Happy International Day of Forests! You may know that I wrote a children’s science book about The Boreal Forest, but did you know that I’d compiled this list of free resources to use along with it? Great stuff for educators, parents, and forest enthusiasts of all stripes.
And did I mention it’s all free?
The Great Big Boreal Forest Resource List
First – it’s a video of me reading from the book!
Here’s a sneak peak of the foresty goodness contained in this book. May it bring the outdoors inside to you.
The Official Boreal Forest Activity Guides
Click here to download the official teacher’s guide for The Boreal Forest.
Click here for a BONUS free activity guide. This one includes suggestions for science, social studies, and language arts, and will help support a variety of elementary school curriculum outcomes. Not to mention a little creativity and fun.
But why stop there?
General Information, Online Articles, and Websites
Natural Resources Canada: Boreal Forest Pages
NASA Earth Observatory: The Carbon Cycle – A detailed overview of the global carbon cycle, in which the boreal forest plays a crucial role
NASA Precipitation Education: The Water Cycle – A kid-friendly resource that includes activities and lesson plans
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species – Find the conservation status of your favourite boreal plants and animals
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Birds of the World – This is a superb resource, but note that it does require a paid subscription
Keeping the Carbon in Alaska Forests
A photographer who discovered baby bears dancing in a forest thought he was imagining it
Bird that looks like it died yesterday turns out to be 46,000 years old
How deforestation drives the emergence of novel coronaviruses
What do wild animals do in a wildfire?
Totally bizarre facts about the star-nosed mole
Lesson Plans, Activities, Projects
Canadian Wildlife Federation: Boost the Boreal Forest
Boreal Songbird Initiative: Provincial and Territorial Forest Facts
Nature Canada: For Children Section – Articles and a Resource Section
Forests Ontario: Community Engagement Section
NASA Precipitation Education: The Water Cycle
Utah State University: Water Cycle Lesson Plans
California Academy of Sciences: Carbon Cycle Role Play
University of Colorado Teach Engineering: Carbon Cycles
Indigenous Peoples of the Boreal Forest
Note:
Worldwide, hundreds of Indigenous peoples live in the boreal biome. I’ve included resources for those peoples featured in my book, but I encourage you to learn about the Nations nearest you!
Canada
Gwich’in Social & Cultural Institute – a repository of Traditional Knowledge, including audio recordings of Gwich’in words and information on Gwich’in medicine plants
The Whitefeather Forest Initiative of the Pikangikum First Nation – general info and links to research involving Traditional Knowledge
Europe/Asia
Reindeer Herding – information on reindeer (caribou) and the many Indigenous peoples of Europe and Asia who herd them
Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North, Siberia, and the Far East of the Russian Federation – This site is in Russian, but Google translate will give you a starting point for further research
Organizations
Ontario Nature – Boreal Forests Section
The PEW Charitable Trusts: International Boreal Conservation Campaign
Science Books for Adults
For teenagers that want to learn more, or for adults who want more knowledge to help support their children’s learning – here are some of the adult-level books I consulted while researching The Boreal Forest. Check your local library for ebook options, or see what you can find online!
Bannick, Paul (2008) The Owl and the Woodpecker: Encounters with North America’s Most Iconic Birds. Seattle, WA: The Mountaineers Books.
Bondrup-Nielsen, Soren (2009) A Sound Like Water Dripping: In Search of the Boreal Owl. Kentville, NS: Gaspereau Press.
Chang, Mingteh (2013) Forest Hydrology: An Introduction to Water and Forests. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.
Crawford, R.M.M. (2013) Tundra-Taiga Biology: Human, Plant, and Animal Survival in the Arctic. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Gawthrop, Daniel (1999) Vanishing Halo: Saving the Boreal Forest. Vancouver, BC: Greystone Books.
Lynch, Wayne. (2001) The Great Northern Kingdom: Life in the Boreal Forest. Markham, ON: Fitzhenry & Whiteside.
Do you know of additional boreal resources? Drop them in the comments for others to explore!