CAMOUFLAGE AND MIMICRY IN THE CLASSROOM

Georgia Standards

South Carolina Standards

Key Vocabulary

Materials

• Drum or percussion instrument (optional)
• Images of camouflage and mimicry in the natural world (from textbook, class resources, or the internet)
• Sound clips of mimicry (optional)
• Multi -colored pieces of construction paper
• Scissors
• Glue

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

Animal and Habitat Statues
Use a drum, percussion instrument, or clapping to establish that students will form statues in response to a single beat and then relax out of the statues in response to a double beat.  Remind students that statues do not move, but that they must allow themselves to breathe and blink.  Provide a series of prompts of animals and habitats that fit with the lesson, e.g., parrot, cheetah, lizard, butterfly, owl, etc.; and rainforest, desert, tundra, prairie, etc.  Use observational language to comment on specific physical choices that students make to create their statues (e.g., “I see that Caitlyn has her chest low like a stalking leopard,” or “Donté’s arms are straight back like a grasshopper’s wings.”

Work Session

Number Statues

• Define and discuss camouflage.  Show examples of camouflage from the natural world.
• Introduce the concept of camouflage in the classroom.  Model by looking for colors and patterns that mirror your own clothes.  Find a place in the classroom where you can approximate blending in.  Prompt students to say, “Where’s Ms. _______?  We can’t see her!”
• Discuss how, in theatre, television, and film, costume and set designers make intentional choices about costumes and sets used in the production.  Explain that students are going to be like designers, making choices based on colors, shapes, and patterns in the given costumes and settings in the classroom.
• Invite a volunteer or two to step up.  Have the class identify colors, shapes, and patterns both on the volunteers and around the classroom, and brainstorm ideas for the volunteers to camouflage themselves in the classroom.
• Model being a predator, looking for prey (the volunteers), and passing them by because they blend into their surroundings.
• Have students partner up and work together to identify camouflage opportunities for each; when each is camouflaged, have the other act like a deceived predator.
• Have volunteers share examples of the camouflage opportunities they found around the classroom.
• Define mimicry; share examples (visual and perhaps aural) from the natural world.
• Remind students about the roles of designers; explain that they will use simple materials to create external adaptations to mimic other organisms (classmates).
• Model with construction paper, scissors, and glue.  Select a student to mimic, and use the supplies to quickly create a ‘costume’ piece that mimics what that student is wearing.  Have the student come up and make a random sound.  Stand by the student with the costume piece, and mimic the sound.  Have the class say, “Look, it’s two ______s!”  (i.e., if standing next to and mimicking Tyler, the class says “Look, it’s two Tylers!”).
• Discuss mimicry as a form of flattery, and impress upon the students that the activity should not be used in order to mock, tease, taunt, make fun of, or bully others.  
• Have students use materials to create a costume piece to mimic other students’ visual appearance – primarily costuming, but hair is also a possibility.
• Once students have created their pieces, invite volunteers to come to the front, and invite the classmates on whom they based their mimicry. Have the model make a sound, and have the mimic stand beside them and mimic the sound.  Have the class say, “Listen!  Look!  It’s two ______’s!”
• Remind students that they worked together to understand mimicry, and have students thank each other for the honor of both mimicking and being mimicked.

Closing Reflection

Discuss:  How did we use elements of costume and set design – color, shape, and pattern – to bring camouflage and mimicry to life in our classroom ‘habitat.’

Students will draw a picture of themselves demonstrating camouflage or mimicry in the classroom. Identify the image as an example of either camouflage or mimicry.  Identify the areas and objects in the classroom that were used for camouflage or the classmate on whom the mimicry was based.

Assessments

Formative

• Observe student comprehension of camouflage and mimicry as they make artistic decisions in the lesson.
• Observe how students use color, shape, and pattern to successfully create the effects of camouflage and mimicry.

Summative

Evaluate the student drawings for evidence of comprehension of camouflage and effective use of design concepts in the lesson activity.

Differentiation

Acceleration: For mimicry, have students pair up; have one create a distinctive sound and movement, and have the other mimic it as precisely as possible.

Remediation:  Lead a slow visual tour of the classroom as a class, identifying specific colors, shapes, and patterns, and making connections with individuals to provide ideas to be used for camouflage.

Allow students to adjust objects in the classroom environment to facilitate the camouflage effect.

Rather than mimicking one another, have all the students mimic the teacher.

*This integrated lesson provides differentiated ideas and activities for educators that are aligned to a sampling of standards. Standards referenced at the time of publishing may differ based on each state’s adoption of new standards.

Ideas contributed by: Barry Stewart Mann, MFA

Revised and copyright: August 2022 @ ArtsNOW