Yes 9. Yes 10. Both Teaching Module 6 Quiz

3 1. The Importance of the Rain Forest Rain Forests are very important to people and all other living creatures in the World. Some people think of the Rain forest as the lungs of the World. As a person, you breathe air into your lungs to live. Well, the Rain Forest is just like your lungs. The trees and plants breathe in carbon dioxide and breathe out oxygen that people need. Did you know that the Amazon Rain Forest produces 20% of all the oxygen in the World? More than half of all the entire World s species of plants, animals and insects live in the tropical Rain Forests. 80% of the world's diet originally came from rain forests. This includes fruits like avocados, coconuts, figs, oranges, lemons, grapefruit, bananas and pineapples; vegetables including corn, potatoes, rice, winter squash and yams; spices like black pepper, cayenne, chocolate, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, sugar cane, coffee and vanilla and nuts including Brazil nuts and cashews. The Rain Forest plants also provide many important ingredients that are used in medicines throughout the World. The Rain Forests also provide people with wood, rubber and other important materials. Can you understand why the Rain Forests are so important to everyone? What would happen if we didn t have the Rain Forests anymore? We have to protect the Rain Forests so that they will always be there for us. Teaching Module 6 Page 1

4 2. How the Rain Forests Evolved The World s Rain Forests are very old, some have taken 100 million years to develop! Most Rain Forests are very warm and full of water. In fact, they receive more than 6 feet of rainfall each year. That s why so many plants and trees grow there. This wonderful climate is also the reason so many animals and insects live there. The Rain Forest is almost like a sponge. When it rains, the water is absorbed into the roots of all the trees. As the trees dry out, they put water back into the atmosphere where the water and mist collects to form clouds. Then, when it rains the cycle starts all over again. Just 50 years ago, the Rain Forests covered 15% of the land surface of the World. Today, Rain Forests only occupy 6 percent of the world's land surface. They are getting smaller and smaller every year which is not a good thing. Today s Rain Forests support over half of our planet's wild plants and trees and also one-half of the world's wildlife. There are many local people, sometimes called natives, that also live in the Rain Forests. They have been living there for many, many years. These native people have learned to live peacefully with the animals in harmony with the special environment of the forest. There are Rain Forests in every part of the World except Antarctica. They can be found in Africa, North & South America, Asia and Europe. There are actually two types of Rain Forests. Some are temperate and the others are called tropical rain forests. The largest temperate rain forests are found from Northern California up to Canada, and there are some small ones in Europe. The warmer tropical rain forests are mostly in South America, Africa and Asia. Teaching Module 6 Page 2

5 3. The Dangers to the Rain Forest Because the Rain Forests are home to so many plants, trees, animals and insects, they need to be protected so we will always have them. Sometimes people cut down the trees because they need wood to build houses and other things. Sometimes people cut down the trees to clear the land so they can plant food crops or raise cattle. Some people cut down the trees so they can dig for gold, diamonds and other minerals. While these things are important, it is also important to protect all the remaining Rain Forests for future generations. Because people are cutting down too many trees in the Rain Forest, some bad things are happening to the Rain Forests. When these forests are cut down, the plants and animals that live in the forests lose the place where they live and many of them die. For some animals, like the Pygmy Rhino and certain Gorillas, there are very few left in the World. If they lose their homes because too many forest trees are cut down, we will have no more of these rare animals left. Also, when too many trees are cut down, we lose the trees that produce the oxygen that people and animals need to breathe. That s not a good thing either. Since we get many medicines from the Rain Forest, if the Rain Forests get too small we may not be able to get enough medicines. So, everyone should remember how important the Rain Forests are, and why they have to be protected. Teaching Module 6 Page 3

6 4. How you can help? You have already learned that the Rain Forests are very important, and that they need to be protected. Every time you use a product made from the Rain Forest like wood, rubber and paper, it requires more trees to be cut down. But, there are many things you can do to help the Rain Forests, and reduce the amount of materials that are wasted. Here are some ideas: Reduce - Always try to reduce the things you use like tissues and paper towels. Use just 1 first. before asking for another. Reuse Use something a second time instead of taking a new item. You will reduce what you need from the rain forest. Sometimes you can wash something to make it look new again! Your Mommy washes your clothes so you can use them many times. If a toy breaks, ask your Mommy or Daddy to fix it like new again before you buy a new one. Recycle Take your old, used items like newspaper, wrapping paper and cans to a recycling center where they can be made brand new again. Share It s always a good idea to share your toys and clothes with your brother or sister or other children that need them. If you do these things, you can reduce waste and reduce the number of trees cut down in the Rain Forest. Did you know the CLICKABOO Blanket has a special feature for sharing? Look at the labels called PASS-IT-ON. You can write your name on the first label and then share the blanket with someone else who can put their name on it next. Try this idea with all your toys. Teaching Module 6 Page 4