Welcome!
Dear Teacher:
Thank you for planning a field study to Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden. The program you have selected,
Tropical Rainforest Exploration, is designed to teach students about adaptations, biodiversity, and
conservation in these amazing ecosytems and how explorers study plants.
Your visit will include a guided walking tour through the Garden during which students will participate in
many hands-on investigations, including a visit to our tropical butterfly conservatory, Wings of the Tropics.
Lunch will be followed by a plant propagation lesson. Each student will make a terrarium and take a little
rainforest home. Please make sure that each student brings a clean jar with a lid and an opening large
enough for the student to fit their hand in.
This packet of activities contains pre and post-visit resource materials to support the learning experience.
We strongly encourage you to review and use these materials to make the most of your students’ field
study at Fairchild. The activities correlate to state academic standards for third grade to fifth grades. Please
be sure that each teacher attending the field study has an activity packet. Feel free to make additional
copies of this packet as needed or visit www.fairchildgarden.org/education to view the activities online.
The word list provided is especially important for students to study prior to their visit. An understanding
of the vocabulary will be a great asset in comprehending the concepts discussed during the field study.
We look forward to your visit to Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden and hope that you and your students
will have an exciting and educational adventure.
Kind Regards,
The Explorer Team
Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden
305.663.8094
All visitors to Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden and participants in Fairchild programs or events consent to the
unrestricted use of any photographs or audio/visual recordings in which they appear. Fairchild must be notified in
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writing of any exceptions.
Table of Contents
Introduction............................................................................................................................................ 3
Words for a Day at Fairchild................................................................................................................... 4
Pre-visit Activities:
Life in the Layers.......................................................................................................................... 5
Life in the Layers story............................................................................................................. 6
Rainstorm Brainstorm.................................................................................................................. 7
Brainstorm Handout................................................................................................................ 9
Post-visit Activity:
Your Terrarium and the Water Cycle......................................................................................... 10
The Water Cycle Handout.................................................................................................... 11
My Terrarium Journal Handout............................................................................................. 12
Rapping about Adapting............................................................................................................. 13
Websites for More Information............................................................................................................. 14
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Introduction
This unit has been prepared to help you and your students learn about tropical rainforest ecosystems,
and to optimize the learning experience during your field study at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.
These multidisciplinary activities were designed for students in third to fifth grade and are aligned
with state academic standards. At the end of the unit, you will find useful websites for further
information on tropical rainforests.
Rainforests are warm, wet and full of life. Tropical rainforests are located around the Earth between the
Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. There are several different types of tropical rainforests (often defined
by altitude and latitude) but they are all marked by year-round warm temperatures and high amounts of
annual rainfall. In tropical rainforests, the temperature remains stable at around 80 degrees Fahrenheit, and
rainfall is about 200 centimeters (80 inches) per year! This climate supports an abundance of life. There are
more species per acre of tropical rainforest than any other habitat in the world. In fact, although rainforests
cover less than 5% of the Earth’s surface, they contain over half of all the plant and animal species living
in the world today. Sadly, over half of the world’s rainforests have been lost, and more are disappearing
at an incredible rate.
There are many things students, teachers and parents can do to help conserve the rainforest. As we learn
more about this extraordinary environment, and the importance it has to all living things on Earth, we
realize the need to take action and be part of the solution. Please refer to the websites listed at the end of
the unit to get involved!
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Words for a Day at Fairchild
Adaptation - unique features of plants and animals that enable them to live in a particular environment.
Biodiversity - many different kinds of life in one area.
Canopy - a thick, overhead layer of the rainforest formed by the branches and leaves of the tall trees.
Condensation - when water changes from a gas to a liquid.
Conservation - protection of natural resources from waste, loss or harm.
Decomposer - organisms, such as bacteria, fungi and insects, that break down dead plant and animal
materials to be recycled and reused.
Drip tip - the end of a leaf that comes to a point, allowing rainwater to drip off.
Ecosystem - a community of animals, plants, and microscopic life that interact together in the
environment.
