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What does planet Earth do for you?

The planet Earth provides natural resources like food, water, sunlight, plants, minerals, and oil.

Some natural resources are renewable. They can be replaced and used again, like water, sunlight, and wind.

Other natural resources are non-renewable. They can only be used once and can’t be replaced within a human lifetime.

Review the following table of natural resources:

Coal

A non-renewable fossil fuel used for generating electricity.

Fish

A renewable source of food used for nourishment.

Forests

A renewable source of wood used for fuel, construction, and paper products.

Iron

A non-renewable mineral used for construction and making steel.

Nickel

A non-renewable mineral used for making metals and batteries.

Oil

A non-renewable fossil fuel used for powering machines and generating electricity.

Water

A renewable source of water used for nourishment, industry, and generating electricity.

Explore the natural resources that are found in Canada.

Brainstorm

Brainstorm

Why do you think it might be important to take care of the Earth’s natural resources?

Share your thoughts in a method of your choice.

vocabulary

Today’s vocabulary!

Press the following tabs to learn more about today’s vocabulary.

Four types of natural resources: solar power from the sun, plants, wind power, and hydroelectricity from water.

Something that is found in nature and can be used by people. This includes things like food, plants, water, land, and more.

 Sandy is planting and watering new trees.

Taking care of the planet in a way that makes sure it stays healthy and has enough natural resources for all the children of the future.

 Remy's family tree includes his two parents, and his four grandparents.

Your relatives or relations who came before you, maybe a parent, grandparents, great grandparents, great aunts, great uncles etc.

Teacher Chiara is holding a newborn baby and thinking about the future.

These are all the people that are not born yet. These people of the future could be someone’s children or grandchildren, or any people born after you.

Sustainability

Think about the definitions of the words: sustainability, ancestors, and future generations. What are some connections that you might notice between these three words?

Three arrows that are connected in a line. The first arrow is labelled 'Past,' and includes ancestors. The second arrow is labelled 'Present,' and includes sustainability. The third arrow is labelled, 'Future,' and includes future generations.

Let’s explore the story Be a Good Ancestor by Leona and Gabrielle Prince, that considers these connections.

About the authors

The book cover of 'Be a Good Ancestor' is a painting of an adult and a child looking out over a forest and mountains. There is an eagle flying overhead. The adult has a colourful robe that begins to swirl at the base. The robe looks like it could be wings or could be interacting with the nature around it.

Leona and Gabrielle Prince are Dakelh sisters from the Lake Babine Nation and Nak’azdli Whut'en and belongs to the Lhts’umusyoo (Beaver) Clan. They created this book together and based it on the things they had learned as they were growing up.

What do you think the title Be a Good Ancestor means?

As you listen to the read aloud, record any word patterns, new vocabulary and connections that you notice using a method of your choice.

Check out the following e-book Be a Good Ancestor.

Image 1:

There is and elder person and a child looking out mountains and forest. There is an eagle flying in the sky.

Image 2:

This page consists of different advance praises for the book.

One of the praises reads:

“A perfect read-aloud for introducing the important of caring for the earth”

Image 3:

This is the title page.

This page reads:

Be a Good Ancestor

Leona Prince and Gabrielle Prince

Illustrated by Carla Joesph

Orca Book Publishers

Image 4:

There is a bever near a dam holding a piece of grass in their hands. There is an eagle sitting on a tall tree stump. In the background there is a forest of trees and a sky full of clouds. There is a feather flowing across the page.

Image 5:

The same feather is flowing in this page which splits up the images. The bottom image is a scenery of a river flowing into the forest with mountains in the background. The sun is peeking out of the mountains. There is also a small bear walking up a small hill near the river.

The top image is of fish swimming under water. Above the water there is a dragon fly and a small tree.

This page reads the following with the word life bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with water

Raindrops become puddles

Puddles become streams

Streams become rivers

Rivers become life

Image 6:

This page is split between two images that are in a shape of a circle but are connected. The first circle has a small growing tree, and the second has the tree with the roots growing out underground. One of the roots is connected to a feather.

Image 7:

The roots from the tree continue onto the bottom of this page with two feathers. On the top there is a scenery of the top of a forest in the night sky. The moon and stars are in the sky. The night sky blends into scenery of a hummingbird and small flowers.

This page reads the following with the word oxygen bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with the land

Seeds become seedlings

Seedlings become trees

Trees become forests

Forests become oxygen

Image 8:

There are two baby eagles sitting. One is sitting on a branch and the other in a nest with two eggs.

