Great Reading: Bookmark It!

Volume 32, Number 2, December 2004

Websites

Green Living

Kate Houston Mitchoff

Are you a Good Sort?
www.open2.net/environment/sort.htm

This BBC collaboration is a game where students learn how recycling-savvy they are and additional ways to recycle. Sort recyclable materials and then learn how long items take to decompose in a landfill.

Ecological Footprint Quiz
www.myfootprint.org/

Students will discover how much productive land and water they need to support what they use and what they discard. Then students can compare their ecological footprints with other people and the amount of resources available on the planet. This site is available in several different languages.

Energy House
www.open2.net/environment/energy_house.htm

This is another BBC collaboration where students upgrade the three-bedroom home to be more energy-efficient and discover how much money in energy savings the home generates. Students make choices about energy efficient windows, wall insulation, solar panels and appliances.

It’s a Green Life
www.bbc.co.uk/games/pop/index.shtml?category=kids&game=green_life

How can students live an eco-friendly life? This BBC game explores the environmental impact of a home, a garden and a local shop. Students get a wider perspective of how eco-friendly activities help the community and environment. Requires Internet Explorer.

Natural Resources Defense Council's Green Living
www.nrdc.org/cities/living/default.asp

Students will gain a better understanding how their everyday decisions can impact the environment while learning how a city or community can make a difference as well. The site explores smart growth versus sprawl, its effects on the community and environment and what individuals can do to participate in their community. This includes looking at the value of green building in a community as well as recycling.

Kate Houston Mitchoff: School Corps Librarian, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR.
E-mail Kate.