4C Class Assembly
19 January 07
 
 
 

For their class assembly, Miss Cain and the children of 4C chose to take us on a tour of the world's rainforests. Through readings, music, poetry a just a little 'monkey business', they delivered a very important message:

'Save Our Planet!'

Save Our Planet
 

All of the world’s rainforests are near the equator, which is an imaginary line round the middle of the Earth. These incredible places cover only 6% of the Earth’s surface but yet they contain MORE THAN HALF of the world’s plant and animal species. Rainforests are the source of many items that we all use in our homes. We eat several foods from the rainforest and many medicines are made from ingredients found only in these areas. The Amazon Rainforest has been described as the “Lungs of our Planet” because it continually recycles carbon dioxide into oxygen.

 

These incredible places are under serious threat! The world’s rainforests are currently disappearing at a rate of 6000 acres every hour. This is an area the size of a football pitch cut down every second of every day. When these forests are cut down, the plants and animals that live in the forests are destroyed and some species are at risk of being made extinct.  

GONE FOREVER!!

 

Rainforests

They’re really half a world away,
There’s nothing we can do.
Rainforests might be just two words
To kids like me and you.

They’re really somewhere over there.
I may not even see
A rainforest in my entire life.
What should it mean to me?

I know that in these rainforests
That I may never see,
Half the world’s plants and animals
Live in harmony.

I know that trees are being cut,
Faster than we know.
These trees are where the creatures live,
So now where will they go?

So, I know they’re half a word away,
Rainforests I can’t see.
But I can learn and understand
Because the future starts with me!

'Rainforests' poem courtesy of songs4teachers.com
 

Here are just some of the steps currently being taken to

Stop the Destruction!

Some rainforests have been turned into National Parks; here it is against the law to cut down trees. National Parks help to keep all the animals, plants and people that live in the rainforests safe from harm.
Several countries are using the rainforests to attract tourists. People are now willing to travel long distances to see for themselves what a rainforest is like.
It also helps if people make furniture from softwood, which grows quickly rather than slow growing hardwood. In many rainforests, when trees are cut down new ones are planted.
 

You can learn more about rainforests, and efforts being made to save them, by visiting the Rainforest Concern website. The site has plenty of facts, pictures and information, as well as ideas of ways that YOU can make a difference. In the 'Kids' section there is also a fantastic 'Guided Tour Through The Rainforest' and a Rainforest Flash Movie.

Click to visit the Rainforest Concern website
Please Note: Clicking the above link will open the 'Rainforest Concern' website in a new window. We are not responsible for content hosted outside the Forefield Juniors site.
 
 
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