Rainforest Van Teacher Packet - The Living Planet Aquarium

35 Pages·2012·4.55 MB·English

Rainforest Van

The Living Planet Aquarium
Explore, Discover, Learn

Education Program Sponsors and Partners:

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Rainforest Van Teacher Packet

For more information about outreach programs
&
to schedule a visit contact:

Outreach Manager

725 East 10600 South
Sandy, UT 84094
(801) 355-FISH (3474), ext. 210
Fax: [phone]
[email protected]

Or visit our website
http://www.thelivingplanet.com

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Table of Contents

Why is there an aquarium in a desert? ..................................................... 4
Education Programs Overview ............................................................... 5 - 6
Rainforest Van Program Checklist ............................................................. 7
Science Language Students Should Use ……………………………………………. 8
Background Information .……................................................................ 9-11
Pre-visit Lesson ..................................................................................... 12-28
Post-visit Lesson ................................................................................... 29-33
Teacher Resources ............................................................................... 34-35
Teacher Packet – Last Updated on 10/11/2012

Why is there an aquarium in a desert?

Where else in the world is water so valued and respected? It’s a precious
resource that defines how we live in Utah. Because we’re not surrounded by
oceans and immense water habitats, we have fewer opportunities to experience,
understand, and appreciate the water environments that cover more than 70
percent of our planet. The Living Planet Aquarium brings animals to people who
might not have the chance to see them or their water-based ecosystems in a
natural setting.

Our children are the future custodians of the environment, yet the majority of
today’s young people don’t have the opportunity to understand the ocean or their
own water-dependent environments. The Living Planet Aquarium provides a
“living classroom,” educating us all about our interdependence on our living
planet’s fragile ecosystems.

The Living Planet Aquarium is dedicated to celebrating life on Earth by fostering a
greater awareness and knowledge of Earth’s diverse ecosystems and creating a
deeper understanding of our place in the global system of life.

The Living Planet Aquarium is committed to providing opportunities for families to
learn about our interdependence with the fragile ecosystems of our planet
through entertaining, interactive, educational exhibits and programs. Having this
aquarium provides us with countless opportunities to understand and respect this
precious resource and the living habitats it supports, both in Utah and in our
planet’s oceans.

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Teacher Packet – Last Updated on 10/11/2012

Education Programs Overview

Field Trips:
We currently offer Self-guided visits as well as EcoVenture Classes for grades PreK-12th.
Every EcoVenture Class correlates with the Utah State Core Curriculum guidelines by grade level,
as well as the National Science Standards and Utah Environmental Education Guidelines. This
integrated, purpose-driven approach provides for a rich and interesting field trip for students.
EcoVenture Classes are free to all public/charter Utah school groups.
Any school group may schedule a Self-guided visit. All Title I school groups receive free
admission. There are also a limited number of free admissions to other public/charter Utah
school groups. More information about our field trips can be found at our website:
http://www.thelivingplanet.com/index.php/field-trips

Outreach Programs:
We currently offer our Rainforest Van Program free to 2nd grade public/charter Utah students
and our Utah Waters Van Programs free to 4th grade public/charter Utah students. Our outreach
programs correlate with the Utah State Core Curriculum by grade level. This integrated, purpose-
driven approach provides for a rich and interesting educational opportunity for students. More
information about our outreach programs can be found at our website:
http://www.thelivingplanet.com/index.php/outreach-programs

Professional Development:
The Living Planet Aquarium offers free teacher workshops to public/charter Utah teachers. The
primary goal of these workshops is to support effective science instruction in the classroom by
training teachers to engage students with important, relevant science content, equipment and
resources, practical applications, and classroom activities.
Utah’s Unique Environments: The Utah’s Unique Environments workshop is specifically for
4th grade teachers. This workshop explores Utah’s three major environments: deserts,
forests, and wetlands. In this workshop teacher attendees become “4th grade students,” as
they participate in the experiments and activities just as their own students will do. This
allows the teachers to transfer workshop content in such a way that their 4th grade students
obtain a deeper understanding of what characteristics make up Utah’s environments, learn
the importance of each of these environments, and study the amazing animals and plants
that live in these habitats. Students observe their own environment up close, learn how to
ask questions, and employ scientific inquiry to help answer their questions. Classroom
materials that each teacher receives assist in transforming the classroom into a young
naturalist’s headquarters.
Project WET: TLPA has collaborated with USEE to offer Project WET workshops for teachers
of all grade levels. Project Wet is a FREE internationally recognized program that enhances
participants’ learning about water! Activities in the Project WET Curriculum and Activity Guide
are correlated with state and national formal education standards. Using interactive, hands-
on, cross-curricular, and often inquiry-based methods of learning, participants increase their
understanding about water.

