The Cartoon Guide to the Environment

The Cartoon Guide to the Environment

      Bibliographic Information

Gonick, Larry and Alice Outwater. The Cartoon Guide to the Envinroment. Collins Reference, New York. 1996.

Description

The Cartoon Guide to the Environment provides a fun and easy way to learn about the environment. The journey begins with the story of Easter Island, the water cycle, and why trees are so important. From there, we learn about the Gaia Hypothesis, which states that the living systems of Earth act as environmental regulators. This means that whenever something begins to get out of hand, the planet responds in some way that remedies the situation. But what happens when we do so much damage that these living systems cannot repair themselves? This brings us back to Easter Island and the irreversible damage that humans can inflict upon an ecosystem. Throughout the book, that is the main focus. We come to understand why what we do (factory farming, pollution, etc.)  has an impact, and what that impact is. Through the study of chemical cycles, life communities, food webs, agriculture, human population growth, sources of energy and raw materials, waste disposal and recycling, cities, pollution ,deforestation, ozone depletion, and global warming the authors show us the impact that humans have on this planet.

Quantitative Reading Level

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 8.2

Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease: 64.6

ATOS Level: 7.9

Qualitative Reading Level

Purpose: Low. The purpose is explicitly stated.  

Structure: Middle Low. The organization is simple, there are explicit connections between ideas and conforms to the conventions of the genre.  Text features are essential in understanding the content. The use of graphics is essential in understanding the text. The author obviously relies on text features and graphics to explain environmental science concepts because this is a cartoon guide. This does not make the structure highly complex. This is why I have classified the structure as Middle Low.

Language: Middle Low. The language used is contemporary and conversational. It is clear, explicit, easy-to-understand, discipline-specific and rarely overly academic.

Knowledge Demands: Middle Low. Subject matter knowledge requires everyday, practical knowledge and some discipline-specific content knowledge. There are few references to/citations of other texts or outside ideas or theories. 

Content Area

Science: Earth Science

Subject Area Tag

Science, Weekly Requirements

Content Area Standard

NYS Science Standards

Standard 1: Students will use mathematical analysis, scientific inquiry, and engineering design, as appropriate, to pose questions, seek answers, and develop solutions.

Standard 2: Students will access, generate, process, and transfer information, using appropriate technologies.

Standard 4: Students will understand and apply scientific concepts, principles, and theories pertaining to the physical setting and living environment and recognize the historical development of ideas in science.

Standard 6: Students will understand the relationships and common themes that connect mathematics, science, and technology and apply the themes to these and other areas of learning

Standard 7: Students will apply the knowledge and thinking skills of mathematics, science, and technology to address real-life problems and make informed decisions.

Curriculum Suggestions

• What are some solutions to fix some of the damage that we have inflicted on the planet (pollution, global warming, oil consumption etc.)
• Does the Earth have the capability to fix the damage that we are causing? How could that happen?

Links to Supporting Digital Content

Free eBook:

http://ebookbrowsee.net/apes-cartoon-guide-to-the-environment-pdf-d469931653

Author website

http://www.larrygonick.com/

*photo obtained from Google