Help students understand that the author is making a point that planting trees can help a community. Author Donna Jo Napoli and illustrator Kadir Nelson join forces in this picture-book examination of the activism of Wangari Maathai, founder of Kenya's tree-planting Green Belt Movement, and winner of the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize. Having grown up with a great respect for the mugumo, or spreading fig tree, Maathai eventually became a veterinary doctor, a university professor, and a woman who encouraged other women to plant trees, thereby combatting the deforestation of her country, and all the ills it brought. Eventually she gained the title 'Mama Miti,' or mother of trees...

Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya - Goodreads Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya - Goodreads

Through this book, Mama Miti exposes children to the land of Kenya and the way of life during troubled times. Young Wangari was told stories of how Kenya was lush and beautiful prior to the sun shining brightly and the drought that resulted. Children who read this book, learn how one woman's idea can change a whole country. Remembering stories of the sacred fig tree and how it brought peace between the angry men, Wangari grew older, remember these beginnings, planted, and gave plants away for families do the same. Her efforts created a movement in Africa and that allowed the country to thrive and become at peace again. The message to young girls and boys everywhere is that even ONE person can affect change. The government sells a lot of land to big companies. They cut down forests for timber and clear land for coffee plantations. In college, many of Wangari’s science professors were women. From them she learned that a woman could do anything she wanted to, even it it hadn’t been done before.

This is a great book for all but especially for girls who have been told over and over that they can’t do what they want to do or be who they want to be for one reason or the other. The book is a testament to what determination, resilience and passion for a cause can do. It is a story with the lesson that giving up is not an option. Of particular value is the addition of a chronology of “The Life of Wangari Maathai” with captions of the historical landscape leading up to her birth and actual milestones in her life. Other additions include a caption on deforestation and the impact on the animal population, quotes from Wangari’s autobiography Unbowed, and a brief paragraph on “Kenya Today.” With excitement, remind students that this is similar to the Module 4 guiding question. Wangari taught her community about why and how trees are important. Take turns orally processing the matches by forming sentences using the sentence frame: "Plant a tree ___________ because _____________." For all that, I did enjoy the book quite a bit. Ideally, all picture books about Maathai would be available to be viewed and read at about the same time because they all offer something a bit different, and readers will get a more complete picture of this woman, the Green Belt Movement, and history if all are read. Friday 28May 2021 marks World Hunger Day in the UK: a day which in so many ways, feels as if it should not exist. Especially not in a world in which millions of tonnes of food are destroyed daily, whilst millions of people go hungry.

Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya Tree Time: Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya

Bewitched by the rhythms of jazz all around her in Depression-era Kansas City, little Melba Doretta Liston longs to make music in this fictional account of a little-known jazz great. While serving on the National Council of Women of Kenya, she became dedicated to helping with the struggles of women in rural Kenya. Noticing how the rapid environmental degradation was affecting women's lives, she encouraged them to plant trees to ensure future supplies of firewood and to protect water sources and crops. To that end, she founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977, which led to the planting of more than thirty million trees. This entry was posted on March 5, 2013, in Africa, Earth Day, Education, Picture Books, Teaching and tagged bookreview #kidlit, earthday, kidlit, picture books, YA. Bookmark the permalink. Leave a comment (Edit) After reading the stories, talk about cause and effect. Have the students make a chart and fill in the missing causes and effects. Another option is to have them cut apart and then match the causes and effects. Here are some you may include: Cause: Tell students that the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart can help them form an opinion about where to plant a tree. As needed, remind students that an opinion is what you think about something.And it is only thanks to those hearts and to so many incredible, oft-invisible works, that I wrote The Great (Food) Bank Heist (heading your way on 1 st July - more details coming soon!). And why today, I want to celebrate those books which do not shy away from the issues of hunger and poverty daily impacting our children, and who instead, help them to recognise the s/heroes they already are… Onjali's top reads for World Hunger Day UK Wangari’s brother teachers her what he learns at school; her parents see that she is smart and a hard worker. Illustration from It's A No-Money Day by Kate Milner “Political affiliations aside, can we not all agree that no child should be going to bed hungry?.” In Lessons 7-8, students will continue to engage in a focused read-aloud of Mama Miti and use the information and ideas from the text to add to the Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart and discuss the Module 4 guiding question.

Wangari Maathai: The Woman Who Planted Millions of Trees Wangari Maathai: The Woman Who Planted Millions of Trees

Ah, Dolly Parton... (happy sigh) A woman who has put millions of books into the hands of millions of children; invested her own money into saving the world from Covid-19, and who has never shied away from speaking about the poverty she and her family suffered as a child. the British colonists are no longer the masters of Kenya. The country is free, but the trees are not —they still cannot grow in peace. Kenyans are cutting down trees and selling them as the colonists did. By using the land where the trees used to grow to cultivate the tea, coffee, and tobacco sought by rich countries, they can make more money. (Prévot) What do you think author's point will be?" (Responses will vary, but may include: People should plant trees because there is a woman planting a tree.) Echoing the meter of “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” Ward uses catchy original rhymes to describe the variety of nests birds create.Illustration from The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle Invite the reasons to move and stand next to a place that makes sense ("have trunks and limbs to climb" makes sense with "playground" but not "beach"; however, "makes shade" is a reason that could go with either place, and that's okay!). Display the mountain scene sketch and using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

Week beginning 29th June - Theme “Famous and Significant People

Wangari realizes that she needs more support, and begins to travel the world to spread her message.

Read your sentence strip and decide whether you are a place (opinion) or a reason. Use the icon as a visual cue to help you read. But her true legacy, besides all the prizes and titles, are the preserved forests of Kenya and the inspiration of a whole generation of activists. Her core conviction was the connection of wellbeing of the nature and the wellbeing of human communities. Forests around springs and water sources protect the soil from eroding and the water from drying up. Consequently the communities living in that area have safe access to water. Direct students' attention to the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart and read the places aloud.