A Tour Through the Rainforest
Background: The script that STEP uses during its presentation is a personal copy loaned to us. (Thank you 4-H !) However, there are different slide shows on the market and you can purchase one from our attached list. Though they are expensive, it is definitely worth it. To prepare for your first slide show, you should be familiar with the script and basic rainforest biology facts.
Grade Level: any
Duration: 30+ minutes, depending
Materials: slide projector, extension cord, adapter, slides, script, projection screen, extra slide projection bulb
Subjects: biology, geography, humanities, economics, and politics
Objectives: This activity will introduces students to the beauty of the rainforest and explain why it is being destroyed. Students should be able to give at least one example of an interdependent relationship in the rainforest, one animal that uses camouf1age for survival, and a description of the behaviors of at 1east one anima1 or plant.
Method: During the slide show, you should try to incorporate the facets of the problem of rainforest destruction (list under the General Explanation). Make sure you ask the students many questions about what they are viewing and make sure they feel free to ask any questions they may have. Make sure to have fun, and whenever possible, tell a funny story (students seem to remember more if they're laughing.) If there's a white faced howler monkey in your slide show, we have an interesting story to share with you about their territorial behavior.
Where to Find a Slideshow...
Rainforests: A Living Legend. $56. For info, write: Friends of the Earth, 25l Laurier St. W., Suite 701, Ottawa, Ontario KlP5J6.
Save the Rainforest Slide Show. $22. For more info., write: Save the Rainforest, 604 Jamie St. Dodgeville, WI 53533.
The Rain Forest Available from:
The Tropical Rainforest Set Available from
The least expensive way to obtain a slide show would be to use slides from someone who has visited the rainforest. If you don't know anyone who has visited the rainforest or taken slides while they were there, then I guess you need to visit the rainforest yourself! But serious1y, with some fundraising you should be able to get yourself a good slide show to use during your presentation.
Rainforest Facts
"Fifty percent of the ferns in the world grow in the tropical rainforest."-Joanne Sharpe
There are four layers in the rainforest:
The forest floor (which is pretty clear of debris and does not receive much light)
The understory (where tall ferns and small trees fight for light at a height of 12 feet above the floor.)
The canopy (which reaches 75-90 feet above the floor and is the "happening place" for most of the activity in the rainforest.)
The emergent layer (consists of giant, old rainforest trees that tower above the protective canopy and brave the strong winds, high temperatures, and low humidity.) -Rainforest Action Network
