BrainPOP ELL Camouflage Lesson Plan

Grade Levels: 3-5, 6-8, K-3

In the BrainPOP ELL movie, Camouflage (L3U2L2), Moby is nowhere to be found. It turns out, he was just blending into Ben’s bedroom! In this lesson plan, adaptable for grades K-8, learn about camouflage in both predators and prey, while practicing negative prefixes.

Lesson Plan Common Core State Standards Alignments

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.2.4b

Determine the meaning of the new word formed when a known prefix is added to a known word (e.g., happy/unhappy, tell/retell).

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.3.1d

Form and use regular and irregular verbs.

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.3.6

Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic, and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal spatial and temporal relationships (e.g., After dinner that night we went looking for them).

Grade: 04

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.6

Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal precise actions, emotions, or states of being (e.g., quizzed, whined, stammered) and that are basic to a particular topic (e.g., wildlife, conservation, and endangered when discussing animal preservation).

Grade: 05

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.5.6

Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal contrast, addition, and other logical relationships (e.g., however, although, nevertheless, similarly, moreover, in addition).

Grade: 08

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.8.4b

Use common, grade-appropriate Greek or Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word (e.g., precede, recede, secede).

Grade: 09, 10

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.9-10.4b

Identify and correctly use patterns of word changes that indicate different meanings or parts of speech (e.g., analyze, analysis, analytical; advocate, advocacy).

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RF.2.3d

Decode words with common prefixes and suffixes.

Grade: 06

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.6.1

Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

Grade: 07

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.1

Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

Grade: 07

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.7

Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions for further research and investigation.

Students will:

Identify the negative prefixes used in the movie. (Language Objective)
Define, classify, and summarize the new content-specific vocabulary. (Content Objective)
Cite examples of how and why animals use camouflage. (Content Objective)

Materials:

Vocabulary:

Camouflage, predator, prey, chameleon, survive, hunt, appear, disappear, visible, invisible, blend in

Preparation:

Make copies of the Make-a-Prediction Graphic Organizers.

Lesson Procedure:

Word Sort. Have partners do an Open Word Sort with the words from the Vocabulary section of the movie Camouflage (L3U2L2). They may sort the words in any way that makes sense to them. After students have shared and discussed their word groups, you may present an extra challenge to do a Closed Word Sort, categorizing the words into the three tiers of vocabulary:
Tier 1: lamp, hide, tongue, plug
Tier 2: believe, appear, visible, blend in, hunt, survive, reason
Tier 3: camouflage, predator, prey, chameleon
Note: See the Word Lists for the list of words presented in this lesson's Vocabulary.
Make A Prediction. Distribute copies of the Make-a-Prediction Graphic Organizer. In the Word column, instruct students to write in the following four words: camouflage, survive, predator, prey. Then have students fill in the second column (What do you think it means?) from their own prior knowledge of the words and the information they learned in the Vocabulary section of the movie Camouflage (L3U2L2). As students watch the movie, have them complete the third column (Definition from the movie).
Make A Word Map. To study the content-specific vocabulary words in more depth, have students choose one of the following words to create a Word Map: camouflage, predator, or prey. Have them complete the Word Map Graphic Organizer as homework. The following day, group the students together by the word they defined. Have students share and compare their Word Maps, and then present a summary of the word to the rest of the class.
Make A Negative Prefix Table. Before watching the movie Camouflage (L3U2L2), have students make a four-column table in their notebooks with the prefixes taught in this lesson (un-, im-, in-, dis-). Then while watching the movie, students fill in words with those prefixes, as they hear them. To differentiate, turn closed-captioning on or off. After the movie, ask students to think of more words to add to the columns. After the movie, ask pairs of students to write sentences using the words from the Negative Prefix Table (at least two sentences per prefix). The sentences should be about the movie, or they can elaborate on the movie content. Before sharing their sentences with the class, instruct students to check if they can put the sentences in an order or sequence. The order will depend on their sentences. For example, they may sequence the events of the movie, or they may group sentences related to specific animals.
Essential Questions. Write the essential questions on the board for students to think about as they watch the movie: a. Why do animals use camouflage? b. What are some things animals do to survive in nature?