Rainforest for Children Video Series

For the Zoro people of the Brazilian rainforest, the concept of "fast food" is slightly different from our own: an animal scampering through the foliage is stopped abruptly by a zinging arrow and served very shortly thereafter (due to the unhealthy combination of zero refrigeration and blistering heat). The Zoro and several other native peoples are profiled in People of the Rainforest, one of three titles in this series about the world's rainforests aimed at elementary school-age children. The program combined overlaid maps of rainforest areas, on-screen definitions of key words (such as "reserve," of which there aren't enough), and voice-over-narration about the social habits of people living in Costa Rica, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and the Brazilian rainforest. The rather droning quality of the narration and the fact that the young viewer is barraged with facts--as opposed to story, which would be more likely to hold their attention--makes this a less than optimum choice. Still, home schooling parents looking for straightforward information (and teachers looking for reasonably priced and informative material) will find these worthwhile. Recommended with reservations. The other two titles in the series are Animals of the Rainforest and Plants of the Rainforest. Aud: E, P. (R. Pitman)