Take Care of Earth

Write About Land and Water

TaEkeaCarretohf !
A Persuasive Text
by Allison K. Lim

TaEkeaCarretohf !
A Persuasive Text
by Allison K. Lim

Earth is home to
many living things.

2

People, animals, and plants all live
on Earth. These living things need
and use natural resources. So we
must protect Earth’s resources. We
must take care of Earth!

3

Some of Earth’s natural
resources might run out!

Trees, water, plants, and animals
can be replaced in a short time.
But soil, rocks, and minerals take
a long time to be replaced. If we
use too many of these natural
resources, they may run out.

4

WhatYOU
Can Do

Think about natural resources
and how you use them. Make a
list of the natural resources you
use every day.

5

We must keep
our water clean.

All living things need water. Many
living things drink water. Some live
in water. Sometimes water gets dirty,
or polluted. Polluted water can harm
plants, animals, and people.

6

Polluted water

WhatYOU
Can Do

Join a club to help clean up a nearby
beach or lake. And remember,
don’t litter!

7

We must take
care of our soil.

Many animals and plants live in
soil. People and many animals eat
plants for food. But much of our
soil is being destroyed. Soil can be
replaced, but it takes a long time!

8

Water washed
away this soil.

WhatYOU
Can Do

Make a compost pile! Mix food
scraps with soil. Add water. Soon
the food will break down and add
nutrients to the soil.

9

We must protect
our trees.

Trees clean the air. They give shelter
to animals. They also keep soil from
washing away. But people use trees for
many things. About 4 billion trees are
made into paper every year!

10

Used paper

WhatYOU
Can Do

Plant a tree! Be sure to water it.
Save a tree! Reduce the amount
of paper you use. You can
reuse paper, too.

11

We must use rocks
and minerals wisely.

Some animals use rocks for shelter.
People use rocks and minerals to
make things. But rocks and minerals
are being used up quickly. Most rocks
and minerals take thousands
of years to form.

12

WhatYOU
Can Do

Recycle aluminum cans.
Aluminum is made
from a mineral.
Recycling helps
save natural
resources.

13

We must not
waste energy.

We get energy from coal and
oil. We need energy to live.
Energy helps us heat and
cool our homes and cook
our food. Turning on lights,
watching TV, and playing
video games zaps energy.

14

WhatYOU
Can Do

Turn off the lights
when you leave a room!
Turn off the computer and
the TV, too.

15

Natural resources are important to
all living things. We must protect
these resources so they don’t run out.

Taking care of Earth can be fun! What will
you do to take care of Earth today?

16

Acknowledgments Author’s
Grateful acknowledgment is given to the authors, artists, photographers, museums, publishers, Note
and agents for permission to reprint copyrighted material. Every effort has been made to secure
the appropriate permission. If any omissions have been made or if corrections are required, I love walking through
please contact the Publisher. the forest near my home.
I observe the plants, trees,
Photographic Credits rocks, soil, and animals I find
Cover (bg) Carmen Martínez Banús/iStockphoto; Title (bg) Leland Bobbé/Corbis; 2-3 David Fischer/ there. Earth is full of natural
Digital Vision/Alamy Images; 4-5 (bg) Eyewire; 4 (inset) Bruce Heinemann/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; resources. But I worry about
5 (inset) John Foxx Images/Imagestate; 6-7 (bg) DigitalStock/Corbis; 6 (inset) Digital Vision/Getty whether they will still be
Images; 7 (inset) Martin Benjamin/The Image Works, Inc.; 8-9 (bg) Yoshio Sawargai/Dex Image/ here in the future.
Jupiterimages; 8 (inset) Digital Vision/Getty Images; 9 (inset) Simon Price/Alamy Images; 10-11 (bg)
Taras Vyshnya/Shutterstock; 10 (inset) Michael Nichols/National Geographic Image Collection; Taking care of Earth’s
11 (t) Lourens Smak/Alamy Images, (c) George F. Mobley/National Geographic Image Collection; natural resources is
12-13 (bg) Danish Khan/iStockphoto; 12 (inset) Jason Edwards/National Geographic Image important. But it takes
Collection; 13 (inset) Radius Images/Alamy Images; 14-15 (bg) PhotoAlto/Alamy Images; 14 (inset) teamwork! That’s why I
Joel Sartore/National Geographic Image Collection; 15 (inset) Ken Chiu/iStockphoto. wrote this book. I wanted
to persuade you to do your
Illustrator Credits part to take care of Earth.
Tuesday Mourning
I had to do a lot of research
Neither the Publisher nor the authors shall be liable for any damage that may be caused or before writing this book.
sustained or result from conducting any of the activities in this publication without specifically I read books and searched
following instructions, undertaking the activities without proper supervision, or failing to comply the Web. I learned all about
with the cautions contained herein. natural resources. I also
thought of ways to protect
Program Authors them. Read the “What You
Kathy Cabe Trundle, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Early Childhood Science Education, The Ohio Can Do” sections. Then
State University, Columbus, Ohio; Randy Bell, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Science Education, choose something you can
University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia; Malcolm B. Butler, Ph.D., Associate Professor do to care for Earth today.
of Science Education, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg, Florida; Nell K. Duke, Ed.D.,
Co-Director of the Literacy Achievement Research Center and Professor of Teacher Education — Allison K. Lim
and Educational Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan; Judith Sweeney
Lederman, Ph.D., Director of Teacher Education and Associate Professor of Science Education,
Department of Mathematics and Science Education, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago,
Illinois; David W. Moore, Ph.D., Professor of Education, College of Teacher Education and
Leadership, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona

The National Geographic Society
John M. Fahey, Jr., President & Chief Executive Officer
Gilbert M. Grosvenor, Chairman of the Board

Copyright © 2011 The Hampton-Brown Company, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the National
Geographic Society, publishing under the imprints National Geographic School Publishing and
Hampton-Brown.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information
storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the Publisher.

National Geographic and the Yellow Border are registered trademarks of the National
Geographic Society.

National Geographic School Publishing
Hampton-Brown
www.NGSP.com

Printed in the USA.
RR Donnelley, Johnson City, TN

ISBN 978-0-7362-5534-9

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Writing Persuasive