This page reads the following with the word iconic bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with living things that fly

Eggs become hatchlings

Hatchlings become fledglings

Fledglings become eagles

Eagles become iconic

Image 9:

There is an elder and a young child looking out into the forest and mountains. There is an eagle flying in the sky with the sun shining in the sky. On this page at the top left there is a large image of a side view of an eagle with a large feather underneath.

Image 10:

There are several eggs underwater with an alevins floating on top. There is also sockeyes swimming.

This page reads the following with the word nourishment bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with living things that swim

Eggs become alevins

Alveins become fry

Fry become sockeyes

Sockeyes become nourishment

Take a moment to reflect what you have read so far before you continue.

Image 1:

There is a frog sitting on top of a large branch. Under the branch there are two sets of images. The first image is underwater with three sockeyes swimming. The second image is of a bear with a fish in his mouth.

Image 2:

There is a baby bear climbing a tree an another bear in the grass.

This page reads the following with the word balance bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with living things that walk

Newborns become cubs

Cubs become young bears

Young bears become grizzlies

Grizzlies become balance

Image 3:

There is a large image of a grizzly bear with footprints and branch with different flowers in the background.

Image 4:

A large tree with branches that have leaves. There are heart shaped ornaments hanging from the branches. On the tree trunk there are three handprints. There is an outline of house roof tops in the background with a dragonfly flying away.

Image 5:

There is a tree filled with leaves and heart shaped ornaments hanging all over. There is also a moon sitting in one of the branches. The background has an outline of house rooftops.

This page reads the following with the word allies bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with your neighbours

Neighbours become friends

Friends become communities

Communities become nations

Nations become allies

Image 6:

A teenage child with different leaves and feathers flowing in the background.

This page reads the following with the word change bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with your thoughts

Thoughts become ideas

Ideas become actions

Actions become movements

Movements become change

Image 7:

The bottom left corner has large feather peaking out. There are two school aged children exchanging feathers in front of a tree. In the background there is a sun with a shadowed outline of an adult and two small children one on each side.

Image 8:

There is a medium size tree in the middle of the page. The roots are attached to feathers. One of the roots spreads out into a curved line with the words “Love” at the end of it. The word “Nature” is mentioned at the top left corner of the page with a feather at the ends.

Image 9:

There is a small child sitting in the grass at the bottom of a hill holding a dandelion in her hand.

In the background there is a forest and a mountain view. The sun is in the sky hiding behind clouds with a butterfly flying.

This page reads the following with the word truth bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with your words

Words become expressions

Expressions become stories

Stories become narratives

Narratives become truth

Continue reading Be a Good Ancestor by Leona Prince and Gabrielle Prince.

Image 1:

The center of the pages there are hands of a small child reaching towards an adult’s hand. There is a heart floating out from the palms of their hands. Sittig on the arm of the adult hands there is a mother and daughter looking out into the sky.

This page reads the following with the word values bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with your feelings

Feelings become compassion

Compassion becomes understanding

Understanding become beliefs

Beliefs become values

Image 2:

There is a large flower in the middle of the page. On the petals there are three small children sitting. There is the sun in the background.

Image 3:

There are two young boys holding hands and walking. One of them has a feather in their hands. There is also an Elder wearing their cultural clothing and holding an instrument in hands.

This page reads the following with the word Ancestors bolded:

Be a good Ancestor with yourself

Children become adults

Adults become leaders

Leaders become elders

Elders become Ancestors

Image 4:

There is a side view of an Elder looking at the moon in the night sky. In the sky there are also a small group of people holding instruments in hand. The background has trees and in the fore front there are feathers.

Image 5:

This page consists of different dedications for the book.

One of the praises reads:

I dedicate this to all my Ancestors and the sacrifices that they made in order for me and my c children to be here today. May all of my decisions reflect that sacrifices and be worthy of it. Snachailya.

Image 6:

Copyright information of the book Be a Good Ancestor by Leona Prince and Gabrielle Prince. This section of the book lists its publication, legal, copyright, and printing details.

Image 7:

Back of the cover page of the book Be a Good Ancestor by Leona Prince and Gabrielle Prince

Let’s check

Explore the following questions.

What are some patterns that you noticed throughout the book?

The authors repeat phrases like “be a good Ancestor” and the word “become”. The author also describes how small things can change into big things and how everything is connected.

