BIOLOGY

SKILLS COVERED:

• Food chains • Art and design • Evolution • Environment & ecosystems • Optics • Critical thinking• Teamwork • Perseverance

Nature – it is as beautiful as it is clever and we can use some of its pretty tricks to help the military stay safe in their operations. In these cross-curricular lessons, your pupils will unleash their animal side in order to learn all about camoufl age and put their skills to the test in an intense simulated mission!

CAMOCHAMELEON

AGES 11 – 14LESSON PLAN x2

Perfect for curious minds who love looking closely at the world. This pair of cross-curricular lessons brings together biology and design, exploring: how camouflage works, the link between biology and living things, different relationships within the ecosystem and how organisms affect and are affected by their environment.

By the end of the two lessons, your pupils will have developed an interest in the application of biology and design to real life, which may encourage them to continue to study biology to a higher level. These activities will get pupils up on their feet and experimenting with camouflage in changing environments in a tense and exciting practical exercise.

PUPIL OBJECTIVES

• I can describe camouflage and the science behind it

• I can give examples of camouflage in nature, how it works and the reasons for its use

• I can use what I learn about camouflage to create my own and apply it to real world situations

ATTRIBUTES DEVELOPED

OVERVIEW This is the study of life and how the world lives, breathes and dies. From the very large to the microscopic, this is a subject that enables us to understand life itself, including what’s happening in our own bodies. Biology is a flexible and versatile subject with a range of interesting and important applications.

2 lessons combining biology and creativity with the STEM Accelerator attributes.

Duration: 2x 60 minute lesson

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PerseverancePupils will become more resilient to knock-backs as they develop the grit, determination and patience to succeed when previously they may have given up.

Critical ThinkingPupils will become more confident in their ability to process and analyse information and data in order to make more informed decisions.

LeadershipPupils will gain self confidence in being able to take control in difficult or challenging situations and become increasingly confident in making decisions based on limited information or under time pressure.

TeamworkPupils will develop their ability to work in a team thus improving their communication and collaborative work skills in order to achieve a common goal.

INTRODUCTION 30 mins

1. Using the PowerPoint slideshow provided, lay the foundation for what camouflage is in the natural world. Explain how it works (colour matching and breaking up lines) and how it is used. Stop periodically to ask questions such as:

• Why would an animal need to use camouflage?

• How is this animal camouflaged?

2. The PowerPoint will feature images of both camouflaged predators and prey. Your pupils will then be able to identify both, alongside how and why they’re camouflaged. They will also be able to identify which animals live where based on the terrain. Slides will be provided in the presentation to test this.

3. Ask: why would a person need to use camouflage?

4. If the class does not volunteer the military angle, lead into it after introducing Lieu Bolin – the invisible artist – and using his imagery to demonstrate what’s possible with art and camouflage.

5. Move onto the practical aspect, introducing different uniforms through the slides and asking the pupils to match each to the same types of terrain demonstrated before.

From here, the main activity can be introduced.

MAIN ACTIVITY 25 mins

In this creative and diverse activity, the class will use everything they have discovered about both natural and military camouflage and apply it using their design skills whilst working in a team.

1. Split the class into small groups of five and give each team either a number or a camouflage-themed name.

2. Draw their attention to the terrain backgrounds on the walls. Instruct them to decide amongst themselves who will work on a design for each background.

3. Hand out the blank templates of a truck, person or building – one per pupil – and instruct them to each design camouflage for their designated terrain.

Tell them to:

• Think about the animals that would live in the area

• Think about colours, textures and lines

• Take their time and think carefully

4. Tell them to cut out their design once it’s complete, write their team name or number on the back and stick it to their designated terrain background.

PLENARY 5 mins

Take the time to vote on which camouflage works best on each background, and then see which group had the most ‘winners’. Ask the class to identify why the winning camouflage worked the best on each background.

LESSON 1

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DIFFERENTIATION 1

Ask the class to work out why the camouflage works in the natural world, rather than explaining it to them, with focus on colours, textures and breaking up lines.

DIFFERENTIATION 2

Assign a ‘spy’ per group who will look at the other team’s designs to see if they can ‘steal’ any ideas of how they can improve their team’s camouflage.

EXTENSION OPPORTUNITY

It’s not always obvious! Include the Dazzle to demonstrate that camouflage doesn’t have to blend in to be effective. For more advanced pupils, use these examples to encourage greater creativity in the practical exercise.

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LESSON 1

TEACHING NOTES

BEFORE YOU START

Set up the projector and print out the resources as stated below. Stick each of the backgrounds to different walls in the classroom using white tac.