Emergent - the tallest layer of trees in a rainforest, they typically break through the canopy.
Epiphyte - a plant that lives on the surface of another plant, especially the trunk and branches. It does
not typically harm its host plant.
Evaporation - when moisture changes from liquid to gas.
Forest floor - the ground layer of the rainforest, made up of tree roots, soil, decaying matter and
decomposers.
Humidity - the amount of water vapor in the air.
Precipitation - the forms in which water falls to the ground as rain, sleet, snow and hail.
Sustainable - using resources in a way that does not permanently destroy them, so that people in the
future can also use them.
Transpiration - the loss of water from plant surfaces (usually leaves).
Tropics - hot, humid zone between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn.
Understory - the layer growing under the canopy, made up mostly of young trees and shrubs.
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Pre-visit Activity:
Life in the Layers
Objective
Students will identify the four plant layers found in tropical rainforest ecosystems. Students will research
one of these layers and produce a collaborative creative writing piece which they will present and share
with their peers.
STANDARDS: SC.3.N.1.1, SC.3.L.14.1, SC.3.L.14.2, SC.3.L.17.2, SC.4.N.1.1, SC.4.N.2.1, SC.5.E.7.6, LAFS.3.L.1.1,
LAFS.3.L.3.4, LAFS.3.L.3.6, LAFS.3.RF.3.3, LAFS.3.RF.4.4, LAFS.3.RI.1.1, LAFS.3.RI.2.4, LAFS.3.RI.2.5, LAFS.3.RI.3.7,
LAFS.3.RI.4.10, LAFS.3.SL.1.1, LAFS.3.W.1.1, LAFS.3.W.1.2, LAFS.3.W.1.3, LAFS.3.W.3.7, LAFS.3.W.3.8,
LAFS.4.L.1.1, LAFS.4.L.3.4, LAFS.4.L.3.6, LAFS.4.RF.3.3, LAFS.4.RF.4.4, LAFS.4.RI.1.1, LAFS.4..RI.1.3, LAFS.4.RI.3.7,
LAFS.4.RI.4.10, LAFS.4.SL.1.1, LAFS.4.W.1.1, LAFS.4.W.1.2, LAFS.4.W.3.7, LAFS.5.L.1.1, LAFS.5.L.3.4, LAFS.5.L.3.6,
LAFS.5.RF.3.3, LAFS.5.RF.4.4, LAFS.5.RI.2.4, LAFS.5.RI.3.9, LAFS.5.RI.4.10, LAFS.5.SL.1.1, LAFS.5.W.1.1,
LAFS.5.W.1.2, LAFS.5.W.3.7, LAFS.5.W.3.8, SS.3.A.1.1, SS.3.A.1.2
Vocabulary
Emergent
Canopy
Epiphyte
Understory
Decompose
Materials
“Words for a Day at Fairchild” (page 4)
“Life in the Layers” story (pages 6 & 7)
Unlined paper
Pencils/crayons/markers
Resource materials (Internet, encyclopedias,
newspaper articles, etc.)
Procedure
Life in the rainforest exists at
different levels or layers, with plants
and animals having specialized physical
adaptations to live in a particular layer. The
conditions are different at each level:
Emergent - bright sun, hot, windy, least moisture
Canopy - hot and windy at the top, much darker
underneath, less moisture
1. As a class, read and discuss the story about
Understory - little wind, low light, more
Pedro on pages 6 & 7.
moisture, cooler
2. Divide the class into groups of 4-5 students.
Each group will focus on a specific layer of the
Forest floor - dark, most moisture,
rainforest.
little wind, cool
3. Students may use the Internet, encyclopedias, etc.,
to conduct research on their specific layer. The websites
listed on pages 14 and 15 are a good place to start.
4. Ask the students to choose a plant or animal that lives in their layer of
the rainforest and write a story from the point of view of the animal or plant. Their stories will be
fictional, but should include facts about the rainforest and details about the layer where the plant or
animal lives.
5. Ask student groups to read their stories to the class and allow time for questions and answers. Which
layer would students like to live in?
