Click
here for a high graphics version
|
Fire in
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| Yellowstone National Park |
Novice Lesson
Introduction:
What is fire?
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How do fires start in the forest?
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What does a fire need to burn?
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How can we put out a fire?
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Who helps fight
forest fires?
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How do we prevent fires?
Exploration
Lesson 1:
A quick review on map
reading.
Teacher's
guide to map reading.
Look at the maps linked above.
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What are some ways the fire may have started?
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Which direction did the fire go and why?
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Describe some factors that you think determine the path of the fire.
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From the scale, estimate how far the fire traveled each week.
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How did the fire cross the river?
Lesson 2:
Study the maps linked above.
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Notice the shape of the fire region for the week ending July 30. What do
you think could have caused the 'lobster claw' shape of the fire?
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Discuss any relationship between wind and the path of the fire.
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Discuss any connections between where the fire burned, elevation, and vegetation.
Lesson 3:
 |
 |
no data
through 7/30/88
7/31/88
8/1/88
8/2/88
8/3/88
8/4/88
8/5/88
8/6/88
Water |
Look at the map of the North Fork Fire on August 5, 1988.
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Explain how the fire could burn in two different places.
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Locate the "fingers" extending South in the fire of August 5. What do you
think caused them?
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Estimate the distance between the August 4th fire and the fingers of the
August 5th fire.
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What direction was the fire moving? Why?
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Where do you think the fire will burn next?
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Do you think the North Fork fire will reach Old Fathful? Why?
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What might cause the fire to reach Old Faithful?
Lesson 4:
How
can fire help forests? Discuss and list some ways that fire can help
the forest. Check your list with the one below.
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Reduce the build-up of fuel, and thus the intensity of future burns.
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Recycle nutrients bound up in litter.
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Reduce competition, allowing existing trees to grow larger.
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Leave snags that provide nesting spots for woodpeckers and other birds.
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Sprout seeds of native plants. For example, the cones of many lodgepole
pines -- the characteristic tree of Yellowstone -- will only open after
exposure to fire.
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Kill non-native plants that are not adapted to fire.
Extensions:
Learn
about Smokey the Bear.
See the park before,
immediately after,
and now.
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Describe the changes
that took place in Yellowtone National Park over the last 10 years.
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How can you protect
yourself from a wildfire?
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Teacher
link, more activities about fire.
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What did the animals do while the fire was in the Park?
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Where did the animals go during the fire?
Glossary
vegetation:
The types of plants that grow in a certain place. Some are tall and others
are short. For examples, look at these pictures:
