Grade Level(s): 4-6A visual demonstration
illustrates the limits
on farmland, making the
importance of conservation
clear.Counting on Peopl

Population Connection

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Counting on People  54 © 1994 Population Connectionearth: the apple of our eyeACTIVITY 15Earth: the apple of our eyeMaterials:1 apple for a teacher demonstration or enough apples for the class if studentsslice their own1 knife for a teacher demonstration or enough knives for the class if studentsslice their own apples1 napkin for a teacher demonstration or enough napkins for the class if stu-dents slice their own applesNote: Some teachers prefer to make this activity truly “hands-on” by havingeach student cut his or her apple according the teacher’s instructions. If youfeel comfortable with students using knives in the classroom, you may wantto consider this option. Otherwise, you can demonstrate the apple cutting atthe front of the class.Procedure:As you go through this brief demonstration, ask the students the questionswhich are in quotation marks before revealing the answers noted in italics.1. Show the apple to the class. “For this exercise, this apple represents ourplanet.”2. Slice the apple into quarters.3. Hold out three of the quarters. “What does this part of the apple repre-sent?” They represent the oceans of the world.4. “What fraction is left?” 1/45. Slice this section in half. Hold up one of the pieces.  “This portion represents the areas where people can’t live: the polar areas,deserts, swamps, very high or rocky mountains.”Set this piece aside.6. Hold up the other piece. “What fraction of the whole apple is this?” 1/8“This piece represents the land where people can live, but not all of the soilis good for growing food.”7. Slice the 1/8 piece into four equal sections. Hold three of the sections inone hand and one section in the other. Hold out the single section. “Whatfraction of the apple is this?” 1/32Concept: Farmland is anessentially nonrenewableresource which we dependupon for our food.Objective: A visual demon-stration illustrates the limitson farmland, making theimportance of conservationclear.Grade Level: Upper ele-mentarySubjects: Math, science,social studiesSkills: Dividing, observing,deducting, problem solvingIntroduction: Over time,better farming has made itpossible to feed many of theworld’s people. But, with alimited amount of land and agrowing number of people tofeed from that land, each per-son’s part becomes smaller and smaller.Protecting our land resourcesis therefore very important.Counting on People  55© 1994 Population Connectionearth: the apple of our eye8. Hold out the three sections in your left hand. “These 3/32 represent theareas too rocky, too wet, too cold, too steep, or with too poor soil to actu-ally grow food.  They also contain the cities, suburbs, highways, shoppingcenters, schools, parks, factories, parking lots and other places peoplelive, work, or use in other ways, but can no longer grow food.”9. Carefully peel the 1/32 slice of Earth. Hold this peel out so they can see it.“This tiny bit of peeling represents the surface, the very thin layer of theEarth’s crust upon which people grow food. It is less than five feet deep.It takes 100 years for one inch of this topsoil to form.”10. For dramatic effect, you can eat the small piece of apple, saying, “If we  don’t take care of this land, it will be gone.”This activity originally appeared in KUITATK, a Native American Science EducationAssociation Issue Publication.Discussion Questions: (if applicable)1. What things cause land erosion?  One example is deforestation. Branches and leaves shelter the soil fromthe force of rain and wind. So when the trees are cut down, the soil isblown and washed away. Another example is overgrazing. When cattle eatgrass, they pull it out of the ground by the roots, taking some soil with it.Each bite leaves a patch of ground uncovered, exposed to the wind andthe rain. Also, these animals have sharp hooves that tear up the surface alittle with each step.2. What is overfarming? Overfarming occurs when we ask too much of the land. We used to prac-tice crop rotation, which means we divided farmland into sections, andgrew a different crop in each section. Each year, the kind of crop grown ineach section would be changed, and one section would be left unplanted,to let it rest for a year. Each kind of crop takes certain elements from thesoil. If the same crop is grown in the same place for too many years in arow, the soil has no chance to renew itself. Eventually all of that particu-lar element will be gone, and that soil will be unable to grow anything.3. What are some ways we could help preserve farmland?By choosing not to build anything on land that could be used to grow food;by eating lower on the food chain; by working to reduce pollution, etc.4. Where else does food come from beside farmland? Oceans. Remind students, though, that overpopulation also leads to over-fishing and the dumping of pollutants into the waterways.

Earth: the apple of our eye

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Earth: the apple of our eye

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