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Life in the Layers
Pedro, who is 9 years old, loves where he lives in the rainforest in South America. There are millions of
different kinds of plants and animals living in the forest, and everything he and his family needs, they get
from the forest around them. Today, Pedro is going hunting with his father, but he has a little free time
before his father is ready to go. He walks a short distance from the village and stands very still, looking all
around him. There is much to see, and the more he looks up, the more everything changes. In the rainforest,
life exists in different levels, or layers.
Now he is standing quietly beside an enormous old tree, and next to that is a palm tree that has roots like
stilts coming out of the trunk of the tree. Pedro bends down to look at a red fungus growing on the forest
floor. It is dark and cool down on the forest floor, as the trees keep out most of the light. Pedro also notices
that there are few plants living at this level and wonders why this is so. Under his feet, the ground feels
soft with damp rotting leaves, and underneath the leaves, ants and termites do their work of helping to
decompose the leaves, turning them into soil.
On his right, Pedro can see fresh tracks from a peccary. These pig-like animals dig into the ground with
their snouts, searching for roots and underground stems to eat. Pedro hopes to see a jaguar, tapir or any
other large animal that lives on the forest floor where the thin vegetation allows them to move freely.
Pedro looks up and notices a plant with leaves as big as an umbrella. He thinks to himself, “If it starts to
rain, I should come back here and stay dry under one of these leaves.” Many of the plants in the understory,
have big leaves to catch what little light there is. There are also some small trees nearby that are as tall as
a house. As Pedro silently looks around, a butterfly flutters past him, and he notices a frog and a lizard on
Peccary
Tapir
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the tree.
Pedro looks up even higher, peering into the canopy over 100 feet high, as tall as an eight-story building.
This is his favorite level, as this is home to most of the organisms found in the rainforest. The canopy layer
forms a thick green roof of branches and leaves that shades the forest floor. Up here, where there is more
sunlight and rainfall, there are dense vines, and many plants growing on the branches of the trees. These
plants are epiphytes and include orchids, ferns, mosses and bromeliads. Many insects and animals such
as monkeys, birds, snakes and sloths also live here.
High above the canopy, taller trees grow, like the one that Pedro is standing beside. These trees make up
the emergent layer and they have smaller leaves than the other trees because they are in full sun. On the
top of this tree perches a harpy eagle, but Pedro cannot see it through the canopy. The eagle looks down
for something to eat, perhaps a sloth or monkey.
In the rainforest, the web of life is spinning, and Pedro waits patiently for his father to start to hunt.
Emergent
Canopy
Understory
Forest Floor
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Objective
Pre-visit Activity:
Rainstorm Brainstorm
Students will review what they know about the rainforest and its importance in our lives.
STANDARDS: SC.3.N.1.1, SC.3.N.1.3, SC.4.17.4, SC.4.N.1.1, SC.4.N.1.6, SC.4.N.2.1, SC.5.N.1.6, LAFS.3.L.1.1,
LAFS.3.L.3.6, LAFS.3.RI.2.4, LAFS.3.SL.1.1, LAFS.3.SL.2.4, LAFS.3.W.3.8, LAFS.4.L.1.1, LAFS.4.L.3.6, LAFS.4.RI.1.3,
LAFS.4.RI.3.7, LAFS.4.SL.1.1, LAFS.4.SL.2.4, LAFS.4.W.3.8, LAFS.5.L.1.1, LAFS.5.L.3.6, LAFS.5.RI.2.4, LAFS.5.SL.1.1,
LAFS.5.W.3.8
Vocabulary
Tropical rainforest
Materials
Conservation
Weather
Ecosystem
Blackboard or whiteboard
Chalk/Marker
Rainstorm Brainstorm handouts (Page 9)
Procedure
• The point of this activity is to get students to start thinking about important questions about the
rainforest and recalling what they already know. Students can record their answers with words or
pictures. It is fine if students do not come up with every important concept about the rainforest now,
they will revisit and expand their answers after the trip to the Garden.
