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Endangered Lands & Threatened Species Collage Mural Fifth Grade by Elizabeth White Objective: After the lesson on endangered lands and threatened species, the students will be able to create a class collage mural illustrating endangered lands and threatened species which will incorporate magazine images and original drawing and painting. The students will also write letters protesting the exploitation of endangered habitats and the destruction of flora and fauna. Focus: The teacher will show short clips of television and movie images of a devastated world landscape due to mankind (i. e. The Stand, Mad Max). The teacher will introduce the concepts of preservation and conservation by asking to students to imagine and illustrate (by writing or drawing) a world without plants and animals, the students will be asked what will happen to our planet if this occurs and how will we cope with this. Rationale: After the lesson on endangered lands and threatened species, the student will be aware that land conservation and preservation as well as the preservation of our flora and fauna is an important issue to consider for the survival of our planet. Students will also be aware that the world is filled with unrecognized people who are doing something to fight injustice (both for our people and our planet). Cultural Exemplars: Subhankar Banerjee’s Seasons of Life and Land (photography from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge), selected nature photography of Ansel Adams, Unsung Heroes (Howard Zinn Rethinking Schools 15 (Fall 2000): 34-36. Instructional Input: The teacher will lead a discussion on conservation issues and present the photographs taken by Subhankar Banerjee in the Arctic National Wildlife refuge. The teacher will explain that these photographs are the culmination of a two year project and the first complete record of the area in all seasons; a record of a place long seen as not being worthy of preservation; a place long seen to be a frozen white nothingness with no ecosystem. The teacher will also explain that while the photographs were originally taken as a personal project they are now being used in the debate over whether to open the area to oil exploration. This oil exploration project would destroy not only the land but also the flora and fauna of the area. The teacher will present selected images from the nature photography of Ansel Adams whose works have been seen as a plea to save our mountains and forests and a selection from Howard Zinn’s Unsung Heroes which presents people who are fighting for justice on our planet. After discussion of the images and Zinn’s Unsung Heroes, it will be explained that the students will be creating a class collage mural of magazine images, original drawings and paintings that will utilize concepts related to endangered lands and threatened species. The students will also write letters protesting this exploitation of the planet; these will be enclosed with photographs of the mural to be sent in protest. Guided Practice: After the instructional input, the students will be given magazines featuring articles on endangered lands and threatened species. After looking through the images, the students will brainstorm and discuss what the ten most important features of the environment are to them. Each student will execute ten thumbnail sketches of an original drawing or painting they wish to include in the collage mural. Students will also cut out images from the magazine that they wish to include in the mural and will experiment with design by placing images in different ways to achieve good composition. The students will also brainstorm ideas that they wish to include in their protest letters and record these in a class journal. Independent Practice: After the guided practice, the students will be able to independently utilize images cut from magazines integrated with original drawings and paintings in a life size sketch for the creation of a collage mural of endangered lands and threatened species. The student will also be able to independently write a letter of protest using the writings from the class journal integrated with their own ideas. Closure: After the completion of the lesson, the students will be able to discuss their art product in relation to the concept of preservation and conservation. Photographs will be taken of the completed collage mural and student letters will be collected to be included with the mailing. Evaluation: Students will be evaluated on their creativity in the creation of a collage mural and compositional skills in integrating original drawings and paintings. Students will also be evaluated on the effectiveness of their original drawing or painting in the area of preservation and conservation. Materials Needed: Cultural exemplars, paper, newsprint, magazines, pencils, pastels, colored pencils, acrylic paints, paintbrushes, clear glue, journal, camera TEKS Correlations:
Cross-curricular Ideas: English, History, Science |