Brief Description
Students learn about camouflage as they study polar bears and their habitat.
Objectives
Students will learn how color can help animals in the wild.
Materials Needed
Colored toothpicks, one large piece of chart paper, a piece of white drawing paper for each student, a bear cutout for each student, glue, sponges, paint
Lesson Plan
Try this camouflage activity: Scatter colored toothpicks in the grass near your school, and give children a few minutes to pick up as many as possible. Graph the results. Ask "Why did you find fewer green toothpicks?"
Tell children they are going to make a polar bear painting. Provide each child with a piece of white drawing paper and a white bear cutout. Help children glue the cutout to the paper. Use only ONE drop of glue. Ask "Is seeing the polar bear on the white paper easy or hard?"
Distribute sponges and paint and have students sponge paint around the bear cutout to the edge of the paper. Let the paintings dry and peel off the bear cutout. Ask "Is seeing the polar bear on the colored paper easy or hard?" Discuss with students where polar bears live and why they are white. Children can then complete their paintings by adding a face with black crayon.
Activity Time
Forty-five minutes or two 20-minute periods
Assessment
Observational