Interested in attending or hosting a teacher resource program workshop?
Contact the Outreach Manager for more information:
[email protected] (801) 355-FISH (3474), ext. 210

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Teacher Packet – Last Updated on 10/11/2012

Rainforest Van Program Overview

Thank you for allowing The Living Planet Aquarium’s Rainforest Van to present to your
2nd grade students. We look forward to visiting you!

So that our visit will run smoothly, your teacher packet provides an overview of the
visit and a checklist of things to accomplish before, during, and after your experience
with us.

Our core-based program is designed to be an exciting complement to what you are
doing in the classroom. The Living Planet Aquarium’s education team examined the
Utah State Office of Education’s Core Curriculum for 2nd grade and created our
program and activities to reinforce those standards and objectives. Later in your
teacher packet, we list which standards and objectives we cover in our visit.

We begin our 55-minute program with an introduction to tropical rainforests and
mapping skills. Students will “travel” across continents identifying locations of
tropical rainforests around the world. Throughout the program, students will have the
opportunity to observe live rainforest animals up close and connect their ideas with
evidence to make conclusions about how the animals survive in their rainforest
home. Students will see amphibians and reptiles, such as a rainbow boa, crested
gecko, white’s tree frog, and lots more!

Since the start of the Rainforest Van program in 2002, the Rainforest Van has
reached thousands of students in several of Utah’s school districts! Thank you for
helping us make our program a huge success!

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Teacher Packet – Last Updated on 10/11/2012

Rainforest Van Program Checklist

The Living Planet Aquarium appreciates your help in making our visit to your school with the
Rainforest Van successful!

Please provide the following:

1. Copies of all pre-visit materials (documents are attached) to each participating teacher. It
is vital to the success of the program that each teacher is provided with visit information in
a timely manner.

2. A wheelchair accessible room large enough to accommodate an entire class. A classroom,
gym, or auditorium will work as long as there are doors that can be closed. Our Educators
will need to stay set up for the entire duration of the visit.

3. Consistent teacher presence and assistance with classroom management.

4. School lunch for two educators if our visit occurs over lunch period.

5. Please inform our Educators prior to our program if you have any students with special
needs, or if you have a class pet.

6. Please inform your school office staff of our visit and our arrival time.

The following are animals we may bring to your school:
Madagascar Hissing Cockroach White’s Tree Frog
Giant Cave Cockroach Giant African Millipede
Rainbow Boa Constrictor Halloween Moon Crab
Crested Gecko Cane Toad
Blood Python Crocodile Skink

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Teacher Packet – Last Updated on 10/11/2012

Science Language Second Grade Students Should Use

 Continent = One of the main landmasses on the globe, usually
recognized as seven in number

 Map Key or Legend = A table on a map or chart explaining the symbols used

 Ocean = The entire body of salt water that covers more than 70 percent of the earth's
surface

 Equator = The imaginary great circle around the earth's surface, equidistant from the
poles and perpendicular to the earth's axis of rotation - divides the earth into the
Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere

 Environment = Conditions which influence the growth and development of a living
being

 Culture = Patterns, traits, and products considered as the expression of a particular
period, class, community, or population

 Interaction = Shared action or influence of one thing on another

 Weather = The state of the atmosphere at a given time and place relating to
temperature, moisture, and wind

 Moisture = The degree of dampness or wetness

 Temperature = The measurement or degree of heat or cold

 Observe = To pay close attention to or take notice of

 Compare = To examine in order to note the similarities or differences of

 Contrast = To show differences when compared

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Teacher Packet – Last Updated on 10/11/2012

Background Information

There are two major types of rainforest: TEMPERATE rainforests and TROPICAL rainforests.

