Saving the Environment One Book at a Time: The Lorax

The Anchor Text: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss• The reason that I have chosen this text as my anchor is

because it lights the match of interest in the environment.• The lexile level is relatively low: 560L (which makes

comprehension a reachable goal for all of my scholars even the lowest of them.)

• Due to the books accessibility, I am able to have scholars make connections to higher level dystopian texts that are environmentally themed (such as Suzanne Weyn’s Empty.)

Statement of Inquiry• What can you do, starting now to

prevent our planet from falling into the same fate as The Lorax’s land?

• How can you reduce your impact on the environment?

The Lorax Analysis * Most Students have seen the movie but haven’t read the book. (Compare & Contrast)• Students are able to use fiction

and make real world connections to other texts.

• The relocation of animals due to human impact and industrial revolution will be discussed often during the text set.

Grade Band Level

Meaning & Purpose

Cultural Knowledge

1-8 (2-5) Moderately Complex

Moderately Complex

Dystopian fiction

Corporate Greed

If pollution continues to change our

planet

The consequence of human

activity

Qualitative & Quantitative Measures• Text Structure: Slightly Complex - The actions,

setting, and plot are presented from the fictional future in which the story is being narrated by a 3rd person narrator, while the tale of the past (past tense) is told from the Once-ler’s perspective as he reflects over his life events. The students should be mindful that much of the story takes place in the past but that it is being told to the boy in the future (for him) which is our present time as readers. The text being written in a non-linear format will require students to understand present tense and past tense as well as third and 1st person.

• Language Features: Slightly Complex - For 8th grade English language learners, some of the vocabulary may come across as unfamiliar (the made-up rhyming words) but for the most pare the language conventions are simple and the sentence structure is only slightly complex, using most simple sentences that are easy to comprehend.

• Lexile Measure: 560L• Grade Band Level: 1-8th grade (2-5 primarily)• Word Count: 1,815• Page Number: 45Implications for the Classroom:• The quantitative measure of this text led me to

think that this text is at a level that will be accessible to all my 8th graders (even the lowest readers on the 5-7th grade level). Although the students will be able to read the text fluently and comprehend what is taking place in the plot, I know there will be some students who might have difficulty making the connection(s) between the text and what is occurring on the environmental front in their own environment.

Teks and How to Use Them• TEKS used 8.10D Synthesize and make logical connections between ideas within a text and across two or three texts representing similar or different genres, and support those findings with textual evidence.8.6 Fig 19 E Summarize, paraphrase, and synthesize texts in ways that maintain meaning and logical order within a text and across texts.Students will write a summary of what took place in the Lorax and from there evaluate the main ideas and key details of the text as the whole.

Some of the supporting texts :• “29 Penguins poem” by Ms. Ross• “Causes of Climate Change” EPA article.• “Empty” by Suzanne Weyn (Dystopian

Novel)• “Heroes of the Environment: True

Stories of People Who Are Helping to Protect Our Planet” by Harriet Rohmer (Biography)

• The Lorax (2012, Universal Studios film) • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ee

CBI_EEu0

The Lorax Project• The Lorax project is an initiative created by Dr. Seuss and Random House

book company. The project is designed to raise awareness about environmental issues and ignite students of all ages to be environmentally conscious and friendly.

• "The Lorax," he once explained, "came out of me being angry. In The Lorax I was out to attack what I think are evil things and let the chips fall where they might.“- Dr. Seuss (Lebduska, L. 1994)

#StayWoke #StayGreen

Call to ActionThe Lorax ends with a call to action, in which the reader should respond to the problem the Once-ler caused with a real life solution.

Why Should You Care about this book?“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot. It’s not going to get better. It’s not.” –The Lorax

Text Dependent QuestionText Dependent Question #2

Which character do you think environmentalists would relate to the most? Which character would environmentalist be opposed to? (choose from the option below and explain why you chose that answer in 2-3 sentences.

a. The Lorax

b. the barbaloots

c. the Once-ler

Empty: by Suzanne Weyn• A dystopian fiction novel that

shows what the world could be like if we used up all of the fossil fuels.

• Students will be able to see an even more realistic view of how their lives would be different if there was no gas, oil, heat, or driving.

• Think about what happened in The Lorax when the Once-ler had cut down the last Truffula Tree. How does that compare to the limitations of the Empty text?

Heroes of the Environment: True Stories of People Who Are Helping to Protect Our Planet: by Harriet Rohmer(Rationale Below)

*I chose this text because it tells the stories of 12 teens who are doing something to benefit and protect the environment. • My scholars will enjoy the visual

images in this text and it is accessible to them at 760L.

• *The actions the teens in the book make can inspire my kids to make an action plan of their own.

Issue Overview: Keystone XL Pipeline (Newsela/1080L)Rationale for inclusion:• The subject of the KXL oil pipeline is

both timely and appropriate for the theme of the unit and the article effectively shows how to summarize information.

• Students will be able to define greenhouse gasses and comprehend the potential effects pipeline could have on the people living near it.

• Quote: “Obama said Keystone XL wouldn’t lower gasoline prices or improve U.S. energy security. It also would have undercut American global leadership on climate change, he said.” (The Argument section)

“It's getting harder for polar bears to act naturally, even in nature” (Newsela, 1050L, 826 words)

The article talks about two polar bears in the Pittsburg Zoo who exhibit strange behaviors due to living in captivity.

This text is appropriate because the article also touches on the reason these polar bears cannot live in the wild any longer- global warming.

There natural habitat is melting due to human activity such as burning fossil fuels like coal/oil.

Universal Studios “The Lorax” (2012 Film)I want to supplement the articles and the anchor text itself with footage from the most recent Lorax film.

I would have students fill out a Venn Diagram to note the similarities/differences between the movie version and the actual Lorax text.

I will then asks students if those differences that they found, change the theme of the story.

“29 Penguins” poem by Ms. RossThis 3 stanza ABAB narrative poem tells the tragic story of 29 penguins who end up dying because the ice that they live on in Antarctica eventually melts away due to global warming.

The poem contains a substantial amount of figurative language that students have to decode to make inferences. (TEK 8.4)

I paired this poem with the article about the penguins in the same lesson to further make connections about the polar ice caps melting.

Works Cited1. Seuss, D. (1999). The Lorax. New York: Random House Children’s Books.2. Weyn, S. (2010). Empty. New York: Scholastic Press.3. Siebert, C., Rohmer, H., & McLaughlin, J. (2009). Heroes of the

environment: True stories of people who are helping to protect our planet. San Francisco: Chronicle Books.

4. Renaud, C. (2012) The Lorax. Universal Studios.5. Lebduska, L. "Rethinking Human Need: Seuss's The Lorax." Children's

Literature Association Quarterly 19.4 (1994): 170-176. Project MUSE. Web. 13 Feb, 2017.