Purpose:

Students will:

1) Investigate the ecological significance of fire.

2) Consider the history of forest fire and fire suppression policy in the United States and its far-reaching effects on our forests.

3) Study prescription burn policies and methods which are currently being employed by managers of our public lands.

4) Produce a video which will be used to educate fellow students/peers across the country regarding the Fire Eco-Crisis of our Forests.

Materials:

Brief reading, "The Mystery of the Vanishing Giants";

Comic book, The True Story of Smokey the Bear (Forest Service Publication, pub. 1960);

Smokey the Bear posters;

Yosemite Guide Article, "The Many Faces of Fire," (By Mary Kwart; Fall, 1999):

Project Learning Tree, The Changing Forest:

Forest Ecology, Articles: Fire History" (pp. 84-85) and "Fire in the 1980's" (pg. 89);

video cameras/film (1 for each group of 4-5 in your class);

notebooks and pencils.

Duration: Approximately 2-3 class periods of 40-55 minutes each plus an optional field trip (approx. 1 day)

California Standards that this lesson meets:

Physical Science-Fire Ecology-"Fire Physics" (Heat and Electric Energy)

Earth Science-Fire Ecology-(Systems and interactions- Natural resources)

Introduction/Background:

For countless millennia, fire has played a major role in the ecosystems of our forests. Regular burns (started by lightning and by Native American peoples) have contibuted to the well-being and diversity of our wildlands by recycling nutrients, preventing accumulation of fuels which lead to catastrophic fires and by creating "open forest" conditions. "Open forests" permit sunlight penetrations, which favors diverse plant growth and thus provides food and habitat for a multitude of additional organisms. During the 20th century, however, our forest communities were drastically skewed by the removal of this critical natural force through nearly a century of fire suppression by well-meaning forest managers.

In this lesson, your students will study the benefits of naturally-occurring fires in our forests. They will learn something of the history of forest fire and fire suppression in the U.S. and prescribed burn policies that are currently used by managers of our public lands.

Directions/Activities:

1. (20 minutes) Have students read introductory reading, "The Mystery of the Vanishing Giants". This can lead to a class discussion on human manipulation of nature's systems and the idea that nature usually thrives best when humans don't meddle.

2. (30-50 minutes) Hand out copies of the comic book, the True Story of Smokey the Bear, (U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, published between 1960- 1969). If possible, have actual Smokey the Bear posters (including old ones) posted on your classroom walls. (Often available through U.S. Forest Service).

Smokey the Bear first made his appearance as "Poster Child" for the U.S. Forest Service in 1945. Smokey the Bear with his sincere, caring, warm-brown eyes and humanesque hands and denim pants with neatly rolled cuffs, was revered by the American public. His flat Stetson ranger hat gave him an air of authority while the shovel in his hand let us know that he was a no-nonsense kind of guy-on 24 hour emergency standby to fight any fire. The pleasant, but very unconcerned expression on his face assured us that he was dead serious about his mission. Most often, his sincere, piercing eyes looked directly into yours and he was pointing straight at you-this made his message most personal.

In the decades that followed, Smokey's message became possibly the most successful mass media campaign in history. If you doubt its success, just ask any American over 25 years of age to complete this line: "Remember, only you can _________ __________ ________!!!

Now, I would be burned at the stake if I suggested that Smokey was a hypocrite or a liar. But may I be so bold as to hint that Smokey's ideas were seriously skewed. Smokey's clear message in the early years of his campaign was plain and simple: any fire in the forest is bad, evil, in fact, demonic. But the updated message, born out of decades of evidence from fire research, is that all forest fires are not bad-in fact, the vast majority of fires are highly beneficial to our timberlands. The sad verdict…Smokey the Bear, more than any figure in American history, is guilty of forest pillage and destruction to a degree that is hard to imagine! In his defense, we must grant that all Smokey's fire prevention campaigning was well-intended. But we never should have placed such blind trust in a bear…they do not rank high on the animal intelligence scale.

