Learning Site

El Salvador

Coffee & Biodiversity in El Imposible

Key Concept - The impact of farming on wildlife and soil health.

Essential Questions:

What is shade-grown coffee?
What are the benefits of growing coffee beneath the shade of the forest canopy?

Introductory Materials Available to Teachers:

Slideshow: This slideshow will introduce students to the country of El Salvador, the wildlife of El Imposible and the conservation of the region. An easy-to-follow script has been provided. The slideshow can be downloaded for viewing in the classroom, printed out and read as a story or viewed online with the students.

View On-Screen Download [PDF ~3.2M]
Download Script [PDF ~16K]

Species Profiles: See below for profiles that include that include photos, along with information on habitat, foraging behavior, group relationships, threats, etc.

Ocelot       View on Screen       Download [PDF 80K]
Great Curassow       View on Screen       Download [PDF 46K]
King Vulture       View on Screen       Download [PDF 26K]
Turquoise-browed Motmot       View on Screen       Download [PDF 27K]

Unit-Specific Stories: The Rainforest Alliance has developed two original stories for use with these units. The stories are available to download and print or can be viewed on-screen.

Alex Goes Exploring in El Imposible
English: View On-Screen       Download [PDF ~1.5M]
Spanish: View On-Screen       Download [PDF ~442K]
Portuguese: View On-Screen       Download [PDF ~432K]

Life in San Miguelito
English: View On-Screen       Download in PDF [PDF ~1.6M]
Spanish: View On-Screen       Download in PDF [PDF ~449K]
Portuguese: View On-Screen       Download in PDF [PDF ~441K]

Park Profile: Click here for a basic introduction to El Imposible National Park:

Rainforest Poster: A colorful two-page poster is available for you to use in explaining the layers of the rainforest, its products and the environmental threats facing many rainforests around the world.

Inside the Canopy - Structure and species of the rainforest
Download 8.5x14 [PDF ~2.3M]

Status Report - What is happening to the rainforest
Download 8.5x14 [PDF ~356K]

Rainforest Products - Click here for a summary of products found in our homes and supermarkets that either originated in tropical forests or are currently produced there.

Profiles in Sustainability - Click here for case studies on companies who work closely with the Rainforest Alliance to ensure that their practices protect wildlife, workers and communities.

Conservation Coffee Summary: An eight-page introduction to the issue, including a glossary of terms. Appropriate for students to read independently. Download [PDF ~92K]

Venn Diagram Template: Click here [PDF ~321K] for a photocopy-ready Venn diagram for use in this unit.

Certificate of Accomplishment - Print out colorful rainforest certificates for your students to commemorate their completion of these units. Download [PDF ~594K]

Great Resources - Check out this page for easy access to additional supplemental materials that complement these dynamic units.

STEP 1 - CONNECT (The Concept to Prior Knowledge):

A) KWL Chart. Create a KWL chart about the people living in the rainforest. Include what students "Know", what they "Want" to learn, and what they have "Learned." List student responses under appropriate headings and leave posted in the room for future reference.

B) Fictional Literature and Literature Extension Activity: Read The Invisible Hunters/Los Cazadores Invisibles by Harriet Rohmer, Octavio Chow and Morris Vidaure. This Central American story, portraying the first critical moments of contact between the indigenous rainforest people and the outside world, has been passed on by oral tradition. Ask the students to describe what life was like before the traders arrived.

What were the villagers' responsibilities?
How did they interact with one another?
What happened when the traders came?
Why do you think the villagers behavior changed?
Why do you think the natives behaved the way they did at the end?

C) Create a KWL Chart about coffee. Include what students "Know", what they "Want" to learn, and what they have "Learned." List student responses under appropriate headings and leave posted in the room as a reference for the entire unit. This can also be used as a word bank for student writing activities.

D) Concrete experience: Show students a picture of a real coffee plant. Brainstorm a word list, on chart paper or on computer, describing the attributes of the coffee plant. This word bank can be used later for writing activities.

STEP 2 - LITERATURE DISCUSS (Give Expert Information Book; Ask Questions):

A) Information Book (s) and or Text: Read the story Life in San Miguelito, (view on screen, download [PDF ~1.6M]). This story about how a boy named Alex spends his time, describes what his village looks like and what his household responsibilities are, and provides a good general perspective on what it is like to live in a village in El Salvador. This story will lead into interesting discussions for classes of similar ages in grades 4, 5 or 6.

Project:

Create a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting Alex's life with that of a typical American child of similar age. This can be done as an individual activity or in a group on an overhead. Click here [PDF ~321K] for a Venn diagram template.

B) Information Book(s) and/or Text: The Conservation Coffee Summary (Download [PDF ~92K]) by the Rainforest Alliance provides a basic summary of coffee, its role in the environment, a glossary of terms, numerous facts about the life cycle of coffee plants and information on the relationship between wildlife and coffee farming.

