Database Provider

Jefferson Public Radio

Author

The Jefferson Exchange Team

Grades

6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th

Subjects

Science, Biology, Earth and Space Sciences, English Language Arts

Resource Type

Podcast, 15 minutes, 31 seconds

Regional Focus

North America, United States, USA - West, Oregon

State Forester Talks About Trees on Oregon Arbor Month

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Synopsis

This podcast features a discussion with an Oregon state forester about urban forestry, threats to Oregon forests, community forestry, and funding for projects to increase tree cover in Oregon.
The forester discusses how wildfires threaten trees and communities in Oregon, and how better management of invasive species and planting of climate change tolerant trees can build forest resiliency.
The host and forester also discuss the importance of trees to human health as they celebrate Arbor Month in Oregon.

Teaching Tips

Positives

The state forester encourages individuals to reach out to their local experts if they have questions about tree removal or planting, which is a great action item to preserve trees within communities.
The conversation between the host and forester is casual and approachable for students, with the forester explaining most scientific jargon and concepts he uses.

Additional Prerequisites

Students should be familiar with the benefits of trees in an ecosystem and within a community.
Students should have a basic understanding of the job of a forester.
Students should understand the difference between native and invasive species.

Differentiation

To assess students familiarity with the topic, first ask students what they think the job of a forester may involve.
Have students discuss the amount of tree coverage in their city or town and whether they think it should be increased or managed differently.
As an extension, students could investigate the main threats to trees in their area and discover what is being done to protect or improve tree habitat where they live.
The audio clip discusses environmental justice by recognizing that underserved areas in cities tend to have less trees and mentions projects and funding that should help with tree planting in those areas. Have students investigate green spaces and tree cover in their city.

Scientist Notes

This audio clip is from a radio show where the host interviewed an Oregon State forester. The interview was casual, as the host asked questions and the forester answered them in an easily understandable way. More detailed scientific concepts were not discussed and may need to be taught separately, depending on the lesson. During the discussion, the host and forester covered topics such as funding for urban forestry, the importance of trees in urban and forested areas, changes in the forester industry, forest fires, climate change, general tree maintenance, and places listeners can find more information if they have questions. This resource is recommended for teaching.

Standards

This resource addresses the listed standards. To fully meet standards, search for more related resources.

English Language Arts

Speaking & Listening (K-12)
- SL.6.2 Interpret information presented in diverse media and formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) and explain how it contributes to a topic, text, or issue under study.
- SL.11-12.3 Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.

Science

ESS3: Earth and Human Activity
- 5-ESS3-1. Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.
- MS-ESS3-2. Analyze and interpret data on natural hazards to forecast future catastrophic events and inform the development of technologies to mitigate their effects.
- HS-ESS3-6. Use a computational representation to illustrate the relationships among Earth systems and how those relationships are being modified due to human activity.

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