Resources
Annotated Bibliography
“A 'Sly' Species of Leaf-Tailed Gecko Uncovered from Madagascar.” Mongabay Environmental News, 23 Oct. 2019, news.mongabay.com/2019/10/a-sly-species-of-leaf-tailed-gecko-uncovered-from-madagascar/.
The discovery of a new species of leaf tailed gecko that can be found in the tropical forest of Africa.
Adams, Rebecca. "Vulpes Zerda (fennec)." Animal Diversity Web. Accessed July 11, 2020. https://animaldiversity.org/site/accounts/information/Vulpes_zerda.html.
Facts about the fennec fox that can be found in the African desert.
Bailey, Robert C., and Irven Devore. “Research on the Efe and Lese Populations of the Ituri Forest, Zaire.” Wiley Online Library, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, 3 June 2005, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ajpa.1330780402.
Research study about the biology, health, economy, and social relations of Efe.
Blundell, Richard. "Waking up in the Anthropocene: Big History and the Biosphere." Macquarie University. 2016. Accessed July 08, 2020. http://hdl.handle.net/1959.14/1095457.
Big History education and the Anthropocene may be meaningfully linked and may inform better pedagogical and cultural communication of Big History in the Anthropocene.
Bussmann, Rainer W., Genevieve G. Gilbreath, John Solio, Manja Lutura, Rumpac Lutuluo, Kimaren Kunguru, Nick Wood, and Simon G. Mathenge. "Plant Use of the Maasai of Sekenani Valley, Maasai Mara, Kenya." Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 2, no. 1 (2006). doi:10.1186/1746-4269-2-22.
Study on the different plants that are important to the Maasai people.
Christian, David. "THE ANTHROPOCENE: THRESHOLD 8." The NAMTA Journal 43, no. 3 (Summer 2018). Accessed March 2020. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1244429.pdf.
Scientific version of Montessori’s Cosmic Education.
Deihl Colin. "Wildlife and the Maasai." Cultural Survival. March 01, 1985. Accessed July 11, 2020. https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/wildlife-and-maasai.
How the National Game Lands in Africa relate to the Maasai people.
DeVreese, John. “West African Potto.” New England Primate Conservancy, Apr. 2018, www.neprimateconservancy.org/west-african-potto.html.
"Dirt Mounds Made by Termites in Africa, South America, Asia Could Prevent Spread of Deserts." NSF. February 5, 2015. Accessed July 11, 2020. https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=134006.
Termite mounds in the African desert.
Draper, Patricia. "!Kung Women: Contrasts in Sexual Egalitarianism in Foraging and Sedentary Contexts." DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. 1975. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/anthropologyfacpub/45/.
The role of women in the !Kung tribe.
"DRC: Efe Pygmies Deprived of Their Homeland and Their Livelihood." WRM in English. May 19, 2007. Accessed July 10, 2020. https://wrm.org.uy/articles-from-the-wrm-bulletin/section1/drc-efe-pygmies-deprived-of-their-homeland-and-their-livelihood/.
Description of how war as well as commercial forestry is cutting into the traditional way of life for the Efe people.
Fay, Robert. "Kalahari Desert." African American Studies Center, 2005. doi:10.1093/acref/9780195301731.013.41957.
"Flora and Fauna." The Congo Rainforest. Accessed July 10, 2020. http://rainforeststhecongo.weebly.com/flora-and-fauna.html.
Frank, Adam. "The Anthropocene: Can Humans Survive A Human Age?" NPR. June 21, 2011. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2011/06/21/137317694/the-anthropocene-can-humans-survive-a-human-age.
Opinion on the Anthropocene.
United Nations Environmental Programme. Global Environment Outlook 2000. London: Routledge, 2013.
A region-by-region analysis of the state of the world's environment, highlighting key global concerns and making recommendations for policy action.
Grazzini, Camillo. "Maria Montessori's Cosmic Vision, Cosmic Plan, and Cosmic Education." NAMTA Journal. November 30, 2012. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1078117.
Information on Montessori's Cosmic Education curriculum.
Groombridge, Brian. Global Biodiversity: Status of the Earths Living Resources: A Report. New York: Chapman & Hall, 1992.
Report from the World Conservation Monitoring Centre on biodiversity.