Pause and Reflect

Pause and Reflect

In the book the author writes,

“Be a good Ancestor with yourself.

Children become adults,

Adults become leaders,

Leaders become Elders,

Elders become Ancestors”

What do you think it means to be a good ancestor to yourself and why do you think this is important?

Student Wellness

Get up and stretch!

Time for a body break! If possible, stretch your body and move around your space.

writing

Author’s message

When we read a new story, it is important to consider the main idea.

The main idea of the story might contain the author’s message that they want to share with the reader. We can use the APES strategy to answer the question: What is the author’s message in the story Be a Good Ancestor?

What is the APES strategy?

Two apes thinking about the A.P.E.S Strategy: Answer, Prove, Explain, Summarize.

The APES strategy stands for Answer, Prove, Explain, Summarize. It is one way to help guide you when answering a question.

Explore the strategy below.

A.P.E.S Strategy checklist

A - Answer the question:

  • Include words from the question.
  • Your first sentence should answer the question.

P - Proof from the text:

  • Include evidence (example) from the text. Images in a book are also evidence.
  • Remember to explain what this proof means.
  • A helpful sentence starter to use is, "I know this because in the text…"

E - Explain:

  • Explain your proof using a connection to your own life or something else that you know.

S - Summarize:

  • Include a summary sentence to end your paragraph.
  • Your summary sentence should include words from the question.

Explore the following audio clip entitled A.P.E.S to learn more about this strategy.

A.P.E.S Strategy Checklist

Let’s practice using the APES strategy by connecting to a story called My Heart Fills with Happiness by Monique Gray Smith.

A.P.E.S method

You are going to complete the following activity sheet for the story Be a Good Ancestor.

The question that you will be answering is: What is the author’s main message?

The main idea is what the writer wants to reader to understand about the topic of the text.

Complete the fillable and printable A.P.E.S Graphic Organizer in your notebook or using the following document. If you would like, you can use speech-to-text or audio recording tools to record your thoughts.

Document Title

Press the Activity button to access the A.P.E.S Graphic Organizer.

Activity(Opens in a new tab)

Paragraph writing

Now that you have used the APES strategy to answer the question, “What is the author’s message?”, you are going to put your sentences together to create a paragraph. You can create your paragraph by writing it in your notebook, typing it, or using an audio clip.

grammar

It’s all in the details!

Details are an important part of paragraphs. Details help make your paragraph easier and clearer for the reader to understand. Let’s look at some important details to include in a paragraph.

Verb tenses

Verb tenses make stories more exciting because they help us understand if something is happening now, in the past, or in the future. Verb tenses help readers understand when something is happening.

Press the following tabs to learn more about verb tenses.

Example: I played football last weekend.

Example: I play football every weekend.

Example: I will play football next week.

Adverbs

Adverbs are words that describe verbs. They describe how or when something is happening.

Press the Adverb button to access an example of adverbs.

Example: “Omar ran to the park.”

We can add the adverb quickly to make this sentence more descriptive.

New sentence: “Omar quickly ran to the park.”

The word quickly is an adverb because it tells us how they run.

Adverbs

Verbs

Verbs are action words.

Press the Example button to learn more.

  • Jump
  • Kick
  • Dream
  • Play
  • Dance

Adjectives

Adjectives describe nouns. Adjectives make sentences more interesting because they add descriptions.

Press the Example button to learn more.

The bright sun warmed the water.

“Bright” is the adjective used to describe the sun.

An adjective describes a noun. For example, the adjective yummy describes pizza. The adjective soft describes a cat.

Nouns

Nouns describe people, places, things, and animals.

Press the Example button to learn more.

  • friend
  • amusement park
  • Canada
  • car

Proofreading

Part of writing includes checking for proper spelling, punctuation, and grammar, this is called proof-reading. It is important to proof-read your work for errors.

Explore the following video entitled Punctuate to learn more about punctuation.

If possible, have a peer or adult check your completed paragraph for spelling, grammar, and details.

Student Success

Think

What are some ways that you can be a good ancestor for future generations?

Share your thoughts in a method of your choice.

Note to teachers: See your teacher guide for collaboration tools, ideas and suggestions.

Reflection

As you read through these descriptions, which sentence best describes how you are feeling about your understanding of this learning activity? Press the button that is beside this sentence.

I feel...

Now, record your ideas using a voice recorder, speech-to-text, or writing tool.