RESOURCES

LESSON 1

• Download lesson introduction film

• Download Camo Chameleon PowerPoint presentation (featuring animal, terrain and human imagery)

• Razzle Dazzle slides (advanced extender)

• Screen and projector

• White tac or similar

• Colouring pencils

• Scissors

To print:

• Print off 1x A3 (or larger if possible) colour terrains

• Woodland

• Desert

• Jungle

• River

• Urban

• Blank templates (enough for a few per pupil)

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In this lesson, the class will take their learnings about camouflage from lesson 1 and apply them in an exciting practical involving a simulated in-class mission. It is crucial for you to consult the teaching notes before you conduct this lesson, as some preparation will be required for the main activity.

INTRODUCTION 20 mins

Recap what the class learned in Lesson 1 (what is camouflage, how it works and what it is used for - use the original slides on a projector if necessary).

MAIN ACTIVITY 30 mins

In this activity, your pupils will discover the practical uses for camouflage in a simulated mission (see teaching notes).

1. Before you begin the lesson, print out A3 colour copies of the terrain pictures provided and stick them on walls around the room. Print and cut out the mission cards provided and place them in three separate trays and label them: Landing, New Orders and Escape.

2. Split into groups of four or five and hand each group several templates that each feature the blank outline of a soldier in uniform.

Pupils will be asked to complete three different missions. Each requires a different camouflage type, such as ‘sand’, ‘forest’ or ‘city’.

3. Ask one member of each group to select a mission card from one of the trays. The groups must work together to create suitable camouflage for this mission. They can use a variety of materials including colouring pens, paint, scraps of material or natural resources such as leaves and sticks.

4. Encourage the pupils to think about the animals, plants and natural materials they would find in their chosen terrains

5. Once they have created their camouflage for this mission, they must bring their completed soldier template to the front of the room and place them against the terrain backdrop.

They can then choose the next mission from the trays, completing as many missions as they can in the time allowed.

6. Once the time is up ask each group to allocate a spokesperson to give a brief presentation on one of their missions, what they were asked to do and how and why they chose their camouflage.

LESSON 2OVERVIEW & OBJECTIVE

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DIFFERENTIATION

Have a fourth tray labelled day / night that will determine whether or not that stage of the mission will take place in the day, or in the night. This will affect their choices of camouflage.

You can also make ‘joker cards’ to drop into the different groups with strange scenarios to add new and interesting angles to the mission (see teaching notes).

PLENARY 10 mins

Summarise what the pupils have learnt from the session and discuss how camouflage needs to adapt to its environment and what techniques the groups have used to complete their missions.

ASSESSMENT OPPORTUNITIES

• Pupils can identify both predators and prey and how and why they are camouflaged

• Pupils can associate both the animal and the terrain it is matched to separately

• Pupils can create their own camouflage for different terrains

• Pupils can adapt their designs according to new scenarios, and can also recognise when ‘normal’ clothes will do the best job

EXTENSION OPPORTUNITY

If time allows, ask your class to recap what they understand about camouflage – why it is used, and how it works with a focus on military situations. Draw attention to the fact that sometimes, as is the case with the urban environments, blending in with people with normal clothes is camouflage enough.

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LESSON 2

LESSON 2 BEFORE YOU START

If you wish to use the original slideshow to recap the learnings of the first lesson in the introduction, set up the slideshow and projector.

Print off and cut out the missions provided (Landing, New Orders and Escape) and place them in the trays at the head of the class (it is recommended you use different coloured paper for each stage to avoid confusion).

Re-use the A3 colour print-outs of the terrains from Lesson 1.

Print-out the soldier templates – several per group.

Print off the Night / Day and Joker cards if doing the differentiation and extension opportunity.

Scenarios include:

TEACHING NOTES

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01. LANDING

• On a beach from a boat

• In a field from the air

• Into a busy town from the roads

• Into a desert from the air

• Into a forest from water

02. NEW ORDERS

• Get supplies – go to the nearest market place

• Meet your contact – go to the forest hideaway

• There’s something to pick up on the nearest beach

• Someone needs protecting in a train station

• There’s a disturbance in the jungle – investigate

03. ESCAPE

• Go to the nearest river – boats are waiting!

• A helicopter will pick you up – get to the nearest field!

• There’s a train in the desert – catch it!

• Get to the beach – boats are waiting!

• You need to drive – hit the road!

• There’s an escape route in the forest – go!

RESOURCES

TEACHING NOTES

• PowerPoint lesson introduction film

• Camo Chameleon PowerPoint presentation

• Three trays labelled:

01. Landing

02. New Orders

03. Escape

+ Extra tray labelled ‘Night / Day’ (differentiation)

• Night / day cards (differentiation)

• ‘Joker cards’ (differentiation)

• Colouring pencils

• White tac (or similar)

• Pens

• Coloured paper

• A selection of textiles

• Natural materials such as leaves and sticks

• Glue sticks

• Re-use A3 colour terrain backgrounds

• Blank templates

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