Ecology and Complexity Theory and Science
Exploration: Students will explore the Ecology and Complexity Theory.
Objective: Students will be able to understand the Ecology and Complexity Theory and how it applies to a natural habitat.
State Standard:
Grade: 4 Art
Standard: 1
Objective 1- Use value, color, and texture to create interest
Grade: 3 Science
Standard: 2
Objective 1- Classify living and nonliving things in an environment. Identify characteristics of living things (i.e., growth, movement, reproduction). Identify characteristics of nonliving things.
Classify living and nonliving things in an environment.
Objective 2- Describe the interactions between living and nonliving things in a small environment.
Identify living and nonliving things in a small environment (e.g., terrarium, aquarium, flowerbed) composed of living and nonliving things. Predict the effects of changes in the environment (e.g., temperature, light, moisture)on a living organism.
Observe and record the effect of changes (e.g., temperature, amount of water, light)upon the living organisms and nonliving things in a small-scale environment.
Compare a small-scale environment to a larger environment (e.g., aquarium to a pond, terrarium to a forest).
Pose a question about the interaction between living and nonliving things in the environment that could be investigated by observation.
Artists Discussed:
Andy Goldsworthy,
Harrell Fletcher and Miranda July,
Michel Swaine,
Mel Chin,
Christo and Jeanne-Claude
Other Subject Connections: Science: Ecology
Teacher Visuals/ Supplies:
PowerPoint on Ecology and Complexity Theory,
crayons,
paper,
scissors,
glue,
large piece of blue paper
Preparation: Set the blue paper in a central location, set the glue next to the blue paper, have items with different textures available to use as a rubbing, have scissors, crayons, and paper at students desks.
Student Materials:
Different Textures
8x11 white paper
Crayons
Big piece of Blue paper
Scissors
Glue sticks
Pictures of different habitats
Lesson Sequence:
Discuss the idea of Ecology and Complexity
Discuss Harrell Fletcher and Miranda July, and their Learning to Love You More project, and how they don’t know the outcome or what people may get from it, but talk about how the website effects many different people.
Discuss Andy Goldsworthy and how he uses things found only in nature.
If you needed to add in another subject you can talk about the different habitats of animals, we used the ocean habitat. You can talk about how things are intertwined and with slight changes the entire habitat can be changed.
Talk about the difference between living and non-living organisms.
Get pictures and have the students indentify the living and non-living organisms.
Assessment:
Discuss what a habitat is, and how it can be affected by simple things, like a change in the temperature.
Have students find textures in the room or outside and create a texture rubbing, after creating the texture rubbing have the student cut out a shape of something found in the ocean. Have the student paste their cutouts on the blue paper to create a habitat for the ocean.
Resources:
Nga.gov
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Goldsworthy
http://leslieschachter.wordpress.com/2008/11/24/profound-people/
www.pdx.edu/.../majors-programs-fact-sheets
http://www.schools.utah.gov/curr/sci/elem/default.htm
http://www.softpedia.com/screenshots/DPSM-Underwater-Ocean-ScreenSaver_1.jpg
http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/35/62235-004-184F1FEC.jpg
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.growseed.org/pond.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.growseed.org/aquaponics.html&usg=__LxX7-pA2AzTC8b0PgqCnASrVXw0=&h=360&w=358&sz=67&hl=en&start=3&sig2=6YCs5ra0ylKBwqX4cINiFw&um=1&tbnid=r9mpucdc7YsttM:&tbnh=121&tbnw=120&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dnatural%2BPond%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26um%3D1&ei=153fSZv0OoH-swORnPmjDg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miranda_July
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrell_Fletcher
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mel_Chininsideartneworleans.blogspot.com/2009/02/febr...
http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&safe=active&rlz=1T4DKUS_enUS227US228&um=1&sa=3&q=mel+chin+%2B+revival+field
http://report.aruna.ir/pic/Christo%20and%20Jeanne-Claude.jpg
http://www.nyc.gov/html/thegates/images/photos/04_running_fence.jpg
Gardener’s Art Through the Ages: 11th edition
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/2002/christo/images/large/67.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/2002/christo/67fs.htm&usg=__ezlvao3A4ibzPqxa8pahRatmKtI=&h=389&w=505&sz=55&hl=en&start=11&sig2=dsAp7M2dUGZLueMjCvVU9w&um=1&tbnid=_lEO86nkOCFgZM:&tbnh=100&tbnw=130&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dchristo%2Band%2Bjeanne%2Bclaude%2Bvalley%2Bcurtain%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26rlz%3D1T4DKUS_enUS227US228%26um%3D1&ei=qbPfSZXjFJ2MtgPet5CeDg
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/brainiac/christobisquayne.jpg
http://www.christojeanneclaude.net/sharedMedia/runfen/thumb/RFlightWickTHU.jpg
http://www.econsciousmarket.com/eco-times/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/umbrellas-by-jeanne-claude-christo.jpg
http://www.ashevilleart.org/images/stories/wrappedcoast.jpg
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://boingboing.net/images/spiral-jetty-08.jpg&imgrefurl
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Smithson
Comment by Kim Brown
Wonderful lesson girls. Great way to end off the year. For an older class, I would love to discuss the complexity theory and let them come up with their own complexity projects that follow the four parts as we discussed. I would also love to have them decide what subject matter to focus their project on, whether it be a topic we are discussing in history, science, literature, or something they just want to learn/create/do. I could do the project we did with the class to help them get started, or even just discuss it.