• With your students, braintstorm what they know about rainforests. Once you have some ideas on
the board, prompt students to think about temperature, weather, and colors. What do they think a
rainforest feels like? Have students fill in the first block of the worksheet.
• Ask the students if they think rainforest are important. Why or why not? Do they use any products
that come from the rainforest? Are the rainforests important to things other than people? Have the
students fill in box number two.
• What lives in a rainforest? This includes plants and animals. Many tropical fruits are originally from
the rainforest. Even Pringles potato chips can be traced back to the rainforest, as they contain palm
oil. Fill in the third box.
• If the rainforest is important, what can we do to help it? Brainstorm a few ways to be good stewards
of the planet. Fill in the fourth box.
• After coming to the Garden, have your students revisit their answers. Did they learn anything on the
trip that surprised them about the rainforest? What can they add to the four boxes?
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Name Date Tropical Rainforest Exploration
Rainstorm Brainstorm
What I know about rainforests:
Why I think they are important:
Things that are from rainforests:
How I can I help the rainforests:
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Post-visit Activity:
My Terrarium and the Water Cycle
Objective
Students will observe plant growth and record observations on how plants respond to environmental
conditions. Students will be able to name and explain the stages of the water cycle.
STANDARDS: SC.3.N.1.1, SC.3.N.1.2, SC.3.N.1.3, SC.3.N.1.6, SC.3.N.3.2, SC.3.P.9.1, SC.3.L.14.1, SC.3.L.14.2, SC.3.L.15.2,
SC.3.L.17.2, SC.4.N.1.1, SC.4.N.1.2, SC.4.N.1.4, SC.4.N.1.5, SC.4.N.1.6, SC.4.N.1.7. SC.4.N.1.8, SC.4.N.2.1, SC.5.E.7.1,
SC.5.N.1.1, SC.5.N.1.2, SC.5.N.2.1, LAFS.3.L.1.1, LAFS.3.L.3.4, LAFS.3.L.3.6, LAFS.3.RF.3.3, LAFS.3.RF.4.4., LAFS.3.RI.2.4,
LAFS.3.SL.1.1, LAFS.4.L.1.1, LAFS.4.L.3.4, LAFS.4.L.3.6, LAFS.4.RF.3.3, LAFS.4.RF.4.4, LAFS.4.RI.1.3, LAFS.4.RI.3.7,
LAFS.4.SL.1.1, LAFS.5.L.1.1, LAFS.5.L.3.4, LAFS.5.L.3.6, LAFS.5.3.3, LAFS.5.RF.4.4, LAFS.5.RI.2.4, LAFS.5.SL.1.1, MAFS.3.MD.2.4
Vocabulary
Condensation
Precipitation
Transpiration
Ecosystem
Evaporation
Materials
Individual terrariums (created at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden)
“The Water Cycle” handout (page 11)
“My Terrarium Journal” handout (page 12)
Pencils
Rulers
Procedure
1.
Terrariums can be used as models to understand the global water cycle. Organize the class into
groups and give them the following questions to discuss:
o
How is the terrarium like an ecosystem?
o
In what ways is it different?
o
What would happen if the top of the jar was removed?
o
How is it possible that the terrarium may not require watering for years?
o
How do the plants inside get the water they need to grow?
o
Why did you plant a fern and moss in the terrarium?
o
Would other plants grow well in the terrarium?
2.
Distribute the “The Water Cycle” handout (page 11) and the “My Terrarium Journal” handout (page
12) to the students. After students have read the information on “The Water Cycle” handout, have
them draw their observations on the “My Terrarium Journal” handout.
3.
As a class or individually, have the students test the effect of different variables on the terrariums
such as temperature, light levels, the effect of salt water, etc.
4.
Ask the students what they expect to happen in their terrariums and record their predictions.
5.
Two weeks after the field trip, students should again make observations and draw their terrarium
in their journal. If several students tested the same variable, have the students compare results and
discuss why there are differences.
6.
