Busy Trees
Trees help to keep the air we breathe clean and healthy to breathe. Tiny holes in the leaves of trees, called stomata, allow the tree to breathe through them and to “sweat” out water. Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the air and give off oxygen which people, animals, and other plants need to breathe.
Objective
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1) To teach the children how plants help to keep the air clean and healthy to breathe.
Materials
A tree seedling, large clear plastic bag and rubber band or string.
Procedure
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1. Discuss how trees help to clean the air.
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2. Have the children water the tree seedling and place it in the plastic bag. Secure the bag in place with the string or rubber band. Moisture from the tree will condense in the bag.
Other Suggested Activities
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1. Let the children collect leaves and label them. Preserve them between waxed paper. Group them according to the tree type: deciduous or coniferous.
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2. Let the children make a fungus garden. Place a piece of moistened bread in a plastic bag. Place it in a warm, shady place. The fungus grows quickly with a display of beautiful colors and forms. The children should examine it every day. Soon the bread will disappear and the fungus will die.
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3. Let the children grow grass people. Fill a small white flower pot with soil. Add the grass seeds on top and water. Place in a sunny place. As the grass grows, the children can cut or style the “hair”. They can create a face on the pot with various art materials.
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4. Let the children grow a pine. Find an brown pine cone which is beginning to open. Shake off the seeds and plant in a pot filled with soil. Water it and then keep it moist. A pine tree should sprout in about three to four weeks.
Environmental Enemies
Pollution
Living things are harmed and/or killed by pollution. Pollution exist when something is made unclean or putrid by harmful chemicals or waste. Plants, trees, and animals die from pollution. Buildings are damaged and humans are made ill. These are just a few of the side effects of pollution.
Solid Waste
Solid waste is made of solid or semi-solid materials. They are usually the remainder of human or animal activity. It is unwanted, worthless, and may also be hazardous.
Solid waste can be categorized as the following: 1.) Garbage which is the decomposable waste from food. 2.) Rubbish which is made primarily from noncombustible waste such as metals and glass; combustible waste such as paper, wood and fabric; and other non decomposable wastes. 3.) Sewage treatment solids which is composted of materials caught on sewer screens, settled solids and sludge. 4.) Industrial wastes which include paints, sand, and chemicals; 5.) Agricultural wastes such as crops residue and animal manure, 6.) Mining waste contributes coal and lug heaps to the solid waste collection. Dead animals, ashes, debris from construction sites, fallen trees and limbs are other forms of solid waste.
The most commonly used method to dispose of solid waste is on land. Solid waste makes up more than 90% of the nation’s public waste.
Currently, garbage is being produced at an alarming rate. In the United States we create about ten pounds of plastic each year for every person on Earth. One thousand four hundred pounds of trash per person per year is produced by Americans alone. Americans discard three million cars per year, use fifty percent of paper for packaging alone, and our industries produce nearly two hundred fifty million tons of toxic, corrosive and ignitable refuse. At the current rate of production, it is evident that we will run out of places to store our trash in the very near future.