WhirlyGirl Biochar
Fun$Biochar$Activities$for$Kids$of$All$Ages!$
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Activity'guides'from'WhirlyGirlBiochar.com:'
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• See'Your'CO2'
• Carbon'Cycle'Stories'and'Biochar'
• What'is'Fire?'
• Carbon'Geometry'
• Biochar'and'Plant'Growth'–'Experimenter’s'Guide'
• ThreeJcan'Biochar'Stove'and'Teacher’s'Guide'
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Biochar'stove'construction'ebooks:''
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• How'to'Make'the'Dome'School'Stove'
• How'to'Make'the'WhirlyGirl'Stove'
• How'to'Make'the'Bubble'Stove'
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More'information'at:'www.WhirlyGirlBiochar.com'
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Carbon'Cycle'Stories'and'Biochar''
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What$is$the$Carbon$cycle?$Why$is$it$important?$How$does$it$work?$$
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We!all!need!energy!to!survive!and!do!things.!Where!does!this!energy!come!from?!
Our!main!source!of!energy!is!the!Sun.!But!did!you!know,!that!only!plants,!algae!and!a!
few!types!of!bacteria!can!use!sunlight!directly!as!a!source!of!energy?!Other!than!
these!organisms,!no!other!organisms!can!convert!the!energy!obtained!from!the!Sun!
into!the!nutrients!required!for!their!survival.!So,!all!of!us!have!to!depend!on!plants!
for!our!nutrition!and!survival,!and!plants,!in!turn,!use!carbon!dioxide!along!with!
sunlight,!to!make!their!own!food!by!the!process!of!photosynthesis.!The!food!builds!
their!tissues,!and!a!lot!of!the!carbon!dioxide!they!use!ends!up!as!part!of!plant!tissues.!
We!and!other!animals!eat!these!tissues!and!then!the!carbon!becomes!part!of!us!too.!!
By!weight,!around!18%!of!the!human!body!is!carbon.!All!beings!on!Planet!Earth!are!
carbonIbased!life!forms.!
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Explanation*of*the*Carbon*Cycle!
The!carbon!cycle!is!the!exchange!of!carbon!between!the!various!organic!and!
inorganic!elements!in!the!atmosphere,!the!biosphere,!the!oceans!and!the!lithosphere!
(rocks).!The!processes!that!release!carbon!in!the!atmosphere!are!called!the!sources,!
while!those!that!absorb!carbon!from!the!atmosphere!are!called!the!sinks.!!!
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Here*is*how*the*carbon*cycle*works:**
1. Carbon!dioxide!from!the!atmosphere!is!used!by!plants!in!the!process!of!
photosynthesis.!This!is!the!process!that!breaks!down!carbon!dioxide!into!
compounds!that!can!be!used!as!nutrition!by!the!plants.!In!this!process,!plants!
release!oxygen!as!a!byproduct.!
2. Animals!and!humans!consume!these!plants,!and!thus!the!carbon!is!transferred!
from!the!plants!to!animals!and!humans.!
3. From!animals!and!humans,!the!carbon!is!sent!back!to!the!atmosphere!when!we!
breathe!out!I!through!the!process!of!respiration.!
4. Other!than!respiration,!when!plants,!animals!or!humans!die,!their!remains!decay!
and!decompose,!and!carbon!is!transferred!to!the!soil!when!this!happens.!When!
the!remains!are!deeply!buried!for!thousands!of!years,!they!become!fossil!fuels,!
and!these!are!huge!sinks!of!carbon.!
5. Burning!of!wood!or!fossil!fuels!are!both!processes!that!transfer!carbon!back!to!
the!atmosphere,!but!with!different!effects.!Fossil!fuels,!by!definition,!are!made!of!
old!carbon!that!was!fixed!by!plants!millions!of!years!ago.!!When!you!burn!old!
carbon,!you!increase!the!total!amount!of!carbon!in!the!atmosphere.!Burning!
trees!is!burning!new!carbon,!and!most!of!that!would!have!ended!up!in!the!
atmosphere!anyway,!through!respiration.!
6. Oceans!and!other!huge!water!bodies,!which!have!cool!water!on!the!surface,!also!
absorb!some!carbon!from!the!atmosphere.!But!oceans!exhibit!dual!behavior.!
When!the!surface!water!is!cooler!(as!may!happen!in!cold!regions,!near!the!poles)!
carbon!is!absorbed!into!the!water,!whereas!when!the!surface!water!is!warm!
(near!tropical!regions),!carbon!is!released!into!the!atmosphere,!from!where!the!
plants!will!again!absorb!it!for!photosynthesis,!and!the!cycle!repeats.!
Whirlygirlbiochar.com'7'fun'biochar'activities'for'kids'of'all'ages!'
