Skip to Main Content
Revive the Rainforest

Revive the Rainforest

Students will learn about major rainforests and the threats to their survival, then create a triorama depicting a rainforest scene.

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

Gather all the supplies needed to bring your craft ideas to life! From paints and markers to glue and scissors, our crafts section has everything to spark creativity and make every project truly special.

  • Heavy Paper
  • Recycled File Folders

Steps

  • Step 1

    Have students research the world's rainforests and where they're located. The largest is the Amazon rainforest, which is mostly in Brazil but also encompasses other countries in the Amazon basin. It is followed in size by the Congo rainforest in Africa. Not all rainforests are in a tropical region; there are rainforests in Alaska and Canada. Ask students to research some of the flora and fauna that live in rainforests. Have them also learn about some the threats to the survival of these ecosystems, such as logging, mining, climate change, etc.

  • Step 2

    Have students create a triorama - a pyramid-shaped 3-D craft - depicting a scene in a rainforest. To create the triorama students will fold a square piece of heavy paper or a recycled file folder bringing the corners together on a diagonal line. Then have them cut along one of the folds from the corner to the center. To form the triorama they will pull one flap back over the other. Have them note which area will be hidden from view when this is done. They should lay the drawing surface flat for ease of decorating the background of their triorama. When they are done they will take that one end of the flap and pull it behind the other flap and secure it with tape create an open pyramid shape.

  • Step 3

    Students can create a background and then embellish the scene with cut-outs of rainforest sights, such as animals, plants, and trees.

  • Step 4

    Have students present their rainforest trioramas and talk about what they learned about these ecosystems and how people can help their survival.

Standards

SCI: Design pictorial or graphic representations/models that are useful in communicating ideas.

SS: Time, Continuity, and Change: Understand linkages between human decisions and consequences.

SS: Power, Authority, and Governance: Develop awareness of rights and responsibilities of people, in specific contexts.

Adaptations

Babirusas, tarsiers, cuscuses - these are some of the animals that live in Wallacea, which is mainly in Indonesia. Have students learn about the rainforests of this region and some of the interesting animals in this habitat.

Have students design a poster for a "Save the Rainforest" campaign that depicts measures we can take to protect these ecosystems. This might include supporting indigenous communities, reducing our carbon footprint by using less fossil fuel, buying responsibly sourced products, etc.