Groombridge, Brian, and Martin Jenkins. World Atlas of Biodiversity: Earths Living Resources in the 21st Century. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2002.
Biodiversity across the world.
Guertin, Dr. Laura. "LESSON 3 OUTLINE." Lesson 3: African Biodiversity and Conservation. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://courseware.e-education.psu.edu/courses/earth105new/content/lesson03/03.html.
Biodiversity in Africa and threats to that biodiversity.
Howell, Nancy. Life Histories of the Dobe !Kung Food, Fatness, and Well-being over the Life Span. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2010.
Jenkins, Dr. Orville Boyd. !Kung Bushman People of Southern Africa -- A Cultural Profile, strategyleader.org/profiles/!kung.html.
List and information about the indigenous tribes of Africa.
Jeni, and Leila Says. "Clock of Eras & Geological Time Scale Puzzles." "When Children Come into Contact with Nature, They Reveal Their Strength" -Maria Montessori. January 30, 2020. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://www.cosmicmontessorischool.com/clock-of-eras-geological-time-scale-puzzles/.
Montessori's Clock of Eras and the importance of the clock.
Society for General Microbiology. "Kalahari Desert Sands An Important, Forgotten Storehouse of Carbon Dioxide." ScienceDaily. April 04, 2008. Accessed July 11, 2020. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401200451.htm.
The sands of the desert are a storehouse of carbon dioxide taken from the world's atmosphere. The sand is full of cyanobacteria. These drought resistant bacteria can fix atmospheric carbon dioxide, and together they add significant quantities of organic matter to the nutrient deficient sands.
"Land Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Africa - Revised and Updated 2014." Human Rights Documents Online, March 2009. doi:10.1163/2210-7975_hrd-1031-2014003.
The study on the land rights of the forest peoples of Africa, its purpose and findings.
Leonard, Gerard. "Maria Montessori's Cosmic Stories and Contemporary Science." The NAMTA Journal 43, no. 3 (Summer 2018): 32-45. Accessed May 2020. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1244381.pdf.
Montessori's scientific thought principles for the new generation of Montessori teachers.
Lewis, Elaine, Simone Volet, Catherine Baudains, and Caroline Mansfield. "Education for Sustainability at a Montessori Primary School: From Silos to Systems Thinking: Australian Journal of Environmental Education." Cambridge Core. March 18, 2013. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/australian-journal-of-environmental-education/article/education-for-sustainability-at-a-montessori-primary-school-from-silos-to-systems-thinking/86AEB34C8FE69EC21574D2C4A73C08BB.
Linder, H. P. "Plant Diversity and Endemism in Sub-Saharan Tropical Africa." Journal of Biogeography 28, no. 2 (2001): 169-82. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2699.2001.00527.x.
"Maasai Association: Kenya." Maasai Association | Kenya. Accessed July 11, 2020. http://www.maasai-association.org/welcome.html.
Resource about the Maasai people in Africa.
McGill, Brian J., Maria Dornelas, Nicholas J. Gotelli, and Anne E. Magurran. "Fifteen Forms of Biodiversity Trend in the Anthropocene." Trends in Ecology & Evolution 30, no. 2 (February 2015): 104-13. doi:10.1016/j.tree.2014.11.006.
An argument that our understanding of biodiversity trends in the Anthropocene, and our ability to protect the natural world, is impeded by a failure to consider different types of biodiversity measured at different spatial scales.
Morelli, David. "Forest Foragers: A Day in the Life of Efe Pygmies in the Democratic Republic of Congo." Cultural Survival. September 01, 2000. Accessed July 10, 2020. https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/forest-foragers-day-life-efe-pygmies-democratic-republic.
Muis, R. "Increase of Forest Cutting Speed in Eastern Ituri Forest, DR Congo." Pygmy Kleinood. 2006.
First person account of the Efe people in Congo.
"National Botanical Research Institute." Hoodia | National Botanical Research Institute. Accessed July 11, 2020. http://www.nbri.org.na/sections/economic-botany/INP/sectors/Hoodia.
"Natural Solutions: Protected Areas Helping People Deal with Desertification and Drought." IUCN. March 09, 2020. Accessed July 09, 2020. https://www.iucn.org/content/natural-solutions-protected-areas-helping-people-deal-desertification-and-drought.
How to protect the African desert.