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Carbon'Cycle'Stories'and'Biochar''
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Here*is*a*diagram*that*shows*the*basic*parts*of*the*Carbon*Cycle:*
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Carbon$Cycle$Stories$
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Let’s!follow!the!journey!of!a!single!carbon!atom!starting!100!million!years!ago,!when!
a!dinosaur!ate!a!fern!that!contained!our!carbon!atom.!The!carbon!atom!was!part!of!a!
carbohydrate!molecule!that!was!formed!when!the!fern!used!carbon!dioxide!from!the!
atmosphere!to!make!its!food!using!photosynthesis.!The!dinosaur!pulled!up!the!fern!
and!chewed!it.!The!fern!went!through!the!dinosaur’s!digestive!system!where!the!
carbohydrate!molecule!was!used!for!energy.!But!some!carbon!was!left!over!and!
through!its!respiration!process,!the!dinosaur!breathed!out!the!carbon!atom.!The!
carbon!atom!floated!up!in!the!atmosphere!and!ended!up!over!the!cold!ocean.!A!wind!
blew!it!onto!the!surface!of!the!water!and!it!was!absorbed!into!the!ocean!water!as!
dissolved!carbon!dioxide.!A!tiny!plankton!organism!floating!near!the!surface!was!
building!its!calcium!carbonate!shell.!It!used!our!carbon!atom!in!its!shell.!Soon,!it!died!
and!its!shell!slowly!drifted!down!to!the!bottom!of!the!deep!ocean.!It!stayed!there!for!
60!million!years!in!the!ocean!sediments,!but!the!sea!floor!was!slowly!rising!up!as!the!
Earth!shifted,!and!eventually!the!seafloor!was!raised!up!into!a!cliff!beside!the!ocean.!!
The!cliff!was!a!chalk!cliff!and!chalk!is!just!a!huge!collection!of!old!seashells!from!
plankton!and!other!organisms.!Our!carbon!atom!stayed!there!for!another!40!million!
years!until!a!mining!company!came!along!and!mined!some!chalk!to!make!your!
school!supplies.!Then!we!dropped!the!chalk!in!vinegar!and!the!acid!dissolved!the!
calcium!carbonate!and!released!carbon!dioxide!into!the!atmosphere!–!it!is!the!same!
old!dinosaur!breath.!
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Whirlygirlbiochar.com'7'fun'biochar'activities'for'kids'of'all'ages!'
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Carbon'Cycle'Stories'and'Biochar''
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Tell*Your*Own*Carbon*Cycle*Story*
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Every!living!thing!contains!carbon,!and!every!living!thing!has!a!story:!
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The!story!of!a!leaf…!
The!story!of!a!feather…!
The!story!of!a!seashell…!
The!story!of!a!bug…!
The!story!of!the!salmon…!
The!story!of!my!breakfast…!
The!story!of!my!car…!
The!story!of!my!family…!
The!story!of!…!
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Whirlygirlbiochar.com'7'fun'biochar'activities'for'kids'of'all'ages!'
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Carbon'Cycle'Stories'and'Biochar''
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To*help*tell*your*story,*make*a*Carbon*Story*Collage,*like*this*one:**
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Lauren!traces!her!carbon!atom!through!its!carbon!cycle!story.*
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The!carbon!atom!(shown!in!detail!with!all!of!its!electrons!and!protons)!travels!from!
an!ancient!fern!to!a!dinosaur’s!mouth!to!a!seashell.!After!100!million!years!it!ends!
up!in!a!little!girl’s!hand!in!a!piece!of!chalk.!Who!knows!where!it!will!go!next?!Maybe!
it!will!go!back!in!the!ground!for!thousands!of!years!in!a!piece!of!biochar.!
Whirlygirlbiochar.com'7'fun'biochar'activities'for'kids'of'all'ages!'
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Carbon'Cycle'Stories'and'Biochar''
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How$does$Biochar$fit$into$the$Carbon$Cycle$story?$
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This!diagram!shows!how!the!Biochar!Cycle!can!change!the!Carbon!Cycle:!
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You!can!turn!plants!into!biochar!and!then!bury!the!biochar!in!the!ground!where!it!
helps!new!plants!grow!bigger!and!better.!Biochar!that!is!buried!in!the!ground!keeps!
carbon!dioxide!out!of!the!atmosphere.!Also,!you!can!capture!energy!from!the!
biocharImaking!process!and!do!useful!things!with!it,!like!cook!your!dinner.!
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This!WhirlyGirl!stove!is!burning!gas!from!wood!pellets.!Biochar!will!be!leftover!after!
the!food!is!done!cooking.!These!students!have!used!biochar!in!the!soil!mix!–!the!tall!
plant!is!the!one!growing!in!the!biochar!mix.!
Whirlygirlbiochar.com'7'fun'biochar'activities'for'kids'of'all'ages!'
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