Rain Forest Products Learning about products that come from the rain forest

Grades 3-6 Objectives  Students will identify products made from resources found in a tropical rain forest. MATERIALS  Students will be able to discuss the impact of rainforest deforestation on their lives.  rain forest products brought

in by students Background information

 More than half (some say up to 90%) of all plant and animal species on Earth are found in Key Words rain forests.  tropical rain forest  One-fourth of all medicine in use today is derived from plants.

 70% of the plants containing compounds useful in cancer treatment are found only in rainforests, yet Standards less than 1% of tropical rainforest plants have been thoroughly studied for their chemical compounds.  SCI.4.2.4  Each year, an area the size of New York (over 30,000 square miles) of tropical rain forest is  SCI.4.2.5 destroyed. At the present rate of destruction (about one acre per second), the remaining rain forest  SCI.4.2.6 could be depleted in this century.  SCI.6.3.2

Procedure  Give each student a copy of the list entitled “Rain Forest Products.”

 Ask students to look for and bring in empty jars/boxes from home that contained these products or to clip pictures of these products from magazines.  Assemble the pictures on a bulletin board or make a display of the items collected.  Discuss the importance of the rain forest products. How would our lives be different if the rain forests had been destroyed before these products had been discovered? What could we be losing now that the rain forests are disappearing at the rate of 60 acres per minute?

Recommended Assessment  Assess students based on participation in discussion and contribution to display.

Extensions  Students could also use the sheet as a survey to check off how many of these items are found in their home. The results of the survey could be tallied and posted in the classroom.  Decorate your classroom to look like a rain forest. Cut out tree trunks and large leaves and post them on the wall. Hang “vines” of twisted brown paper from the ceiling. Create “epiphytes” from construction paper.

Rain forest products Products originating in or currently found growing in tropical rain forests

Houseplants Woods Spices and Flavors  African violet (furniture, doors, floors, paneling,  Allspice  Begonia cabinets, carvings, toys, models)  Black pepper  Bromeliads  Balsa  Cardamom  Christmas cactus  Mahogany  Cayenne  Croton  Rosewood  Chili pepper  Dracena  Sandalwood  Chocolate or cocoa  Fiddle leaf fig  Teak  Cinnamon  Orchids  Cloves  Philodendron Canes and Fibers  Ginger  Prayer plant  Bamboo (furniture, crafts)  Mace  Rubber plant  Jute (rope, twine, burlap)  Nutmeg  Snake plant (Sansevieria)  Kapok (insulation, stuffing)  Paprika  Umbrella tree (Schefflera)  Ramie (knit materials)  Turmeric  Rattan (furniture, wicker, cane  Vanilla chair seats) Gums and resins  Chicle (chewing gum) Fruits and Vegetables Other food products  Copal (varnish, printing ink)  Avocado  Brazil nuts  Rubber (balloons, erasers, foam  Banana  Cashew nuts rubber, balls, rubber bands, gloves,  Grapefruit  Coconut hoses, shoes, tires)  Guava  Coffee  Heart of palm  Cola  Lemon  Corn Oils  Lime  Macadamia nuts  Bay (bay rum lotion)  Mango  Peanuts  Camphor (insect repellent, lotion)  Orange  Rice  Coconut (baked goods, lotion, soap)  Papaya  Sesame seeds  Lime (food flavoring, candles, soap,  Passion fruit  Sugar bath oil)  Pepper  Tapioca  Palm (snack food, baked goods)  Pineapple  Tea  Patchouli (perfume, soap)  Plantain  Rosewood (soap, candles, perfume)  Potato  Sweet potato  Tangerine  Tomato  Yam