"EARTH DAY: Doing Our Part" - Free stories online. Create books for kids

This book is dedicated to Ms. Krystal McCrae for the great idea to talk about conservation and recycling and being such an inspirational teacher.

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Earth Day: Doing Our Part

Author: Gabrielle Gonzalez Illustrator: Gabrielle Gonzalez

Just like you have to help keep your house clean, we as

humans living on Earth have to keep our planet clean so that

its safe for all animals and people. Let the Alphabet friends

show you how to do your part.

Proper air quality is important for all of us. Bad air or air pollution can make humans, animals, and plants very sick. Air pollution can be caused by cars, homes, factories, even some electricity. Smog, smoke and fog, is a form of air pollution found in areas where there is a lot of motor vehicles, calm winds, and high temperatures.

Air quality

BbBiodegradable

Biodegradable is a chemical change where living organisms (decomposers) breaks organic materials like banana peels, old food, paper and dead plants and animals. But not all things can be broken down easily. Plastic bottles, cans, plastic bags are non-biodegradable. Too many of these items can cause serious harm to the environment.

CcConservation

Conservation is the things we do to maintain a good relationship with nature. This can be simple stuff like turning of the light in room once you leave, recycling, shorter showers, or shutting the water off while you brush your teeth. But we can't just do it once in awhile. Conservation needs to be a way of life.

DdDisposable

Ever hear of a disposable plates or forks? This is something we see daily. It means an item the can be thrown away after use. However, not all these items decompose easily and has led to an overabundance of trash in the world. Other common disposable but non biodegradable items are diapers which can take 500 years to fully decompose or batteries that take 100 years.

Endangered Species

The land we now live on use to belong to many wild animals. However, since we have take their homes many have become endangered species. This mean that there is a limited number of these animals left in the world and if we are not careful they may disappear forever. Already 30 to 50% species may be heading to extinction. Other reasons include over hunting and destruction of habitat. Tigers, elephants, panda bears are just a few that are in trouble.

FfFossil Fuels

A fossil fuel is what is used to power our electricity, cars, and heating. It is fuel that comes from long decomposed animals and plants. there are four types; coal, oil, nuclear, and natural gas. About 80 percent of the entire worlds power comes from fossil fuel but there isn't an unlimited amount. One day we could run out!

GgGlobal Warming

Global warming is serious threat to our earth right now. It is the rising global temperatures that is causing negative effects. It is caused by a an unnatural increase in greenhouse gasses such as carbon dioxide and methane. Due to global warming, glaciers are melting, the ocean water is getting hotter and the ocean levels are rising. This is bad for us and the animals in poles or ocean.

Like wind energy, hydroelectric energy is an alternative of energy. It uses the movement of water to generate electricity. A dam can be used to collect this energy. This is a form of renewable energy. We could never run out!

Hydroelectric Energy

IiInvasive Species

Sometimes animals that don't belong in a habitat are brought in by accident or purpose. These are called invasive species. They can be very dangerous to a habitat, either but eating the local animals or eating all the food of the local animals. An example in Florida is the Burmese python, a pet the ended up getting loose. Growing 12 feet in size it became a top predator and a danger to local animals.

JjJungles

Jungles and forests are a key environment in the world. Not only is it home to thousands of species but its plants provide clean oxygen for us to breathe. However, deforestation is destroying these places about 18 million acres of forests are lost every year. This leads to an increase in carbon dioxide gases. What difference can you see in this picture of the Amazon jungle?

KkKids

Even as a kid you can do your part to help the environment. 1) To help slow down climate change, ask your parent to help you plant a tree, drive less or carpool, and try to reduce paper usage. 2) To save natural resources try to use less water, electricity, and air conditioning. 3) Use less plastic be reusing water bottles, reusing grocery bags, and recycling plastic. Can you think of other ways to help?

Litter is a type of trash that is thrown in a place where it doesn't belong. It can be small like a gum wrapper or big like a car tire. You might see litter as you go for a walk. But littering is bad, it can be eaten by an animal or cause harm to an environment. Billy here, is a huge litterbug.

Littering

Marine Pollution

Just like how the air can be polluted so can the ocean. Marine pollution occurs in many ways. It can be when harmful waste from farms, factories, homes enter the water or it can be noise, or invasive species. This ruins the environment for the animals an plants living there. Many need the ocean to be a certain way to survive so changes can be hurtful.

NnNonrenewable Resources

A nonrenewable resource is one that can not be replaced once we run out. Fossil fuels is an example of this. This is why finding alternative sources is so important. Can you identify which ones are nonrenewable in the picture?

OoOverpopulation

Overpopulation is big issue facing the planet today. It means that there are more people then the planet can carry. Therefore there is not enough land for both humans and animals and not enough resources. This is because of better technology, medicine, and now people live longer.

