1. Amazon: Importance Key Words: inference green-house effect ecosystem Lesson Aims: To explain 3 reasons why the Amazon and other rainforests are important. To infer deeper meaning from pictures. Do now: Unscramble the following anagrams: imeobfearnotsirratbyirut biome rainforest tributary
2. Definitions Copy the following into your glossary: To infer: To use reason to work out further information about something. Green-house effect: the rise in temperature that the Earth experiences because certain gases in the atmosphere trap energy from the sun. Ecosystem: An ecosystem is a community of plants, animals and smaller organisms that live, feed, reproduce and interact in the same area.
3. Tropical rainforests cover about 7% of the Earth's surface and are VERY important to the Earth's ecosystem. The rainforests recycle and purify the water. Tropical rainforest trees and plants also remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it in their roots, stems, leaves, and branches. Rainforests influence the greenhouse effect, which traps heat inside the Earth’s atmosphere. Task: In 2 sentencesand your own words: Explain why this information suggests that rainforests are so important. The Importance of Rainforests
4. The Importance of Rainforests Some of the foods that were originally from rainforests around the world include cashew nuts, brazil nuts, macadamia nuts, bananas, plantains, pineapple, cucumber, cocoa (chocolate), coffee, tea, avocados, papaya, guava, mango, cassava (a starchy root), tapioca, yams, sweet potato, okra, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, mace, ginger, cayenne pepper, cloves, oranges, grapefruit, lemons, limes, passion fruit, peanuts, rice, sugar cane, and coconuts (mostly from coastal areas). Task: In 2 sentencesand your own words: Explain why this information suggests that rainforests are so important.
5. The Importance of Rainforests An incredible number of animals live in rainforests. Millions of insects, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals call them home. Insects are the most numerous animals in rainforests. Tropical rainforests have a greater diversity of plants and animals than temperate rainforests or any other biome. In temperate rainforests, most of the animals are ground dwellers and there are fewer animals living in the forest canopy. Task: In 2 sentencesand your own words: Explain why this information suggests that rainforests are so important.
7. Picture Analysis You will be given 1 picture per group. The picture will be passed on to another group every 4 minutes. For each picture you have to write down: What you can see in the picture. What it suggests (what you can infer) about the Amazon (people/culture/lifestyle/environment). We will do the first one together as a class.
