Seeds+of+Change+(Kriz)

Created by Sandra Kriz Retrieved July 17, 2011, from: http://www.papertigers.org/reviews/USA/papertigers/SeedsOfChange.html

Johnson, J. (2010). //Seeds of change//. New York: Lee & Low Books.

Summary
This is the story of Wangari Maathai, the first African woman and environmentalist to win a Nobel Peace Prize. This book traces her life as the oldest daughter in a Kikuyu family. Wangari Maathai did not attend school as a young child. Traditional customs dictated that she help her parents with the farm work and child care. Later, recognizing their daughter's talents and her willingness to learn, Wangari's parents decided to send her to school. Wangari did so well, especially in the sciences, that she attended college and graduate school in the United States. When Wangari comes back to Kenya to work as a university instructor she sees that much has changed. Logging and plantation farming had caused extensive deforestation, soil erosion, dirty water, malnutrition, and greater work burdens for women. Wangari's simple but powerful idea to start planting trees grew into a national movement that led to over 30 million new trees planted. Wangari bravely faces imprisonment and learns to speak to the world about environmental and women's issues.

Online LInks
**Library Sparks lessons on peace:** http://www.highsmith.com/pdf/librarysparks/2010/lsp_augsept10_tech%20wqstudent.pdf **Official site of the Green Belt Movement and its founder Wangari Maathai:** http://www.greenbeltmovement.org/ **Africa Book Club, Unbowed: One Woman's Story:** http://www.africabookclub.com/?p=3260
 * Author's web page on the book: ** http://www.jencullertonjohnson.com/seeds_of_change
 * Independent lens film about Wangari Maathai: ** http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/takingroot/
 * Independent lens learn more, classroom ideas: ** http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/takingroot/classroom.html
 * Great storytelling by Wangari Maathai, "The Hummingbird": ** http://youtu.be/IGMW6YWjMxw

Discussion Questions
1, If the foreign business people went to so far as to have Wangari thrown in jail, what other tactics might they have tried to stop her? Do you think these people are still trying to profit at a cost to the environment? Defend your answer. 2. What small things can you do to help the environment? Are you doing anything at present to help the environment? 3. A homeowner in Omaha was recently told by his neighborhood association to take down his solar panels because they thought they were an eyesore to look at. What are the reasons each side may have for their beliefs? 4. If Wangari had just given up after being sent to jail what might have happened to this part of Africa?

Classroom Activity
1. Show this trailer emphasizing the importance of topsoil from the Independent Lens film, //Dirt//: []. This trailer does include Wangari Maathai. Topsoil is the upper, outermost layer of soil, usually the top 2 inches to 8 inches. Plants generally concentrate their roots in and obtain most of their nutrients from this layer. 2. Explain to the students that they will be creating a model of the of the earth to demonstrate the effect trees have on topsoil erosion. The bottom layer of the model will be clay, which will represent a lower layer of bedrock or clay. Bedrock and clay, like the clay we are using in the model, are resistant to water. The next layer we will add on top of the clay will be a layer of dry sand, which is supposed to represent a layer of different sized-rocks all jumbled up together. The top layer of the model will be soil (make sure soil is dry to prevent friction). Decomposition should have been covered in a previous class or go over the basics: dead plants with the help of decomposers (worms, fungi, etc.) make nutrient rich soil which is used by live plants which die and the cycle starts anew. 3. After explaining the parts of the model, give students the detailed instruction on how to build the model and model the process in front of the class. Place the clay in the corner of a pan, and smooth the edges so the clay is flush with the sides of the pan. I would recommend a 8x11 pan or larger and have the clay take up about a third of the pan and be an inch or more thick. Next, add a layer of sand on the clay about a fourth of an inch thick. Flatten the sand into an even layer on top of the clay. Repeat the process with a top layer of potting soil about a fourth of an inch thick. Each group of students will build two identical models. 4. Have student groups add toothpicks to only one of their models. Toothpicks should be spread somewhat evenly (make sure to get the outside edges), about 1 cm apart, throughout the model. Have students stick the toothpicks upright, through the soils and firmly into the clay. 5. Explain to students that we will be “raining” on our models with water through a perforated cup, to determine the effect of trees on erosion. Tell the students that the rate, amount, and height that the rain fall on both models have to be the same. Have the students make a prediction about what they think will happen before starting the rain. 6. The cup should be held motionless over the middle of the layered model. Using the one ounce cup add 20 ounce of water into the perforated cup. Water must be added quickly (about 2 ounces/second) and the 1 oz cups must be full to ensure a full 20 ounces is added (so don’t go so quickly that the 1 oz cups are not full). This process will be repeated for both models – have one student hold the perforated cup, while another does the water scooping. 7. Discuss the results. Trees slow down water and block soil movement. Real trees would also absorb some water and reduce erosion this way, too.
 * The Importance of topsoil and how trees can help preserve it **