Comment by Brittany Crowder
I thought you guys did an awesome job teaching this lesson. I really enjoyed the art project at the end and thought it was fun that the entire class could contribute to one piece of art. In my own classroom, I think it would be fun to have the students create a few different habitats. For example, they could create the ocean (like we did), do land animals that live near the ocean, and then do the sky.
Comment by Karyn Alvey on
Amazing job ladies! I really loved it. Having the art project be a combination of everyone's contributions was a great idea. I also really liked how each person was supposed to find a different texture. It created a fun final touch to it all. The artists included in your lesson are fascinating. I love the "Learning to Love You More" website. What a cool idea! I also really liked Andy Goldsworthy and his artwork. The ice sickle sculpture was awesome. :) Fun artists. I really like the idea of spontaneous learning. One thing I'd like to do in my classroom is to have a thing similar to the "Learning to Love You More." At the beginning of the year, everyone could come up with an idea for an assignment, and then each week throughout the year, we could have a time set aside to do that assignment. Excellent Job girlies!
Comment by Natalee Biggs
Fun lesson girls! I loved the art project that we did as a class. Its great to do projects that everyone is a part of. I think it would be cool to use Andy Goldsworthy to talk about nature and the environment. This could lead to a discussion about doing eco-friendly projects. Recycling could be incorporated and we could use old newspapers to create collages and other projects. The crocheting with plastic bags could also be used. I also like the idea suggested by Brooke that students create art pieces made with only materials found in nature. The ideas about students creating their own complexity projects are really awesome and I think they would be a great thing to include in the classroom.
Comment by Brielle Romney
Great lesson! I think to further the lesson, I would pose the question to the kids of what life would be like if either everything was living, or everything was non-living. Since we live in an environment with both living and non-living things, what would it would be like if the 2 were no mixed? Have them come up with their own ideas of worlds with exclusively living or non-living things, draw a picture of it, and present/explain their theory to the class.
Comment by Amanda Morgan
Wow such a cool theory! I just thought of a really interesting way to connect the kids to this theory. I think it would be so much to take the students to a University or any kind of college and see how everyone acts around each other. This would definitely show how people work together in a community because here at BYU we are our own little community. We could take what we see on the University level and bring it into out Elementary school, making it our own community as well. We can see what animals live around us or in our town. It would be really neat if somehow the students could use one of their talents or abilities to be like a "Michael Swaine" for our school.
Comment by Rachael Haught
I would have them identify communities that they are involved in (Church, family, friends, sports etc) and how they had to adapt when these communities changed ( moving, new friends, new babies etc). I think this would really help them to internalize the idea of communities and the relationships. As a science "experiment" I would have them find an ecosystem they were interested in and figure out the food chain of that system and how they are all necessary!
Comment by Ellen Funch
Before we did an activity for this theory, I would talk to my class about the benefits of becoming involved in our community. We would talk about the things we could do to better the world around us, and hopefully come up with a way to help our community. With this knowledge, we could think of a specific art project to get the community involved. Maybe something with recycling or volunteering somewhere. With all of this we could look at how our community interacted and notice the changes we helped to come about because of our efforts.
Comment by Nayelli Concha
This was a great lesson and a very creative activity!! If I were to use this lesson in my own classroom, It would be a great idea to connect this to other disciplines such as science, ecology, social studies. I think I would a great idea to engage in an activity to learn what things we could do to make our planet a safer and cleaner place! I agree with Ellen in engaging in a community service activity where children can plant trees, learn to recycle or make things out of used paper. I did that with my school!
Comment by Brett Baldry
Your art project is awesome because it allows you to interact and cooperate as a whole group which i believe develops crucial skills in our students. I think it would be really cool to get the community involved as well so the children can see the interest the community has in the school and the children.
Comment by Mandy Turner
I loved how these two topics fit perfectly together. As kids are able to learn about environments through hands-on activities they will have more fun and remember it better. I would have them collectively illustrate the specific interactions in an environment. Also, in order for them to use their imagination, I would have them create their own environment with any texture in the room.
Comment by Nancy
This was a great lesson. It was really fun to make a project as a class together. If we were learning about different categories of ecology we could divide the class into groups and one group could do an under the sea one like we did in class and other groups could do other ones like one with rain forest animals, desert, etc.
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