C) Give a Participatory Mini-Lecture. Using an overhead or projection computer with a large screen, take notes on "Coffee." Cover the following points:

There are three types of coffee: Arabica, Robusta, Liberica
Shade-grown coffee is sheltered from the sun by other plants, unlike sun coffee that grows in the full sun and depends on pesticides and fertilizers.
Coffee seedlings require very moist soil with no weeds. Under appropriate conditions, leaves should develop in about six weeks.
It takes several years for plants to grow to maturity. Once mature, plants will flower and sprout berries (after several months). The size of the cherries (berries) depends on the amount of water the plant receives during the sprouting process, harvesting when cherries are ripe, fermenting to remove the outer shell and pulp (wet processing), laying cherries out in the sun to dry (dry processing). The coffee bean is surrounded by a husk-like shell that a "huller" is used to rub the parchment from the bean and this also helps polish the bean and make it more attractive.
Rainforest Alliance Certified farms must adhere to the following standards:

New and expanding farms must not degrade, damage or destroy ecosystems.

Areas not suitable for cultivation should be reforested or restored to natural state.

On a productive farm, at least 40% of the ground should be shaded.

At least 70% of the trees in the productive part of the farm must be evergreens.

Epiphytes on shade trees should be conserved. (Important for the song birds.)

The use of fire to clear land is prohibited.

Hunting is prohibited.

Materials should be reused as many times as possible.

Organic wastes must be used to enrich the soil.

Recycle plastic, paper, wood, metals and glass.

D) Technology Resource:

www.ncausa.org/public/pages/index.cfm?pageid=69: Explains the life cycle of the Arabica coffee plant.
www.ra.org: The Sustainable Agriculture pages on the Rainforest Alliance Web site contains information on Rainforest Alliance coffee certification, as well as information on shade-grown coffee, a visual tour of a coffee farm and a list of shade-grown coffee sources.

E) Lower and Higher Order Questions (Bloom's Taxonomy):

List the major types of coffee plants.
Summarize the life cycle of a coffee plant.
Compare the life cycle of a coffee plant with a plant that is familiar to students (for example, a tomato plant).
What would happen to the coffee plant if any particular portion of the life cycle was changed or altered? (Example: not enough fertilizer, too much sun, and not enough water).
Determine whether where we live is a good environment to grow shade coffee. Explain.
Prioritize what you think are the most important characteristics for the growth of high-quality coffee plants.

F) Visualization/Discussion: Show students a standard size burlap coffee sack, which holds 150 pounds of coffee beans. Each shrub produces about 6 pounds of coffee per year (wet weight, before drying and roasting). Each tree produces about 4.5 pounds of actual roasted coffee per year.

Imagine you are an owner of a shade coffee crop. What could you do to ensure optimum growth of your investment?

STEP 3A - PRACTICE (Math and Learning Centers):

A) Math Center Activity-Reinforcement:

Survey and Averages: Average Coffee Consumption. Students will create a survey to determine the average amount of coffee consumed by the adults in each student's household. Students will interview the adults in their home and find out how many cups of coffee they drink, daily, weekly, on weekends, and on special occasions. Once all the students brings in their forms, they can be divided into groups to tabulate each category. The students will calculate the mean, median and mode for each. When each group has completed and double-checked the results, the final information on the mean, median and mode -- with accompanying graphs illustrating the amount of coffee an average adult in a fifth grader's household consumes -- can be drawn on an ad board and labeled. Be sure the ad board includes a title, and that all graphs are labeled accordingly. This assignment can be completed on an individual basis or done as a class project. Alternate Activity: The Rainforest Alliance has provided summary data on coffee consumption and consumer trends on its Web site. Students may use this data to practice graphing techniques and to compare information in a variety of formats.

STEP 3B - CREATE (Performance Tasks Related to Standard Indicators):

A) Interpersonal Task: As a writer for a local radio station, your boss has asked you to draft a radio editorial informing the public of the importance of shade-grown coffee and its impact on the flora and fauna of El Salvador. The editorial should include information on how people around the world can demonstrate their support of shade-grown coffee. Optional activity: This exercise can be turned into an oral presentation by having the students pretend to be radio announcers and read their editorials.

Standard: Synthesis of information, writing for a purpose. Understands how human action modifies the physical environment.

B) Analytic Task: You have been hired by a children's book publisher to write a book about the interdependency of shade-grown coffee with the flora and fauna of El Salvador. You need to include information on how shade coffee is grown, as well as the supporting role of the people of SalvaNATURA. Be sure to include pictures of animals and plants with supporting text.

www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/es.html: Contains general knowledge facts about country.
www.ra.org/programs/profiles/ag-el-sal.html: This case studies describes the how shade coffee practices protect wildlife, workers and communities in El Salvador.

Standard: Synthesis of information, writing for a purpose, speaks for a purpose. Understands how species depend on one another and on the environment for survival.

C) Hands-On Task: You work for the Salvadoran government and must explain to the local townspeople why growing coffee in the shade is a better, more efficient and more profitable way to grow coffee than in the sun. Create a Clarisworks Slideshow (HyperStudio or Power Point) presentation documenting the steps necessary to grow shade coffee. Include text as well as pictures. Be prepared to present this orally to the class.

Standard: Synthesis of information, writing for a purpose, speaks for a purpose, uses technology to produce multimedia project. Understands how human action modifies the physical environment.

D) Creative Task: You work for a large advertising company that deals specifically with "nature-friendly" products. Create an advertisement on the benefits of buying shade-grown coffee. The ad should be a full-size newspaper page. Text, pictures, catchy slogan or jingles will enhance the project, as well as persuade the audience of the validity of your ideas. Be prepared to present your advertisement to the class and educate them on the importance of buying shade-grown coffee.

Standard: Synthesis of information, writing for a purpose, speaks for a purpose. Produces a work of art. Understands how human action modifies the physical environment.