Where the Forest Meets the Sea: 1

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In groups, students are to create three freeze frames (still dramatic representations using students and props) to represent the past, present and future of the Daintree Rainforest. Students will take photos of each frozen scene and put them together in a multimedia format using Microsoft PowerPoint, Pic Collage or another app. They can then orally tell the story of their pictures. Alternatively, students may assemble their pictures in a collage accompanied by written text. My father says there has been a forest here for over a hundred million years," Jeannie Baker's young protagonist tells us, and we follow him on a visit to this tropical rain forest. Look at the front cover and ask students if the picture reminds them of anywhere they have been. Point out the boat and ask if anyone has been on a boat before. Ask students to predict the importance of the boat and its occupants, i.e. ‘Do you think the boat will be important to the story? Who do you think the people in the boat are?’

Group discussion – Students talk about text and make text-to-self and text-to-world connections [evaluating and understanding] Students should demonstrate an understanding of each character’s relationship to place and how it has different meaning for different characters over the passage of time. They should also show an awareness of the themes that the author is trying to portray in the book.

Oral narrative

Read the book as a class and discuss students’ predictions. Were they correct? What was different? Was the book what they expected? Transition – Art (Explain to students that they are creating a poster using recycled objects incl. wool, buttons etc.). They can use any materials, images and/ or text to relay their message about saving the forests. When students are asked to bring in recycled items for their poster it also involves parents in the learning process. Working in pairs, discuss the role that the images play in increasing our understanding of the author's message.

Opening this expertly designed picture book reveals two parallel wordless tales: one to be read left to right, the other right to left. The stories follow a day in the family life of two boys, who Continue reading » The pictures are beautiful, and are photographs of reliefs rather than being illustrations. The reliefs show the faint outline of the boy’s imagined dinosaurs, rainforest animals and Aboriginal children who once lived in the forest. They also show the threat of hotels, swimming pools and televisions that hangs over the area. Share and discuss some photos from the walk as a class. Jointly construct a Y chart about what students saw, felt and heard. In their groups, students are to discuss the Daintree Rainforest and why and for whom it is a ‘special place’. They can use a graphic organiser (PDF, 168KB) to write down ideas.

Find a Scheme of Work

Present students with a statement along the lines of: ‘The Daintree Rainforest is a good topic for a children’s book.’ Around the room place four signs that say ‘strongly agree’, ‘strongly disagree’, ‘agree’ and ‘disagree’. Have students stand next to the sign that reflects their opinions most strongly. Visit DadsWorksheets.com for extra math practice, multiplication worksheets, fraction calculators, printable charts and free home school resources! Students are to create a board game about the Daintree Rainforest. Show them examples of other board games and, if necessary, provide them with a basic template. The purpose of the game is to teach others about the Daintree Rainforest, as well as promote its conservation. Students will need to follow the basic format of a board game and demonstrate knowledge of the procedural format, as well as aspects of persuasive texts. They should also use elements of the text Where the Forest Meets The Sea where possible. There is a very strong environmental message in the book that if we truly immerse ourselves in nature and experience it with all our senses, we will want to preserve it and keep it this secret magical place that we visit and leave without a trace.

A boy and his father spend the day in the rainforest of northern Australia and the boy imagines both the primeval past and the possible future for the area. The striking illustrations, which are collages made largely from natural materials, combine with a spare but thought-provoking text. Students should be able to portray their point of view and understanding of the text through dramatic portrayal and artistic/multimedia representation, and understand the difference between oral and written narrative. Interacting with others – Listen to and respond orally to texts and to the communication of others (ACELY1646) Use interaction skills including listening – participating in speaking and listening situations / asking questions (ACELY1784) Explain to students the assessment requirements and show them an already finished exemplar poster (point out positive aspects including a title/ message, colour, materials…)Good link between English and Geography. Love the idea of children using their imagination and their geographical knowledge to write their own version of the journey. Display rain forest photos from Science. Students discuss which rain forest photos they like and why, connecting to prior learning.

Once students have finished their worksheets, display them around the room. Students are to conduct a gallery walk and, as a class, discuss the question: ‘What is something you found interesting, surprising, common, etc. about everybody’s think boards?’ It is here to we discover the exact location from which Jeannie Baker drew her inspiration. Oliver Creek is accessed by one of Cape Tribulation’s three boardwalks – Marrja, Kulki and Dubuji – each designed to allow tourists to explore the area without damaging the precious ecosystems and all manageable for children. I myself would borrow this book as often as I could and just stare at the pictures....I so wished it had texture because I really wanted to touch it too....which I refrained from because of the drool.Ask the students to retell the story as a sequence of events. Then get them to change one element; "how would The creator of Where the Forest Meets the Sea offers another warning about the environment--somewhat didactically--in this wordless picture book. Each spread features the window of Sam's room, from Continue reading » Discuss other types of narratives that are passed down through generations to help people learn, i.e. fables, Dreaming stories, campfire yarns. Read a variety of Dreaming stories or invite a local Aboriginal Elder to share some of their own stories. Discuss the difference between an oral narrative and one that is written down. In a circle, students can take turns saying something that their father (or other extended family member) says. In this story, Jeannie Baker shows us how things change, but through the eyes of a Australian young boy. This story is based in North Queensland, Australia and we walk through a lovely, tropical rainforest with this young boy and his father- as he pretends to walk through time, past, present and future. We go from seeing extinct and pre-historic animals, to seeing the furture vast developments of green-land becoming industrialised. As we look into the future aprehenisions for the forest, we (along with the boy) are faced with the question: How much longer will this forest be here?