TROPICAL Rainforest Facts
 forest of tall trees in a region of year-round warmth
 average of 50 to 260 inches of rain falls annually
 belong to the tropical wet climate group
 temperature rarely gets higher than 93 °F (34 °C) or drops below 68 °F (20 °C)
 average humidity between 77 and 88%
 rainfall is often more than 100 inches a year
 usually a brief season of less rain - in monsoonal areas there is a real dry season
 found near the equator
 nutrients are removed from the ecosystem if burned or cut down
 a study found 99% of nutrients are held in root mats
 soil can only be used for a very short time before it becomes completely depleted of all
nutrients

TROPICAL Rainforest Geographical Areas
 Central America – The Amazon River Basin Rainforest contains a wider variety of plant
and animal life than any other biome in the world. There may be 40 to 100 different
species in 2.5 acres (1 hectare) of an Amazon tropical rainforest.
 Africa - Zaire Basin, with a small area in West Africa; also eastern Madagascar
 Indo-Malaysia - West coast of India, Assam, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, and
Queensland, Australia

TROPICAL Rainforest Similarities
 Many of the trees have straight trunks that don't branch out for 100 feet or more. There
is no sense in growing branches below the canopy where there is little light.
 The majority of the trees have smooth, thin bark because there is no need to protect
them from water loss and freezing temperatures. The bark of different species is so
similar that it is difficult to identify a tree by its bark. Many trees can only be identified by
their flowers.
 The air beneath the lower canopy is almost always humid. The trees themselves give off
water through the pores (stomata) of their leaves. This process, called transpiration, can
account for as much as half of the precipitation in the rainforest.

TROPICAL Rainforest Layers
There are four very distinct layers of trees in a tropical rainforest. These layers have been
identified as the emergent, upper canopy, understory (lower layer), and forest floor.
 Emergent
In this layer the trees are spaced wide apart, and are 100 to 240 feet tall with umbrella-
shaped canopies that grow above the forest. Because emergent trees are exposed to
drying winds, they tend to have small, pointed leaves. Some species lose their leaves
during the brief dry season in monsoon rainforests. These giant trees have straight,

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Teacher Packet – Last Updated on 10/11/2012

smooth trunks with few branches. Their root system is very shallow, and to support their
size they grow buttresses that can spread out to a distance of 30 feet.
 Upper Canopy
This layer has 60 to 130 foot trees, allwing light to be easily available at the top of this
layer, but greatly reducing any light below it. Most of the rainforest's animals live in the
upper canopy. There is so much food available at this level that some animals never go
down to the forest floor. The leaves have "drip spouts" that allows rain to run off. This
keeps them dry and prevents mold and mildew from forming in the humid environment.
 Understory (Lower Layer)
This layer consists of 60 foot trees and the trunks of canopy trees, shrubs, plants and
small trees. There is little air movement. As a result the humidity is constantly high. This
level is in constant shade.
 Forest Floor
This layer is usually completely shaded, except where a canopy tree has fallen and
created an opening. Most areas of the forest floor receive so little light that few bushes
or herbs can grow there. As a result, a person can easily walk through most parts of a
tropical rainforest. Less than 1 % of the light that strikes the top of the forest penetrates
to the forest floor. The top soil is very thin and of poor quality. A lot of litter falls to the
ground where it is quickly broken down by decomposers like termites, earthworms and
fungi. The heat and humidity further help to break down the litter. This organic matter is
then just as quickly absorbed by the trees' shallow roots.

Besides these four layers, a shrub/sapling layer receives about 3 % of the light that filters in
through the canopies. These stunted trees are capable of a sudden growth surge when a gap in
the canopy opens above them.

TROPICAL Rainforest Plants
With over 80 inches of rain per year, rainforest plants have made adaptations that help shed
water off their leaves quickly so the branches do not get weighed down and break.
 Many plants have drip tips and grooved leaves, and some leaves have oily coatings to
shed water.
 To absorb as much sunlight as possible on the dark understory, leaves are very large.
 Some trees have leaf stalks that turn with the movement of the sun so they always
absorb the maximum amount of light.
 Leaves in the upper canopy are dark green, small and leathery to reduce water loss in
the strong sunlight.
 Some trees will grow large leaves at the lower canopy level and small leaves in the upper
canopy.
 Other plants grow in the upper canopy on larger trees to get sunlight. These are the
epiphytes such as orchids and bromeliads.
 Many trees have buttress and stilt roots for extra support in the shallow, wet soil of the
rainforests.

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