PpPollution

Pollution is the process of making the air, soil water unsafe and dirty. Unfortunately, pollution is all around us is due to human interaction. At one point it was manageable in smaller quantities by nature but population increases has led to increase of waste. Much of it inorganic and hard to break down. What types of pollution can you see here?

Question Your Impact

One of the first steps to making a difference is to question your impact. Think about what you are using, or doing, or throwing away and see if there is a better option. Did you turn the lights off when you left the room? Could that bottle you threw away been recycled?

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

The three R's are essential for waste management and conservation. It's three simple steps that can be done in everyday life. Reduce the waste you produce by buying less, using less resources. Reuse products. Things like having a refillable water bottle, reusable shopping bags helps decrease waste. Many items can be be broken down and remade into new items. Look for the triangle above that shows that an item can be recycled.

Solar Power

An alternative form of energy that collects the sun's rays and turns it into electricity. It causes no pollution or waste. Ever seen a house with giant black panels on the side? Those are solar panels. They do the collecting.

TtToxic

Waste and pollution can be toxic, even deadly to an environment and its inhabitants. A spill, like an oil spill in the ocean can have lasting effects for years later.

Unique Environments

You may be use to the area you call home, but our earth is filled with very different environments, all equally unique. Earth has oceans, seas, forests, jungles, dessert. Some places are very dry others, are very rainy. Be aware of the beautiful places of our Earth.

Vulnerable

Our planet is filled with beautiful places and habitats. However they all vulnerable to change. Anything out of the ordinary can be a disaster to the animals and plants that live there.

Wind Energy

Wind energy is alternative form of energy. Using giant wind turbines as a generator, wind is turned into electricity. This electricity can power schools, homes, and businesses. It's a clean, nonpolluting, renewable resource.

XxXeriscape

Xeriscaping is way of conservation not many people are aware of. Its a helpful way of gardening. It uses slow growing plants that retain water and can last in periods of little rain (like a cactus). Since they use less water you are actually saving resources!

While it may seem like a big responsibility, the only way change can happen is if YOU do something about it. So find out what you can do to help your home called Earth.

You

Zero Tolerance

Sometimes humans helping isn't enough so laws or rules need to be put in place that have zero tolerance for rule breaking. The Clean Air Act worked to decrease air pollution. The Clean Water Act worked to decrease water pollution. Wetland protection worked to save our everglades.

Glossary

Alternative - the choice of one or more options.

Decomposer - an organism, especially a soil bacterium, fungus, or invertebrate that decomposes organic material.

Decrease - to make or become smaller

Deforestation - the permanent destruction of forests in order to

make the land available for other uses.

Disaster - something that happens suddenly and causes much suffering or loss

Extinction - no longer existing, the act of being extinct

Generator - a machine by which mechanical energy is changed into

electrical energy

Glacier - a large body of ice moving slowly down a slope or valley or

spreading outward on a land surface

Greenhouse gas - any of gas compounds (such as carbon dioxide) that

absorb radiation, trap heat in the atmosphere, and

contribute to the greenhouse effect.

Habitat - the place or environment where a plant or animal naturally or

normally lives and grows.

Overabundance - too much or too great

Non-biodegradable - unable to be broken down by bacteria in the

environment and can cause damage to our ecosystems

Unique - being the only one of its kind

Vulnerable - open to attack or damage

*Definitions from Webster dictionary*

References

11 Facts About Endangered Species. (n.d.). Retrieved October 23, 2015,

from https://www.dosomething.org/facts/11-facts-about-endangered-species

Air Quality. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2015, from http://www.clean-

airkids.org.uk/airquality.html

Avoiding Disposable Products –- What Are the Alternatives? (2009, October 28). Retrieved October 24, 2015, from http://ecosimply.com/avoiding-

disposable-products-what-are-the-alternatives-993.html

Gunther, M. (n.d.). Biodegradable and Non-biodegradable materials.

Retrieved October 27, 2015, from

http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/teacher_resources/webfieldtrips/bio_nonbio_materials

How Can Kids Help The Environment. (2010). Retrieved October 25, 2015, from http://footprintseducation.org/kidz-zone/how-can-i-help.php

What is Pollution? (n.d.). Retrieved October 26, 2015, from

http://www.kidsrgreen.org/sapce_ship/pollution.html

Wind Energy Basics. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2015, from

http://windeis.anl.gov/guide/basics/

Index

Air Quality...4 Overpopulation...18

Biodegradable...5 Pollution...19

Conservation...6 Question Your Impact...20

Drilling...7 Reduce, Reuse, Recycle...21

Fossil Fuels...8 Solar power...22

Endangered Animals...9 Toxic...23

Global Warming...10 Unique Environments...24

Hydroelectric Energy...11 Vulnerable...25

Invasive Species...12 Wind Power...26

Jungle...13 Xeriscape...27

Kids...14 You...28

Littering...15 Zero Tolerance...29

Marine...16

Nonrenewable Resources...17

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