Bilingual “Fire Friends and Followers” Activity Book Now Available!
- Climate Science Alliance
- May 15
- 2 min read
Created as a resource for the Climate Kids "Climate Science and Fire Traveling Trunk"—an NGSS-aligned K-12 education kit—this bilingual activity book introduces 16 plants and animals that have important relationships with fire in southern California. Learn more about this free resource and how to access it on today’s blog!
The Climate Science Alliance is excited to share a new resource from our Climate Kids program, the Fire Friends and Followers Activity Book! We have distributed over 500 copies of this free resource at six Earth Day events and several other community gatherings including Stewardship Pathways training events and the Mountains to the Sea Southwestern Tribal Summit. Today, we are excited to share the link with you to download your own copy and use for your Summer activities with your community, family, and friends.
This activity book is a resource from the Climate Science and Fire Traveling Trunk, an education kit containing NGSS-aligned curricula to teach K-12 grade students the important role of fire in Southern California through hands-on science, storytelling, and art activities. There are seven thematic Traveling Trunks, each containing real data on regional impacts and solutions-oriented approaches to learning about climate change.
What are Fire Friends and Followers?
Fire is an important part of the landscape in southern California. Low intensity fires have always been a part of the ecosystem, from lightning to Indigenous fire practices, and many native plants and animals are adapted to fire. Some species have adapted to withstand fire, like pine or oak trees with thick bark, or plants that can quickly regrow from only their roots. Other species need fire to complete their life cycle. Both of these are commonly referred to as fire followers.
What’s in the Activity Book?
Each of the 16 species highlighted in this Activity Book includes a coloring activity page featuring a hand-illustrated outline by Affiliated Artist, Audrey Carver, and a page containing the English, Spanish, and Latin scientific name, as well as a brief bilingual description to introduce the species’ information and fun facts. There is also space to write down stories, inviting readers to foster their own connections to these important plants and animals. This bilingual (English and Spanish) resource is free to download—We hope you have fun learning, coloring, and sharing your own stories!
Thank you!
Thank you to our partners at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and San Diego Gas and Electric for the funding to create and print these activity books. Your support allows us to share this resource with community members free of charge.
Thank you to Audrey Carver (www.audreycarverart.com) for the beautiful artwork and lively depictions of these fire followers and friends.
Thank you to Paula Ezcurra who provided the Spanish language translations for the names of the plants and animals in this coloring book.
