The Sun
Sunnyvale's Newspaper

Photograph by George Sakkestad

K. K. Mikami and Luis Aponte check out a many-legged insect at a rain forest exhibit at Cherry Chase School.

Bug Eyes

Rain forest is a sight to see at Cherry Chase

By Katherine Petersen

The staff room at Cherry Chase Elementary School had new occupants on the morning of Dec. 5. Ken Jones, who runs the rain forest exhibit at Sunnyvale Town Center, trucked over aquariums full of animals for Cherry Chase students to ogle.

Each class spent five or 10 minutes gazing at giant hissing cockroaches, poison dart frogs, small and giant tropical snakes, strange insects and jungle lizards. The kids oohed and aahed, tapping on the cages.

Two parent volunteers and each class' teacher kept close eyes on the kids, glad the critters stayed in fully enclosed homes.

"[The children] could have stayed there all day," said Wendy Scarangello, a PTA member and parent volunteer. "We have to keep telling them to move along because there was a line out the door."

Fifth-grader Angie McPhaul knew a little bit about the rain forests but enjoyed learning about the animals and trees found there and learning that in 20 years--if destruction continues at its current rate--all those things could be gone.

"I didn't know how bad it was and exactly what animals lived there," she said. "I learned that 80 percent of our food comes from there."

Bananas, pineapples, coconuts and some spices are just a few rain forest food items.

McPhaul's favorite animal was the macaw with its orange headpiece and white feathers.

"It was neat because the birds weren't in cages; they just sat on perches. They were really well-trained," she said.

Four of her classmates got to hold one of the large snakes, but she chose not to.

The rain forest assembly, arranged by Scarangello, also included a discussion about the destruction of many rain forests and how important it is to keep these ecosystems alive.

Kevin Brown, another fifth-grader, wished he could have touched some of the animals. "I wasn't scared of them at all, not even the hissing cockroaches," he said. "My favorite part was when he brought out the big dragon lizard."

The children played a scent game where they tried to identify different odors including coffee, cinnamon and vanilla.

Gwendolyn Gibson, a fifth-grade teacher, would like to include some rain forest lessons in her curriculum but isn't sure she will have time.

"The rain forest is part of the sixth-grade curriculum," she said." "I am impressed with it, and it's a very exciting subject."

The Cherry Chase PTA organizes four or five assemblies a year, Scarangello said. The next one will focus on California history and the American Revolution, and kids will re-enact moving west on the Oregon Trail as well as particular battles during the all-day, hands-on presentation.

[ Back to Contents Page | Sunnyvale Sun Home Page | Archives ]

This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, December 10, 1997.
©1997 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.