Zeke's teacher gave him a homework assignment that included sharing what he wanted to be when he grows up. Swinging on the swing in the backyard, Zeke was thoughtful when I asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up. Watching a street sweeper zoom by in the street behind us, Zeke said, "A street sweeper!" I laughed. To a 5 year old that probably seems like a cool job. But then I asked - I thought you wanted to work with cheetahs. Zeke got a sad, far away look on his face and said: "But there won't be any cheetahs left when I grow up."
Whoa.
This was too much to bear for my environmentalist heart.
It also was a reminder of what I learned in my early days as an environmental educator - never, I mean never, tell a child about an environmental/world problem without giving them some outlet for making a change. I had been talking about endangered species with him but hadn't really given him any feeling of power to make a difference in the plight of these beloved creatures.
So immediately we got on the World Wildlife Fund website and began discussing ways to help save animals. Now Zeke wants to be a wildlife biologist when he grows up and help to save all the animals.
He is also raising money to send the the WWF to Adopt an Animal. In October he baked 2 dozen cookies that I sold at my women's group and made $15.00! He has also ignited the interest of our church and they are willing to help to raise money too! What can only little boy do to save cheetahs and other endangered animals? Apparently a lot!
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Komodo Dragons - September 2008
Komodo Dragons!
With Zeke's shift from cats to lizards, we have even more new learning.... We are starting to classify and sort animals by their characteristics. I love this! Zeke is an amazing sponge, taking in everything and applying it and really learning.
Komodo Dragons are fascinating reptiles and a great way to learn the basics of what makes a reptile a reptile.
Now we've learned:
With Zeke's shift from cats to lizards, we have even more new learning.... We are starting to classify and sort animals by their characteristics. I love this! Zeke is an amazing sponge, taking in everything and applying it and really learning.
Komodo Dragons are fascinating reptiles and a great way to learn the basics of what makes a reptile a reptile.
Now we've learned:
- Komodo dragons are the largest reptiles on earth
- Komodo dragons live on the islands of Indonesia
- Komodo dragons have saliva that has bacteria that can kill humans if they are bitten
- Komodo dragons are predators, but also eat any dead meat they can find/carrion
- Reptiles have scales - Mammals have fur (most)
- Reptiles are exothermic - Mammals are endothermic
- Retpiles lay eggs (most) - Mammals have live births
- Reptiles do not take care of their babies after they are born (most don't) - Mammals take extensive care of their babies after birth - including nursing them.
Lost in the Reptile House - September 2008
In retrospect, losing Zeke in the Reptile House of the Zoo may have been a precursor to his shift in passions. The Reptile House at the Milwaukee Zoo is a very dark building with many people and many reptiles of all sorts. I was standing with Oliver to the side, Dave was with Zeke and Josie looking at snakes. I sort of spaced off for a while, waiting for Dave to meet up with us. But when he did, he only had Josie with him. Panic set in when I realized that Zeke was no where to be found. I thought, "This is it, the moment all parents fear the most." and rushed around the Reptile House like a lunatic calling Zeke's name.
Luckily, Dave found him - looking at some interesting reptile exhibit or another - and we were all reunited without further incident.
However, shortly after our trip the zoo, Zeke's shifted his interest from mammals/cats to reptiles. I wonder if his time alone in the Reptile House played a role in his sudden love of reptiles?
Luckily, Dave found him - looking at some interesting reptile exhibit or another - and we were all reunited without further incident.
However, shortly after our trip the zoo, Zeke's shifted his interest from mammals/cats to reptiles. I wonder if his time alone in the Reptile House played a role in his sudden love of reptiles?
A Trip to the Zoo! -September 2008
Finally! Zeke gets to meet cheetahs, snow leopards, jaguars, etc. face to face! And I do mean that close.
In September we made a trip to the Zoo. We'd been waiting for a l-o-n-g time to get to see the animals he's been passionate about...and we were not disappointed. We made it to the zoo right when they opened so had front row seats for all of the large cats. The cheetahs were moving around a lot and came right up to the window, literally face to face with Zeke - only a relatively thin piece of glass separating him and the cheetah. It was fantastic!
And the snow leopard! "Boris" was not on display because they were cleaning his cage, but the zoo keeper allowed us a behind the scenes look at him. We got to go into the back room where he is kept when not on "display" and he looked more beautiful than I can describe. They say he likes to be rubbed and scratched through the bars and truly he looked like a big kitty.
Still, zoo's always upset me. I have struggled with this for years - I have worked for the Columbus Zoo and I am both fascinated by the captive animals and feel deep sorrow for them. What a horrible existence. I particularly grieve for the primates, who undoubtedly understand their fate to some extent. But all mammals have a limbic brain and create relationships and have far more emotions, feelings, and intelligence that humans commonly give them credit for.
So I put my grief aside for the day and allowed Zeke to explore the world of animals in the only way he can at this time - it was pretty darn cool!
In September we made a trip to the Zoo. We'd been waiting for a l-o-n-g time to get to see the animals he's been passionate about...and we were not disappointed. We made it to the zoo right when they opened so had front row seats for all of the large cats. The cheetahs were moving around a lot and came right up to the window, literally face to face with Zeke - only a relatively thin piece of glass separating him and the cheetah. It was fantastic!