Have each student (or group) present their findings to the class, using both words and pictures.
Allow time for questions and answers. Encourage students to talk about things they would like to
test and what they would change about the experiment if they tried it again.
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Name Date Tropical Rainforest Exploration
What is The Water Cycle?
The Water Cycle
In the global water cycle, the sun heats the Earth’s surface water, causing that surface water to evaporate.
This water vapor then rises into the Earth’s atmosphere where it cools and condenses into liquid droplets.
These droplets combine and grow until they become heavy and fall to the Earth as precipitation.
What to expect from your terrarium
The terrarium water cycle is a model of the global water cycle. The plants in the terrarium absorb the
water through their roots and release it through their leaves (transpiration). The water molecules will
condense on the sides of the jar (condensation), and drip down the sides of the terrarium. Some of these
water molecules will also be evaporated by the sun. When the terrarium appears cloudy, the water inside
has evaporated and is condensing. Plants will use the moisture in the soil for photosynthesis, a process
that occurs in plant cells and provides energy for plant growth. Some terrariums may develop a problem
with mold. If this occurs, try to figure out what caused the mold by comparing moldy terrariums to moldfree ones. Generally, mold is caused by excessive moisture; open the terrarium to let it dry out a bit. The
plants in your terrarium are “non-flowering” plants, which means they do not produce flowers but instead
reproduce with spores. They prefer to live in warm, humid environments.
How plants transpire
Most people don’t realize how much moisture comes from plant cells each day. Although we may notice
higher humidity in the forest, it’s hard to imagine that 90-95% of the water a typical plant absorbs through
its roots passes into the air as water vapor. The water evaporates through tiny pores on leaves called stomata.
The stomata open during the day to allow carbon dioxide needed for photosynthesis to enter the leaf. The
oxygen released during photosynthesis exits through the same stomata. Transpiration is the term used to
describe the loss of water from plant surfaces (usually leaves).
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Name Date My Terrarium Journal
Draw a picture of your terrarium. Record the soil level as well as plant height and width. Be sure to label
the different items in your terrarium such as air, plants, soil, charcoal and clay.
After your initial observations, it’s time to experiment!
What variable will you test?
What do you predict will happen inside your terrarium?
Two weeks later
Date Draw a picture of your terrarium. Record the soil level as well as plant height and width. Be sure to
label the different items in your terrarium such as air, plants, soil, charcoal and clay.
What changes did you notice?
Did your predictions match your results? Why or why not?
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Post-visit Activity:
Rapping about Adapting
Objective
Students will recall what they learned about adaptations and use their creativity to teach others about it.
STANDARDS: SC.3.L.14.1, SC.3.L.14.2, SC.3.N.1.1, SC.3.N.1.6, SC.4.L.16.3, SC.4.N.1.1, SC.4.N.2.1, SC.5.L.15.1,
SC.5.L.17.1, LAFS.3.L.1.1, LAFS.3.L.3.4, LAFS.3.L.3.6, LAFS.3.RF.3.3, LAFS.3.RF.4.4, LAFS.3.RI.1.1, LAFS.3.RI.2.4,
LAFS.3.RI.2.5, LAFS.3.RI.3.7, LAFS.3.SL.1.1, LAFS.3.SL.2.4, LAFS.3.W.1.2, LAFS.3.W.3.7, LAFS.3.W.3.8, LAFS.4.L.1.1,
LAFS.4.L.3.4, LAFS.4.L.3.6, LAFS.4.RF.3.3, LAFS.4.RF.4.4, LAFS.4.RI.1.1, LAFS.4.RI.1.3, LAFS.4.RI.3.7, LAFS.4.RI.4.10,
LAFS.4.SL.1.1, LAFS.4.SL.2.4, LAFS.4.W.1.2, LAFS.4.W.3.7, LAFS.4.W.3.8, LAFS.5.L.1.1, LAFS.5.L.3.4, LAFS.5.L.3.6,
LAFS.5.RF.3.3, LAFS.5.RF.4.4, LAFS.5.RI.2.4, LAFS.5.RI.3.9, LAFS.5.RI.4.10, LAFS.5.SL.1.1, LAFS.5.SL.2.4,
LAFS.5.W.1.2, LAFS.5.W.3.7, LAFS.5.W.3.8, SS.3.A.1.1, SS.3.A.1.2
Vocabulary
Adaptation
Ecosystem
Organism
Materials
Adaptations Video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YX8VQIJVpTg&feature=related)
Paper and Pencils
Resource materials (Internet, encyclopedias, newspaper articles, etc.)
