The Animal in Me—Social Studies Exploration

Day 1 – Introduction

Introduce the slide show

The slide show should be interactive, prompting questions and discussions

Some of the questions the teacher can ask are:

• What do you see?
• Why do you think the artists did that?
• How do you think the artist did that?

Introduce the project, going over the project goals with the class

If time remains, students can begin researching and brainstorming

Day 2 – Artmaking

Students will use resources provided and research an animal that corresponds to individual character traits

• Provide examples of character traits or personal strengths
• Students should list their own strengths and find animals that symbolically correspond

Students brainstorm ideas for their mask

Day 3 – Artmaking

Demonstrate different techniques they can use to decorate and form their masks

Students will be given the remainder of class to work on their spirit animals

• Encourage them to consider traditional uses of color, shape, and line
• Encourage them to be mindful of form and texture as well

Day 4 – Artmaking

Remind students of artistic considerations, including texture, shape, balance, color, and form

Students may also want to think about their strengths and how they can use color and form to communicate them in their design

Students will spend class working on their masks

Day 5 – Artmaking

The students will work on and complete their masks

If they finish their masks, they will use their time to write and prepare their monologues

Day 6 – Presentations

Students should take turns presenting their work to the class

In their presentations students should talk about

• The animal they chose
• What traits the animal poses
• How those traits relate to themselves

Slide examples:

Our goal for this project is to facilitate the opportunity for students to identify their strengths and explore them through the metaphor of an animal. Additionally, teachers may want to implement a cultural element to promote cross-cultural exploration and connection.

We incorporated a cultural element by connecting the project to Native American tribes in Northwestern Canada.

• We used the second slide to show examples of how the different tribes used different artistic elements in their mask and totem making.

Techniques and Colors usage: we focused on techniques of form and color in how they functioned to communicate certain symbolic and cultural meanings through the masks. 

• We went through different colors and their symbolic meanings.
• We also showed how different stylistic techniques are used.
• We showed how these differed from tribe to tribe.
• We also noted that students could connect their own personal meanings to colors.

A sequence of different examples of animal masks were then shown and students were asked to identify colors, techniques, and textures used.

Uses of Masks: go over how masks were used and their purpose within a cultural framework.

Choosing your spirit animal: Provide questions to encourage students in their consideration and identification of strengths.

• What are my strengths?
• What are some words that describe me?
• What do I like to do? What do I do a lot? What character traits do I poses?
• Have you ever been drawn to a particular animal or creature?
• Does a certain animal appear a lot in your life?
• Have you ever had a recurring dream in which a specific animal often appears?

Thinking about Strengths: students will get out a blank piece of paper and record their strengths, things that are important to them, and describe their personality.

• We chose to put our masks together in a totem pole-the next slide refer to that.

Creating a totem pole: Go over the why, who, and how.

• We asked students to present a monologue.

The monologue and presentation: go over what a monologue is and what the expectations are for presenting.

Reiterate Goals

Resources: Provide access to examples or artwork and ideas.

• Introduce your spirit animal
• Tell us which tribe or region it comes from in Canada
• Explain what traits it represents and how these relate to you