Lesson Plan: Rescue in the Rainforest

Essential Questions

• How do humans help wildlife? How do humans harm wildlife?
• How can organizations and individuals do more to protect animals?

Literature Connection

• Biography: The Leaf Detective: How Margaret Lowman Uncovered Secrets in the Rainforest by Heather Lang
• Novel: The Lost Rainforest #1: Mez’s Magic by Eliot Schrefer 

Preview Text Features (10 minutes)

Guide students to locate the article in their magazines or at Action Online. Preview the text features by asking the following questions:

• Read the article’s title and subtitle. Why do you think sloths might need rescuing? Sample answers: Sloths might need rescuing if they’re sick or injured. They might need help if they’ve lost their homes or are in danger of being attacked by other animals. A natural disaster, like a wildfire, might also put the animals at risk.
• Study the map. Which two countries border Costa Rica? What is the capital of Costa Rica? Where is The Sloth Institute (TSI) in relation to the capital? Nicaragua and Panama border Costa Rica. The capital of Costa Rica is San Jose. The Sloth Institute is to the south of San Jose, along the Pacific coast.

Preview Vocabulary (10 minutes)

• Point out the vocabulary box. Read the words (rainforest, canopy, captivity, deforestation, frail) aloud and discuss their definitions.
• Play the Vocabulary Slideshow.

Make a Plan for Reading

Before students start to read, walk them through a reading plan:

• Set a purpose for reading by telling students that the article “Rescue in the Rainforest” tells the story of Snow White, a sloth that was rescued and released back into the forest.
• Point out the Pause and Think boxes. Tell students they can check their understanding of what they’ve read by answering these questions.
• Tell students that as they finish each section, they should think about how the text features on the page (e.g., photos, captions, and section headings) relate to what they’ve just read.
• Point out the activity at the end of the article and tell students they’ll complete it after reading. Encourage them to keep the Think About It! question at the bottom in mind as they read.

Read the article. (Higher- and lower-Lexile versions are available on the Story page at Action Online. Click Presentation View to access an audio read-aloud.) Then discuss the following close-reading and critical-thinking questions.

Close-Reading Questions (25 minutes)

• Based on the opening section, what were the first six months of Snow White’s life like? Why did her situation change? (cause and effect) For her first six months, Snow White lived a happy life, first with her mother, then on her own. She lived in trees alongside other animals in the rainforest and ate leaves and fruit. She became ill when a tree she depended on for food was cut down. Without enough to eat, she started to starve. When a storm hit, she was too ill to hold on to tree branches and fell to the ground.
• In the section “Many Threats,” the author says that sloths are “misunderstood.” What are some examples of how they’re misunderstood? (key details) Sloths appear to be smiling at us, but that’s just the way their faces look. It’s not a good idea to hug them because contact with humans causes their hearts to race. Some people also think that sloths make good pets, but they don’t do well in captivity.
• What is deforestation, and why is it a threat to sloths? (key idea) Deforestation is the cutting down or burning of trees in an area. People cut down forests to make room for farms, homes, and hotels. This is a threat to sloths because it prevents them from moving from tree to tree. They have to go down to the ground, where they can be attacked by other animals. 
• How does the sidebar “Saving Sloths” add to what you read in the section “Sloth School”? (text features) The section “Sloth School” explains that TSI cares for sloths that are sick or injured, or that have lost their mothers, and prepares them to return to the wild. TSI teaches the sloths survival skills. The sidebar “Saving Sloths” shows different ways the TSI staff cares for sloths: feeding them milk, collecting leaves for them to eat, treating their injuries, and returning them to the wild.
• Reread the section “A Fairy-Tale Ending.” What does the phrase “fairy-tale ending” mean? Do you think Snow White’s story has a fairy-tale ending? Explain. (interpreting text) A fairy-tale ending is a happy one; after solving a problem everyone “lives happily ever after.” Students will likely say that Snow White’s story has a fairy-tale ending because after being close to death, the sloth was treated, healed, and sent back into the wild to live a good life.

Critical-Thinking Questions (10 minutes)

• What do you think might be enjoyable about working at TSI? What might be hard? (critical thinking) Sample answer: It would probably be enjoyable to see sick and injured sloths get better, but it might be hard to say goodbye when it was time to send them back into the wild. Also, some sloths might not survive, which would be sad.
• Why do you think the author wrote this story? Why might she want you to know about a real-life sloth? (author’s purpose) Answers will vary. Students might say that one reason the author wrote this story is that, as she points out, sloths are very popular, but many people don’t know what they’re actually like or the dangers they face. By writing about a real-life sloth, she can let readers know many details about sloths and the threats they face. Also, by describing the work of TSI, she might inspire readers to want to help sloths or other animals.

• Have students work in pairs to complete the Spotlight Skill Workout: Text Evidence activity. As a class, discuss students’ answers and the Think About It! question.
• Have students work independently to complete our Sequence of Events Skill Builder, available in higher- and lower-level versions. (Click here to view all your Skill Builders for this article.)
• Writing prompt: Imagine that you work for TSI, and the group is looking for volunteers. Write a short ad describing what TSI does and listing a few of the qualities a great TSI volunteer would have.