And the snow leopard! "Boris" was not on display because they were cleaning his cage, but the zoo keeper allowed us a behind the scenes look at him. We got to go into the back room where he is kept when not on "display" and he looked more beautiful than I can describe. They say he likes to be rubbed and scratched through the bars and truly he looked like a big kitty.
Still, zoo's always upset me. I have struggled with this for years - I have worked for the Columbus Zoo and I am both fascinated by the captive animals and feel deep sorrow for them. What a horrible existence. I particularly grieve for the primates, who undoubtedly understand their fate to some extent. But all mammals have a limbic brain and create relationships and have far more emotions, feelings, and intelligence that humans commonly give them credit for.
So I put my grief aside for the day and allowed Zeke to explore the world of animals in the only way he can at this time - it was pretty darn cool!
Jaguars and Leopards - August 2008
August - hot summer weather and Zeke's attention turns from snow leopards to two other large cats: the jaguar and the leopard. The jaguar lives in the tropical rain forests of South America and the leopard lives in the African savannas - along with cheetahs.
Zeke is particularly struck with jaguars and after looking at several books can tell them apart quite easily. I am impressed at his ability to absorb information and be able to apply it almost immediately.
In learning about jaguars we learned about another habitat - rain forests. So now we've discussed the open grasslands/savannas, rugged high mountain habitats, and now rain forests. I read to him The Great Kapok Tree and we discussed the types of animals and the amazing diversity of a rain forest.
We've also tackled a third continent - South America. He is becoming quite knowledgable about the world around him and I am slowly adding in bits of information about ecology and the importance of diversity.
Some topics covered thus far: camoflague, predator, prey, carnivore, diversity, habitats.
Zeke is particularly struck with jaguars and after looking at several books can tell them apart quite easily. I am impressed at his ability to absorb information and be able to apply it almost immediately.
In learning about jaguars we learned about another habitat - rain forests. So now we've discussed the open grasslands/savannas, rugged high mountain habitats, and now rain forests. I read to him The Great Kapok Tree and we discussed the types of animals and the amazing diversity of a rain forest.
We've also tackled a third continent - South America. He is becoming quite knowledgable about the world around him and I am slowly adding in bits of information about ecology and the importance of diversity.
Some topics covered thus far: camoflague, predator, prey, carnivore, diversity, habitats.
From Cheetahs to Snow Leopards - July 2008
Zeke's passion for cheetahs lasted about two + months. In learning about cheetahs, we learned began learning about a lot of other large cats and snow leopards caught his fancy. Mine too! What an amazing animal a snow leopard is! So our focus shifted from learning about the hot African savanna to the cold mountain habitats of Tibet. At this point we added a geographical (vs. political) map of the world to our wall and we posted where snow leopards and cheetahs live. We discussed the differences between the fast, slender cheetah and the rugged, furry snow leopard.
Zeke learned that a habitat that an animal lives in will determine the way it looks. For instance, the snow leopard lives in the grey rocky Himalayan mountains, so it's fur is grey with black spots. Contrast with the yellow/orange of the cheetah which lives in the grasslands of Africa. Also, snow leopards have thick beautiful fur and large paws - these help them keep warm in the high altitude regions and walk on snow better.
We also talked more about what it means when an animal is "endangered". I cannot imagine a world without cheetahs or snow leopards, both of which are endangred, and I don't think you can either Zeke.
Zeke learned that a habitat that an animal lives in will determine the way it looks. For instance, the snow leopard lives in the grey rocky Himalayan mountains, so it's fur is grey with black spots. Contrast with the yellow/orange of the cheetah which lives in the grasslands of Africa. Also, snow leopards have thick beautiful fur and large paws - these help them keep warm in the high altitude regions and walk on snow better.
We also talked more about what it means when an animal is "endangered". I cannot imagine a world without cheetahs or snow leopards, both of which are endangred, and I don't think you can either Zeke.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
The Adventure Begins - May 2008
It's May 2008 - Zeke is on the cusp of turning the big FIVE. Out of the blue, my die-hard truck and train fanatic has turned his passion to the animate world; specifically CHEETAH's! His passion for these amazing animals was literally birthed over night. He woke up one day, pushed his trains and trucks to the back of his closet, and declared himself a regular animal lover.
Of course, the animal lover/naturalist in nearly jumped through the roof with joy! We pulled out all of the animal books we owned and started learning about cheetahs. Where they live, what they eat, how fast they can run, etc. We pulled out a map of the world and I showed him where Africa is and where we live.
It is now November 2008 - during this time Zeke's passion for animals has blossomed and moved in so many different directions that I've decided to start a blog to document his journey. What started as a love of one animal has grown into a self-generated movement to raise money to help endangered species all over the globe.
Over the next few post I will attempt to chronicle the journey thus far and get everyone up to speed as to where we are at now. As of today, Zeke's new passion is Cobra's - but I get ahead of myself....
Of course, the animal lover/naturalist in nearly jumped through the roof with joy! We pulled out all of the animal books we owned and started learning about cheetahs. Where they live, what they eat, how fast they can run, etc. We pulled out a map of the world and I showed him where Africa is and where we live.
It is now November 2008 - during this time Zeke's passion for animals has blossomed and moved in so many different directions that I've decided to start a blog to document his journey. What started as a love of one animal has grown into a self-generated movement to raise money to help endangered species all over the globe.
Over the next few post I will attempt to chronicle the journey thus far and get everyone up to speed as to where we are at now. As of today, Zeke's new passion is Cobra's - but I get ahead of myself....
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