Norris, Jeff. "Biodiversity and Peace: Where Technology and Montessori Come Together in the Children's Eternal Rainforest, Costa Rica." NAMTA Journal. November 30, 2015. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1112223.
An example of how students are taught about biodiversity in a Montessori school. The students visit the rainforest in Costa Rica.
Ross, Rachel. "The Sahara: Earth's Largest Hot Desert." LiveScience. January 25, 2019. Accessed July 11, 2020. https://www.livescience.com/23140-sahara-desert.html.
Facts about the Sahara desert in Africa.
Stratford, Robert. "Educational Philosophy, Ecology and the Anthropocene." Educational Philosophy and Theory 51, no. 2 (2017): 149-52. doi:10.1080/00131857.2017.1403803.
The Anthropocene is a crisis in the way we think and new approaches to education may help.
Tempus, Anna Mae. "Borrowing Ideas from Montessori." Edutopia. October 22, 2018. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://www.edutopia.org/article/borrowing-ideas-montessori.
Montessori's prevailing theories.
"The Desert Melon That Helps Man and Beast Survive Long Treks Without Water." Atlas Obscura. March 18, 2019. Accessed July 11, 2020. https://www.atlasobscura.com/foods/tsamma-melon.
"The Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020, the Aichi Biodiversity Targets and NBSAPs." February 29, 2016. doi:10.18356/0ec10acd-en.
A ten-year framework for action by countries and stakeholders to conserve biodiversity and enhance its benefits for the people of Africa.
"The Tribes of East Africa: Maasai People." Asilia Africa. January 17, 2017. Accessed July 11, 2020. https://www.asiliaafrica.com/blog/the-tribes-of-east-africa-maasai-people/.
Maasai people of Africa.
Toesland, Finbar. "Africa's Megacities a Magnet for Investors | Africa Renewal." United Nations. April 9, 2019. Accessed July 11, 2020. https://www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/april-2019-july-2019/africa’s-megacities-magnet-investors.
Growth in the megacities of Africa.
Vaughan, Erin. "Animals in the Savanna of Africa." Sciencing. November 22, 2019. Accessed July 11, 2020. https://sciencing.com/animals-savanna-africa-7811046.html.
Animals in the Grasslands of Africa.
Wickens, G. E., and Pat Lowe. Baobabs: Pachycauls of Africa, Madagascar, and Australia. Berlin: Springer, 2008.
“World's Largest Frogs Build Their Own Ponds for Their Young.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 8 Aug. 2019, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190808213531.htm.
Zucconi, Alberto. "The Need for Person-Centered Education." The Need for Person-Centered Education | Cadmus Journal. October 18, 2016. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://www.cadmusjournal.org/article/volume-3/issue-1/need-person-centered-education.
Explanation of how people in this era need clear understanding of the crucial role played by the processes by which humans construe experiences and effect life on the planet.
Reading List for Students
Epic!, Inc. Creations. “Instantly Access 40,000 High-Quality Books for Kids.” Epic! - Books for Kids. https://www.getepic.com/collection/16838481/Africa%20?utm_source=t2t&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=collection&share=9179828594.
A collection of online books relating to the grasslands, desert, and tropical forest of Africa.
"Spectacular Savannas." San Diego Zoo Kids. 2020. Accessed July 11, 2020. https://kids.sandiegozoo.org/stories/spectacular-savannas.
Website for kids to learn about the African savanna.
"Tropical Biodiversity: Why Should We Care?" Frontiers for Young Minds. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://kids.frontiersin.org/collection/7921/tropical-biodiversity-why-should-we-care.
Student friendly explanation of biodiversity.
Materials for Classroom Use
Nature Lab. “The Value of Grasslands.” Vimeo, Nature Lab, 13 Apr. 2020, vimeo.com/77808155.
Video for students about the grasslands of Africa.
"Virtual Field Trip Video: Africa: Nature Works Everywhere." PBS LearningMedia. July 03, 2020. Accessed July 08, 2020. https://wqed.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/7015b3e1-64c1-411c-943b-743302a747c6/virtual-field-trip-africa/.
Virtual Field trip to the deserts and grasslands of Africa.
"Waseca Biomes." Wasecabiomes. Accessed July 10, 2020. https://wasecabiomes.org/.
Montessori Curriculum Resources
Comments: