What do you do when your long-term study plots in a forest go up in flames? You gather data.
In “Fire Toolbox,” the newest addition to our monograph collection for middle and high school students, read about scientists who did just that.
In this research, scientists were interested in understanding the impacts of different forest treatments, like thinning and prescribed fire, on forest conditions. Setting up an experimental design to test these treatments’ impacts during a wildfire was impossible, but when a real wildfire burned through the study plots unexpectedly, scientists were able to see how these treatments affected forest resilience.
Interested in reading the original study? We always include the link to the original study in our articles. Pairing our article with the original study is a great way to help more advanced students learn to read scientific articles. Here’s a lesson plan you can use to help!
Working with Data Sets
After reading the article, students will use actual data from the National Interagency Fire Center to construct graphs and make observations about wildfire trends over the years. Students will investigate how much land was burned by wildfire and the cost of firefighting over the last several decades.
Learn More About Smokey Bear's Message
We’ve also included a short spotlight article on Smokey Bear, the mascot of one of the longest running public service advertising campaigns. Learn more about his wildfire prevention message.
Want to Learn More?
Explore the “Fire Toolbox” product page to find:
- A distraction-free reading mode with interactive reflection sections to test your understanding of the article,
- An educator guide with education standards correlations (NGSS, Common Core, and Social Studies), lesson plan suggestions, and Project Learning Tree connections,
- Related articles from Natural Inquirer and others to learn more about wildfire research, prescribed fire, and this research study in particular, and
- Profiles of the scientists who conducted the study to learn more about their work and what interests them in science.
