Name: Jungle Community

 

Unit Title: Community

 

Grade Level: K-6

YOUR RATIONALE:

This lesson is to help start the conversation on community and allow students to realize that diversity and differences create a great learning environment. Just like in the rain forest, everyone is connected, in one way or another. We can use each otherÕs unique talents, personalities, or skills as resources for learning. By working together, we are able to make a more complete and colorful rain forest.

 

KEY CONCEPT: community learning through diversity and collaboration

 

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What is a community? Where do we see examples of communities? What are the characteristics and benefits of a community? How can we collaborate as artists to become a classroom community?

 

RELATED STUDIO ACTIVITY

Key ideas: Diversity creates a unique environment to learn and grow as a community.

 

Sub-ideas: Communities are important because they are groups of people that work together with common goals and interests and support each other in their learning.

 

Choice of media, subject matter, formal limitations: Large pieces of construction paper are painted with tempera paint, stuffed to create dimension, and then hung around the room. Many students will need an introduction to paint and procedures. Can also be done with markers or colored pencils.

 

Personal connections: Students connect how they are like a certain animal (personality characteristics) and tell why they think these characteristics will contribute to the class (metaphorically-in the rain forest and currently)

 

Description of the activity: Draw the animal that you think that you would be if you were living in the rain forest!

 

CONCEPT MAPPING: The students will start with a brainstorming handout sketch on what animal they are most like in the rain forest and why. This will incorporate writing skills and verbal communication as the class presents their work in progress as a group.

They will be asked to think about the following questions.

Why are you most like this animal? What characteristics do you share with this animal? How will you be able to use those skills and talents to be able to contribute to the community classroom?

 

OBJECTIVITIES:

The student will draw an animal from the rain forest that best describes who they are and         how they plan on contributing to the class as a whole.

The student will write and describe why this animal describes their personality.

The student will verbally interact with the class to present their rational.

The student will create their animal by enlarging their sketch and painting it.

 

AREA OF INTEGRATION:

ART AND Environmental Science- This lesson will begin with a story about the diversity in the rain forest and what each animalÕs role is in maintaining an environmental balance. We will cover the ideas of ecosystems, the four layers of a rain forest, and identify animals found in each layer.

 

PREPARATION:

Obtain book to read to class about the ecosystem of a rainforest

Prepare materials

Create brainstorming/ writing reflection handout

 

PROCEDURE:

 

DAY 1

Read rain forest story to the class

-Discuss animals located within the ecosystem

-How do the animals work together or depend on each other to create a community?

-How are we like the animals of the rain forest? What characteristics are similar between us and the animals?

Class discussion about community and what it means to be an art classroom community

Pass out brainstorming/writing reflection handout

-Students will sketch an animal that they identify with

-Students will write to describe how they are like that animal and how they plan to use those traits to contribute to the classroom community in the future.

-Students will use this brainstorming activity to plan for their large scale animal

-plan colors and practice drawing animal

Classroom presentations and critiques

Wrap up review of communities

 

DAY 2

Draw animals onto larger pieces of construction paper

-Remind students to think about the front and backs of the animal

Paint or color

Cut out using two pieces of paper (front & back sides of the animal)

Stuff with newspaper

Staple and hole punch to hang from the ceiling or arrange around the ÒjungleÓ-room.

 

RESOURCES AND MATERIALS:

ÒWonders of the Rain ForestÓ by Janet Craig

-construction paper

-paint (tempera or acrylic)

-scissors

-hole puncher

-string

-stapler

-graphite pencils

-colored pencils

 

VOCABULARY:

Community-is a social group of organisms sharing an environment, normally with shared interests.

Ecosystem-is a natural unit consisting of all plants, animals and microorganisms in an area functioning together with all of the non-living physical factors of the environment.

 

Layers of Rain Forest: plants & animals found in each

 

Floor: Dark, wet, little wind, little change in temperature. Palms, herbs, mushroom live on forest floor. Acouchis (rabbit-sized rodents), peccaries (wild pigs), tarantulas, snakes, insects (cleanup crew for recycling nutrients) are found on floor of rain forest.

 

Understory: Some sunlight, less moisture. Smaller trees (15 feet) and shrubs. Jaguars and margays (climbing cat), small birds and mammals, snakes live in the understory.

 

Canopy (Umbrella): Continuous layer of green. Sunlight above, near darkness below. Trees with flat leaves can grow 65 to 100 feet above ground. Small plants like bromeliads, orchids, and philodendrons live above the forest floor by perching on the branches and trunks of trees. These are called epiphytes. Vines climb toward the sun.

Climbing, flying and gliding animals like birds, bats, butterflies, sloths, and monkeys can be found in this layer.

 

Emergent: Giant trees that tower above all other plants, usually to heights of 115 to 250 feet. Usually only one or two emergent per acre, with small leaves, umbrella-shaped crowns, and tall, slender trunks.

 

EVALUATION AND RUBRICS:

Completion of brainstorming/writing reflection handout (20pts)

-sketch of animal with color (10)

-writing (10)

Participation in classroom critiques and discussions (20 pts)

-mid-progress critique (10)

-final critique (10)

Completion of larger animal (20)

Creativity, Effort, and Attendance (10pts)

50pts total

 

FOLLOW-UP:

Fieldtrip to the Fredrick Meijer Gardens could illustrate the environment of the rain forest and provide front loading for next project on flowers, plants, and vegetation.

 

STUDIO PRODUCTION:

Visuals Attached

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rain Forest Community-What Animal Am I?

 

NAME:_______________________________________________

 

If I were an animal in the Rain Forest Community, I would be a

_____________________________________________________.

 

 

 

I am like this animal because

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________