Exploring the Amazon Rainforest

A WebQuest on the World's Largest Rainforest

Designed by: Aja Appel
aja.appel@pacificu.edu

Image provided courtesy of Jungle Photos

Introduction

Rainforests across the globe are home to approximately 50% of the world’s species. The largest of these rainforests is located in the Amazon River Basin. This particular rainforest is about the size of the mainland of the United States and takes up 40% of South America. The Amazon Rainforest is home to over 500 species of mammals, 175 species of lizards, 300 other species of reptiles, and one third of the world’s birds. There are also millions of species that have yet to be discovered. Unfortunately rainforests around the world are being destroyed at a shocking rate: every second 1.5 acres of rainforest are destroyed. That is the size of two football fields. If our rainforests continue to be destroyed at this rate life on earth will be severely affected. Without the rainforests millions of species of animals will be lost forever. In addition, it is feared that without rainforests there will not be enough oxygen produced to support all life on earth.

What animal in the rainforest are you interested in learning about? What can people around the world do to help save our rainforests and the diversity of life that they host?

The Task

You are on a team of zoologists at the Oregon Zoo. You have received a grant to be used in starting a campaign to save a specific animal in the Amazon Rainforest. Your team must work together to decide which animal you would like your campaign to focus on. Your team will conduct research about the Amazon rainforest and about your specific animal species. You will also get to create a project to display your findings. At the ceremony to receive the grant money you will be making an informational presentation about the animal you decided to save. You will also be presenting a plan for how you could go about saving this particular animal and its rainforest habitat.

The Process

First you’ll be assigned to a team of 3 students
Individually you will will explore different species of animals who live in the rainforest. As you are exploring jot down notes about what animal you might like to research and the interesting information you find.
Rainforest Animals
Rainforest Photos
After this individual exploration you will meet with your group to decide which animal you would like to focus your campaign on. Every group in class must have a different animal. As a group decide how you would like to research and present your project. Each project will need to include some way of displaying your research findings (this can be a report, a concept map, a PowerPoint presentation, a brochure, a newspaper, etc.) and a visual of your animal (such as a poster, painting, large-scale drawing, etc.) You should also decide on which role each person would like to have. The roles are primary zoologist, environmentalist, and campaign manager. The roles are described below:
- Primary Zoologist - Research information about the animal including how it looks, where it exists in the food chain, what features it has that has allowed it to adapt to life in the rainforest, characteristics of the animal, what it eats, its behaviors, and other interesting facts about this animal.
  Rainforest Animals
- Environmentalist - Research information about the rainforest in which the animal lives. Include information about why its habitat is being destroyed and how the rainforest benefits humans.
  Rainforest Information
  Importance of Rainforests
  Rainforest Destruction
- Campaign Manager - Focus on where the campaign will go and how we can save this animal. How can people at home help save the rainforest and this animal? Part of the plan you come up with for saving the rainforest must be something that is possible for you to implement (something that kids can do that would make a difference and help save the rainforest). You may also focus on what the government and corporations can do to help stop rainforest destruction.
  Possible Solutions
Begin research. You should individually be researching information related to your role. As you research take notes and keep your notes organized. You can organize your notes by using fact sheets, outlines, index cards, flow charts, summary tables, concept maps, etc. In your final project you will need to cite your references so be sure to keep accurate records of where you found your information.
Meet with your group to share all of the research you learned. Compile your information to create a final project. This project can be a report, a detailed concept map, a PowerPoint presentation, a brochure, a newspaper, or another teacher-approved means of presenting your information. The project must include information about the animal, where it lives, what it eats, its size, and features it has that has allowed it to adapt to life in the rainforest. The project must also include detailed information about why its rainforest habitat is being destroyed. Your project will explain HOW and WHY we should save the rainforest and this particular animal.
Create a visual aid that is a representation of your animal. This should be some form of expressive art; a drawing, painting, sculpture, etc. Be creative and use your art to express your thoughts and/or ideas about your animal in an original way.
Practice your final presentation. All of the groups will be presenting during our grant awards ceremony. Each group will have 10 minutes to present and every zoologist should have an opportunity to speak during their group’s presentation.
Grant Awards Ceremony- have fun presenting what you've learned and showing-off the projects that you've worked so hard on. Be prepared to answer questions about your research and the information you present. During this time you will also get to watch other groups present their projects and artwork!