• Have your students read "The True Story of Smokey the Bear".Ask them to pay close attention to the old posters inside the front and back covers as well as any flyers on your wall.
• Ask students to summarize the message contained in the comic in a written paragraph.
• Now, show some of Smokey's late posters and discuss the subtle, but important differences in his updated message.
• Inform your students that they have contracted with the Forest Service to design fire prevention posters for the new millennium. Allow them to create and have each present his/her poster to the class with an explanation of the intended message

3. (40-45 minutes) Have students read "The Many Faces of Fire" from the Yosemite Guide, Fall 1999 (by Mary Kwart, Yosemite prescribed fire specialist). In addition, have them read "Fire History" and "Student page…Fire in the 1980's" from Project Learning Tree, The Changing Forest: Forest Ecology, pages 84-85, 89.

Activity "A"-

Discuss the following questions relative to the article:

a) Describe some of the ways that Native American used fire to their benefit.

b) Who was Gifford Pinchot and what was his philosophy regarding forest fire?

c) What was the "10:00 a.m. fire control policy"?

d) Briefly describe the evolution of the "Let Burn" policy.

e) Distinguish between a catastrophic fire and a management fire. Describe two catastrophic fires that have occurred in global history.

f) What are two main strategies used in managing firs?

g) How is it possible to use fire to prevent fire?

h) Describe two Park Service occupations that relate to fire management.

i) Review the burned acreage statistics given in the article…what percent of Yosemite National Park (Total park acreage=750,000 acres) has had a prescription burn? Lightning fire? What percentage of the park has yet to see a fire in recent years?

4. (40-55 minutes) Activity "B"-(Fire Crisis Role Playing Activity)

Fire Scientists finally have agreed that the vast majority of Sierra Nevada Forests are an "Inferno-In-Waiting," following one hundred years dedicated to elimination of fire. The Governor of California in conjunction with U.S. Directors of the Park Service and Forest Service have appointed a task forece to make recommendations on this critical issue.

Have students volunteer to role-play the listed positions. Hold a high-powered "Sierra Fire Summit" meeting in the Mark Hopkins Hotel in San Francisco, and make recommendations regarding solution to this Sierra Nevada Eco-Crisis.

Sierra Fire Summit meeting participants:

• The Superintendent of Yosemite National Park
• The manager of Camp Sugar Pine, a youth camp located ten miles southwest of Yosemite
• A Fire Ecologist from the University of California
• An Inyo National Forest Fire crew boss
• An old-time Yosemite camper with Emphysema
• A property owner from Foresta, a privately-owned tract within the boundary of Yosemite, whose home was destroyed in the devastating A-rock fire of 1990
• A cattle rancher with a grazing permit for zones within Sierra National Forest
• A regular Yosemite backpacker/Sierra Club member from the Bay Area
• A State of California air pollution specialist from Sacramento
• A reporter writing an article for U.S. News on Fire Ecology
• Tom Roberts, owner/manager of Virginia Lakes Pack Station
• Citizens from local communities-Mariposa, Oakhurst, Mammoth, etc.

Evaluation/Outcome:

Take your students on a field excursion to Yosemite National Park (or another park or forest nearest your school) to witness first-hand the effects of fire on a forest ecosystem. Plan to visit a minimum of two recent (i.e. - within the past 15 years) burn sites, including a catastrophic burn site (examples: The "A-Rock" (esp. the Foresta Area) or steamboat fires of 1990- both are readily accessible by road) and-a prescribed burn site (ex. - prescribed burn below El Capitan, June, 1999).

Divide your class into groups of 4-5. Each group should have notebooks, VCR or camcorder and tape. Explain to the class that their assignment (each group) is to produce a quality video commentary (10-minute time limit) which will explain and demonstrate the differences between a destructive (catastrophic) fire and a healthy (prescribed) burn. Ask students to include close-up footage of mature trees (dead or alive), shrubs, herbs, and watercourses in each area to emphasize the differences between a destructive and a healthy fire.

Also included in each commentary should be a brief history of fire suppression as well as an explanation of principals of fire ecology and prescription fire management. Explain that their productions will be used to educate fellow students/peers across the country on this crucial subject of the Fire Eco-Crisis of our Forests.

Upon returning to your classroom, take a class period to observe and review student commentaries. Allow the students to decide which is most educational and television-worthy (or better, have students who are skilled in video editing make up a composite video involving numerous high-quality scenes from several of the class videos)… you should submit it to an educational television station for possible broadcast!

On-Line Curriculum Resources:

• Forest Service Living with Fire Game and Curriculum