Ama-Zone: The Rain Forest Project
Are you ready for an adventure in the jungle? Are you tingling all over when you think about looking at pictures of snakes, spiders and other "yucky" things? Well, climb on board the Ama-Zone! express. Get yourself ready for an exciting ride through the jungle.
AMA-ZONE: THE RAIN FOREST PROJECT is a role playing activity that allows the students to explore the many issues surrounding the rainforest. It was designed by teachers to utilize information gathered by PBS Western Reserve during a trip to the Peruvian Rainforest.
Educational Resources
Produced: 2001
Subject Area: Science; Mathematics; Language Arts
Grade Level: 3-9
Video 1: Overview
Video 1: A Rain Forest Overview includes the definition of the rain forest, the layers, biodiversity and information about the people.
Video 4: The Culture
Video 4: The Culture documents the joys and hardships in the lives of the riberenos (river people), the native population and the city people.
Video 2: The Challenge
Video 2: The Challenge examines the causes of deforestation through slash-and-burn techniques for cattle raising or farming, and mining in the rain forest. This video tries to balance the progress made with the need to preserve the rain forest.
Video 5: Medicine and Pharmacy
Video 5: Medicine and Pharmacy deals with current medicine and the hope of finding future medicines using plants and animals from the rain forest. The shaman, Dr. Linnea Smith (a rain forest M.D.), and Chris Simmons (a pharmacist from the United States) discuss the medical and often cultural aspects of medical treatment and pharmacology.
Video 3: Biodiversity
Video 3: Biodiversity shows the vast array of plants, animals, and insects and discusses the fantastic spectrum of plants and wildlife.