Teachers.netAmazing Biome Projects You Can Build Yourself
Amazing Biome Projects You Can Build Yourself takes kids ages 9 and up on a circumnavigation of the globe to learn about Earth's terrestrial and aquatic biomes.
They'll wander through forests, sizzle in deserts, shiver in the tundra, plunge beneath the seas to explore coral reefs, and slog through marshy waters. Along the way, kids will encounter flora and fauna adapted for survival in each unique climate zone. They'll learn about gnarly krumholz trees, bioluminescent sea creatures, camouflage, carnivorous plants, and blubbery marine critters. In each biome, people who use science in their jobs are highlighted, whether at the site of a disastrous oil spill or an oh-so-cool mastodon dig.
School Library Journal, June 2010—Although the text addresses young “eco explorers” directly, this book will likely be used as much by teachers, parents, and organization leaders in planning group activities. Offering an overview of eight terrestrial biomes as well as the ocean, Latham crams a lot of information about climate, plants, animals, soil, and other characteristics onto every page. Vocabulary, jokes, and short questions and answers are tucked into various layouts along with small drawings in shades of gray. Instructions for hands-on activities related to different biomes include craft projects such as pictographs and a cornhusk doll. Students can learn how to make a glacier, an erupting volcano, and a tornado in a bottle. They can bake honey wheat bread or concoct rainforest “crunch and munch.” They can create a pinecone bird feeder, conduct experiments related to acid rain, and assemble a desertarium. Latham also lists ways to help the environment in everyday life. ... Designed for hands-on learners, with adult advice and guidance as needed.
This high-powered tour of ecological principles is chocked full of information, activities, and science vocabulary. Science educators and parents will be thrilled with the amount of information the author has packed into Biomes. —Greg DeFrancis Director of Education Montshire Museum
BOOKS
Cherry, Lynn. What We Know About Our Changing Climate: Scientists and Kids Explore Global Warming. Dawn Publications, 2008.
Davis, Barbara J. Biomes and Ecosystems. Gareth Stevens, 2007.
Olien, Rebecca. Kids Care! 60 Ways to Make a Difference for People, Animals, and the Environment.
Ideal Publications, 2007.
Parker, Steve. 100 Things You Should Know About Endangered Animals. Barnes & Noble, 2008.
Reilly, Kathleen M. Planet Earth: 25 Environmental Projects You Can Build Yourself. Nomad Press, 2008.
Rothschild, David. Earth Matters: An Encyclopedia of Ecology. DK Publishing, 2008.
Simon, Seymour. Earth: Our Planet in Space. Simon and Schuster, 2003.
Thornhill, Jan. This Is My Planet: The Kids’ Guide to Global Warming. Maple Tree Press, 2007.
VanCleave, Janice. Science Around the World: Activities on Biomes From Pole to Pole. John Wiley & Sons, 2004.
Weigel, Marlene. Encyclopedia of Biomes. U-X-L, 2000.
Wexo, John B. Endangered Animals (Zoobooks Series.) Wildlife Education, 2001.
Wines, Jacquie. You Can Save the Planet: 50 Ways You Can Make a Difference. Scholastic, 2008.
WEB SITES
Center for Educational Technology, Biomes Module
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/ msese/earthsysflr/biomes.html
Enchanted Learning, Biomes
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/biomes/
NASA’s Earth Observatory
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Laboratory/Biome/
University of California Museum of Paleontology’s Biome Exhibit
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/index.php
World Wildlife Federation’s Main Biomes of the World
http://www.panda.org/news_facts/education/webfieldtrips/major_biomes/ind...
WEB SITES FOR KIDS
Calculate your household’s carbon footprint
http://www.nature.org/initiatives/climatechange/calculator/
EPA Environmental Kids Club
http://www.epa.gov/kids/
EEK! Environmental Education for Kids
http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/eek/
Inch in a Pinch: Saving the Earth
http://inchinapinch.com/
Kids Do Ecology
http://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/nceas-web/kids/
National Geographic Kids
http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/
NOAA for Kids
http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/kids
USDA Forest Service
http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/ce/content/for_kids/index.cfm
Farah Rizvi is a graphic designer and an illustrator. She moved to the United States in 2000 and received her bachelor’s degree in graphic design with a concentration in French from Colby-Sawyer College.
Go outside and scout around for a plump pine cone. Then use the cone’s seed case to make a birdfeeder, and observe the birds that swoop in for a crunchy snack.