Procedure
• Have students brainstorm different ways that people can communicate information. We can use
books, newspapers, internet articles, spoken word, poetry, videos, music, movement/dance, etc to
teach and learn new concepts.
• Show the students the Adaptations Video.
• Have students recall some of the tropical rainforest plants and adaptations they observed in the
Garden. What was their favorite? Why are these adaptations important for a rainforest ecosystem?
• Individually, or in small groups, have students pick a rainforest plant with adaptations they find
particularly interesting. Using what they remember from the trip and the resource materials, write a
poem, song, or rap about their plant, where it lives, and the adaptations it has.
• Present to the class. Did anyone pick the same plant? If so, compare and contrast how they presented
the information about adaptations.
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Websites for More Information
Rainforest Alliance
http://rainforestalliance.com/kids
Learn about current ecological issues in rainforest conservation and products from the rainforest, such as
Smart-Wood, and ECO-OK coffee. Site contains statistics, facts sheets, information for kids on what we
all can do to save the rainforest, and many links to resources on materials and organizations that promote
sustainable rainforest products.
To read a virtual story about a Chachi Indian select the “Virtual Storybooks” icon and scroll down to
“Romel’s Rainforest Home”. You can read what it’s like to live in the village of San Salvador, in western
Ecuador, all from a 13 year old’s point of view!
Rainforest Action Network
http://ran.org/
Very proactive organization provides a lot of information, and is involved with current rainforest issues.
Site contains “hot” (and sometimes controversial) rainforest news, fact sheets, ideas for students to help
the rainforest and a 72-page curriculum packet designed for grades 3-6.
Mongabay.com
http://kids.mongabay.com/
This site has extensive information on rainforests, their locations, and how people live in tropical
environments. Each section is accompanied by photos and the information presented is appropriate for
young children. The “teacher resources” section has lesson plans and additional materials to enhance your
classroom curriculum.
Plant Explorers
http://www.plantexplorers.com/
Contains information and biographies on many famous plant explorers, including David Fairchild.
Passport to the Rainforest
http://passporttoknowledge.com/rainforest/intro.html
Contains information, maps and links to researchers working in the rainforest.
“Zoom” Rainforests
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/rainforests/
Kid-friendly site with basic information and quizzes.
Forest Protection Portal
http://forests.org/
Lots of information on why rainforests are important, how they are being destroyed and how they can be
saved. Also has links on endangered species and current events.
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Websites for More Information
Missouri Botanical Garden Rainforest Information
http://www.mbgnet.net/sets/rforest/index.htm
Site designed to complement educational programing on the rainforest. Designed for school children.
Amazon Interactive
http://eduweb.com/amazon.html
Explore the geography of the Ecuadorian Amazon and the Quinchua people who call it home. Plan and
manage a locally-controlled ecotourism project with an on-line simulation game.
Jungle Photos
http://www.junglephotos.com
Hundreds of great photos of plants, animals, scenery, and people from the Amazon rainforest.
Tropical Rainforest Information Center
http://www.trfic.msu.edu/
A partner program with NASA, the TRFIC prepares reports and uses GIS (geographic information systems)
data to evaluate the current amount of rainforest acreage.
The Kids Ecology Corps
http://kidsecologycorps.org/
A non-profit organization providing educational, cultural and leadership experience to young people who
want make positive environmental action.
World Wildlife Fund
http://www.worldwildlife.org/
Many suggestions on things to do and places to go to get involved in environmental work, both locally
and politically.
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