Evaluation

To determine your grade for this project and presenation we will be using the rubric below. You will have the opportunity to submit a self-evaluation in which you will reflect on your project and give yourself a score in each of the four areas described on the rubric. This self-evaluation will allow you to give input about what grade you feel you deserve. I will take into account your self-evaluation when determining what score you have earned for each of the four objectives in the rubric. I will give you a score of 2,3,4, or 5 in each of the four areas below. I will add up these scores for a total rubric score. Since the entire project will be worth 100 points I will multiply your rubric score by five. For example, if you receive all 4s, your rubric score would be 4+4+4+4=16. 16 X 5= 80. So you would receive 80 points out of 100, or 80% on the project.

	Beginning 2	Developing 3	Accomplished 4	Exemplary 5
Analyzed the consequences of human impact on the Amazon Rainforest	Project and presentation do not include information about the consequences of human impact on the Amazon Rainforest	Project and presentation contain minimal information about the consequences. The topic is touched on briefly, but not explored in-depth and the group has difficulty answering questions about these consequences after their presentation.	The group has some in-depth information and effectively presents that information to the class. They are able to answer questions about their anaylsis but may or may not be able to provide evidence to back up their answers.	It's evident that the group has clearly explored this topic in-depth. The group is able to answer questions about human impact on the rainforest and provide solid evidence to support their answers.
Project and Presentation	Missing significant amount of information about animal and rainforest.	Both project and presentation contain minimal information about animal and rainforest. Project may lack originality and/or insight.	Both project and presentation contain a variety of information about the animal and its rainforest habitat. Project is original and conveys the intended information.	Project and presentation contain ample amount of DETAILED information about the animal and rainforest. Project is exceptionally creative and effective at conveying the information.
Plan for helping prevent rainforest destruction	Neither the project nor the presentation contain a plan or a solution	There is a plan but it doesn't seem to be well-thoughtout and/or is missing details.	There is a well-thoughtout plan with a detailed description of that plan.	This group not only has a plan, but has taken steps to implement their plan to stop/decrease rainforest destruction.
Art Work	No visual aid accompanies the project or the presentation	There is a visual aid but it lacks details. Art provides little information to the audience about their animal and may lack originality.	There is a detailed piece of art that conveys information about their particular animal. The art is creative and original	The art piece demonstrates exemplary creativity and originality. It not only conveys information about the animal, but it may also elicit deep thought/emotion from viewers.

Conclusion

There were many purposes for this project. Through your research and exploration you have developed a deeper understanding of the consequences of human interaction with the rainforest. You have also learned about a variety of species that inhabit this rainforest. But animals aren’t the only ones who rely on the rainforest for their existence; so do we. It is my hope that you will take your knowledge about the rainforest and your compassion into the world to make a difference for all of the inhabitants of the earth.

I would encourage you to keep up with news and current events that are happening in rainforests around the world. Here are a few sites that are continually updated wtih new stories and information regarding endangered species, rainforest conservation, and rainforest destruction.

Rainforest Current Events

If saving the rainforest is something you feel passionately about, I would encourage you explore the topic further and/or get involved in the effort to save our rainforets. YOU can make a difference. Below are links to two website that have rainforest projects, art activities, and ways that you can get involved.

Rainforest Projects and Ways to Get Involved

Credits & References

Mongabay Rainforest Website
The WebQuest Site

Thanks to Mark Bailey for teaching me how to design a WebQuest.

A special thanks to Eric Appel for rewriting the template code and helping me overcome technical difficulties.