The Classroom Package: Where to Begin

Throughout OneWorld Classrooms Amazon content, your students will be 'traveling' (in Children of the Amazon) to a small Ecuadorian village called Limoncocha to meet the children who live there. So, before you pack your bags, try the warm-up activities below.
 
1. Where on the Globe is Ecuador? (K-3)
2. Where on the Map is Limoncocha? (4 and up)
3. How to Get to Ecuador (K-3)
4. How to Get to Limoncocha (4 and up)
5. Things That Go to Make Up a Life ((Kand up)
6. Similarities and Differences (4 and up)
7. Packing Your Bags I (Math Activity) (K-3)
8. Packing Your Bags II (Math Activity) (4 and up)
1. Where on the Globe is Ecuador? (K-3) - Use the globe to locate Ecuador and the Amazon Rain Forest. Have students identify their own continent, South America, the Andes Mountains, the Amazon River and the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Have students note that the Andes Mountains run north-south on the western (Pacific Ocean) side of South America and that the Amazon River runs west to east across the continent and empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Have them consider how the Andes help form the Amazon (see #2 below).

2. Where on the Map is Limoncocha? (4 and up) - After completing the Where on the Globe is Ecuador activity (above), have students take a closer look at South America using a map. Have them identify its main features (mountains, rivers, oceans, etc.) and the countries that contain part of the Amazon rain forest (Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela and Guyana). Have them compare the sizes of their own country with the Amazon rain forest and the countries that contain part of it; and have them compare the size of their own country/state/province with Ecuador. Next look at a map of Ecuador. (On-line, Geology.com << http://geology.com/world/ >>  has good political maps and Atlapedia <<  http://www.atlapedia.com/  >> has good physical maps.)

The Amazon River Elementary School is located in an Ecuadorian village called Limoncocha, which is just north of the Napo River (Rio Napo) at 0° 25'S, 76° 58' W. Can your students locate the Napo? Can they pinpoint the location of Limoncocha? What North American towns or cities are directly north of Limoncocha? What river does the Napo empty into?  What ocean does that river empty into? Roughly how far does the water travel before it reaches this ocean?  Where do the first waters of this river begin flowing? Explain to them that rain and melting snow that run down the eastern side of the Andes form the Napo River (and many other rivers) and that the Napo eventually flows into the Amazon River which, in turn, crosses the continent and empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The Amazon River is not the longest river in the world (the Nile is), but is the main river in the world's largest river system. Have students consider how this can be and then visit this Children of the Amazon adventure page for an explanation. (Click on the 'Tell Me About It' button and use your BACK button to return here.)


3. How to Get to Ecuador (K-3) - After completing Where on the Globe is Ecuador (above), have students trace the route they will travel to get to Ecuador from your home state/province. Ask students in what direction(s) they will travel and by what means they might go. Have them estimate the distance in miles or kilometers and have them estimate a travel time. Having students consider that the village they will travel to is next to a large river (the Napo) in the Amazon region of Ecuador, give them a list of means of transportation (car, bus, taxi, train, ship, small airplane, jet, llama, canoe, bike and feet) and have them come up with a variety of ways to get from your school to a school in the rain forest.

4. How to Get to Limoncocha (4 and up) - Modify How to Get to Ecuador (above) to fit your grade level. After students determine their routes and what means of transportation they will use, have them compare their results to those described in the article, 'How to Find Limoncocha.' Vist the project's E-Travel Logs and compare your routes, the one in the article and the actual route taken by Project Coordinator Paul Hurteau to reach Limoncocha.

5. Things That Go to Make Up a Life (K and up) - Brainstorm with your students to create a long list of things that make up their lives (allow a wide range of responses both general and very specific). Have students determine which items on the list are general and which are specific, then have them break up the items into categories, listing specific items under general categories. The overall list should provide a snapshot of the life and culture of your students. Next, have your students do the activity considering the lives of children who live in the Amazon rain forest. Save the list and, when your class has finished your classroom travels to the Amazon, review it to determine how accurate the snapshot your students had in their minds about rain forest children was. Modify the list based on what you learned by completing the project and discuss it as a cultural snapshot.

6. Similarities and Differences (4 and up) - A key social skill for all children is to understand that people are all similar in ways and different in ways. Discuss similarities and differences between students in your own classroom. Encourage students to speak of similarities and differences in a inclusive and inoffensive way. Both should be celebrated: similarities bind us as human beings and differences make us special and able to make unique contributions to the world around us. After, using the list you made in Things That Go to Make Up a Life (above), discuss ways that students in your class are similar and different to rain forest children. Discuss how both are uniquely capable of contributing to the welfare of the Amazon rain forest. Revisit the discussion at the completion of your classroom travels.

7. Packing Your Bags I (Math Activity) (K-3) - Have your students make a list of which items they would bring with them if they were traveling to the rain forest for six weeks. Have them take into consideration the weather and the environment as well as health and entertainment. Also consider what activities you will be doing in the rain forest and consider what items you might be able to purchase or acquire there. Make sure they list how many of each item they would bring. When they've completed the list, have them add up the total number of items. Next, tell them they have to fit all of their items into one large suitcase. Have them prioritize the items eliminating those that are least important. Next have them estimate how many of each item they could fit in the suitcase. If possible, have each student bring in one item on the list (or something of similar size that could represent the item - i.e. a small box instead of a camera). Bring in a large suitcase and see if you can fit all of your items into it. If not, have students prioritize further until they can get everything in. Compare the number of items on the original list with the number of items that actually fit in the suitcase.

8. Packing Your Bags II (Math Activity) (4 and up) - Modify Packing Your Bags I (above) by telling your students, after they have made their initial list of items, that the airline they will be flying to Ecuador has a baggage limit of 70 pounds or (rounding off) 30 kilograms. Have students estimate the weight of all the items on their list, then prioritize considering their estimations and the weight limit. When they've pared the list down, have them bring in the items and check them for actual weight, comparing the results with their estimates.

 

 

Please choose another page below.
Amazon Rain Forest  
The Galapagos Islands

Latin America Classrom Travel Resources
 

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