On November 8th, 2006, educational packages from Borneo and Outback Australia will be available from this site.

In the meantime, have your students become 'Photo-Detectives' by answering these Photography and Literacy (PAL) questions for the 'Borneo' module.

Use the questions in conjunction with the photographs on the Borneo page. For your convenience, and based on the theory that no student will ever voluntarily visit a page called 'Lesson Plans' - I've put the answers at the end.

First photo (Lanau's uncle showing him the 'sandpaper leaf'):
- Ask your students to describe the photograph. Ask them to describe the clothes Lanau and his uncle are wearing. What does the different clothing tell us about the culture?

- In the photo, Lanau's uncles is teaching Lanau about the rainforest. Have your students write a story about a time when someone taught them something important.

Second photo (kids in boat)
- Describe what is happening in this photograph. Why is the woman in the river? The time of day will be your clue. What time is it?

- Write a story about this picture. Make sure you include description of the clothes, gesture, expressions, props (things) and the background.

For older students:
- By studying this picture, can you guess what has had the most effect on people in the rainforest over the last few decades?

Fourth photo (boy sitting by river)
- Study the details carefully, and answer the following:
What is happening? What color is the river? What could make the water that color? Find clues that tell us what the weather is. What is this photo about? What is the boy doing?What do you think he is thinking about? How does this photo make you feel? Have you ever been in a similar situation?

- Using your answers from the above question, write a short story about this photo

In your story, describe at least five things that are happening in this picture.

Similarities and Differences
Study all the photographs on this page, and make a list of all the things in Lanau's life that are similar to yours. And then, make another list with all the things that are different. Next, visit some of the websites listed in the left-hand column. Now, combine the information from the websites with the visual information in the photographs and write a story about survival in the rainforest - but pretend that you are Lanau!

Answers

First photo - Lanau is dressed in clothes similar to those of an American student - shorts, teeshirt, baseball cap and flip-flops, while his uncle is wearing traditional clothing. This suggests that Lanau lives in a rapidly changing society. In the space of one generation, vast changes have occurred.

Second photo - The kids are leaving for school, so it must be morning. Since it isn't that hot in the morning, the woman is probably bathing, as opposed to swimming (although in Borneo, swimming and bathing are pretty much the same thing!)

For older students:
It’s the small combustion engine, like outboard motors on the longboats and the chain saw. Cutting trees by hand used to take a lot of energy, and it used to take half a day to take kids to school (where they live Monday-Friday). Today it takes 45 minutes. With the quicker trip, kids are much more likely to attend school.

Fourth photo -
A boy is waiting - for who - or what - we don't know. People are getting on (or off) the 'water buses'. A cargo boat is passing by. The river is muddy, because of excessive logging - a problem in many rainforests today.The people are dressed in a way that suggests a warm day.