Mama Miti
By Donna Jo Napoli, Illustrated by Kadir Nelson
Grade Levels:
Interest Level K-4, Reading Level 3.6
Synopsis:
Through artful prose and beautiful illustrations, Donna Jo Napoli and Kadir Nelson tell the
true story of Wangari Muta Maathai, known as "Mama Miti," who in 1977 founded the
Green Belt Movement, an African grassroots organization that has empowered many people to mobilize and
combat deforestation, soil erosion, and environmental degradation. Today more than 30 million trees have been
planted throughout Mama Miti's native Kenya, and in 2004 she became the first African woman to win the
Nobel Peace Prize. Wangari Muta Maathai has changed Kenya tree by tree and with each page turned, children
will realize their own ability to positively impact the future. (from www.simonandschuster.com)
Author/Illustrator Websites:
 www.donnajonapoli.com
 www.kadirnelson.com
Curricular Connections:
 Environmental education
 Social justice
 Fabric art/collage
 Earth Science
 Recycling
 Sustainability
 Ecology
 Biography
Lesson Ideas:

Fabric Collage
 Materials
o Scissors, tweezers, liquid glue
o 3 dishes
o Old paintbrush to spread glue
o Scraps of fabric that match your room colors or favorite team
o Yarn, string, or ribbon
o Something to protect table (like old tablecloth, sheet, or cardboard box)
o Liquid acrylic
 Directions
o With scissors, cut up the fabric into small pieces and divide them into three dishes of pale,
medium, and dark tones.
o Draw the shape you will be filling in (tropical fish, parrots, animals, and free designs work well).
o First, paint a small area with glue, then put the fabric pieces on a little bit at a time.
o You may want to rub over the top of the fabric with a piece of clean rag to make sure it is flat.
o Use the yarn, string, or ribbon for added decoration.
o When your project is completely dry you may wish to coat it with liquid acrylic.

Tree Sculpture Project
Have students gather items that might end up in a landfill like plastic bread bag closures, egg cartons,
and foam cups. Provide students with paper and glue and have students use the materials to create a oneof-a-kind tree. When finished, have students name their trees.

Poem Writing Project
Write a poem about trees and their role in providing clean air, animal habitat, food, shelter… or write a
poem about an environmental issue. Have poems include a repetitive single-lined verse in the style of
the writing in Mama Miti.
Suggested Companion Resources/Websites:
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Wangari’s Trees of Peace: a True Story from Africa by Jeanette Winter
Seeds of Change: Wangari's Gift to the World by Jen Cullerton Johnson
Unbowed: a Memoir by Wangari Muta Maathai
Planting the Trees of Kenya : the Story of Wangari Maathai by Claire Nivola
The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Johnny Appleseed: a Tall Tale by Steven Kellogg
Plant-It 2020 is a non-profit organization that performs worldwide tree-planting at $1 per tree, donates
fuel-efficient cooking stoves to needy families, and provides forestry, soil, and biochar education. Its
services not only help reforest the world's cities and forests - they provide direct humanitarian aid by
reducing hunger, thirst, malnutrition, poverty and indoor pollution while increasing the sustainability of
not only the world's forests but also its people (www.plantit2020.org).
The Arbor Day Foundation has lots of different resources and activities for preschool children and up
(www.arborday.org).