Simon Says, "Let's Stop Climate Change!"

Gr 1—4—Featuring the brightly colored characters from Hippo Works's syndicated cartoon, "It's a Jungle Out There," and original songs by creator Denis Thomopoulos, this program challenges children to work to reduce their carbon footprint and stop global warming. The characters are simply drawn and roughly animated, but the message is powerful. Peep the bird, Suzanne the Crystal Goddess, Bob the cynical rodent, and Simon the hippo use the disappearing snow on Mt. Kilimanjaro to demonstrate the effect that greenhouse gasses are having on our planet. Simple terms, illustrations, songs, and clear facts explain that fossil fuels and methane gasses are affecting weather, crops, and animals worldwide. The last part of the video explains in detail how we can reduce our carbon footprints by reducing waste, reusing, recycling, and composting. The critters buy energy-saving light bulbs, products with less packaging, and locally-grown vegetables. While their menacing carbon-cloud shows their impact on the environment diminishing, it is clear that they can't eliminate it by conservation alone. The animals then donate money to grow trees in the rainforest, which will offset the carbon they are still producing. The DVD includes mp3 versions of the seven songs in the program; an eBooks section which contains the film script; a useful eHandbook with science correlations, flash cards, puzzles, and lesson plans; and more. Although the animation is simplistic and the jokes may seem corny, the message about climate change is important. The website, hippoworks.com, features a club where kids can earn Green Dollars, buy real square footage of a rainforest, and help offset their carbon footprints.—MaryAnn Karre, Horace Mann Elementary School, Binghamton, NY