LESSON PLAN: Nature’s Call: Drawing Inspiration From ‘Avatar’ to Study and Create Organisms

Another great lesson plan from the New York Times Learning Network!

January 20, 2010, 3:58 PM

Nature’s Call: Drawing Inspiration From ‘Avatar’ to Study and Create Organisms

By CATHERINE HUTCHINGS AND HOLLY EPSTEIN OJALVO Pandora

WETAEven the sky and the moss hanging from trees seem alive in a scene from “Avatar,” directed by James Cameron.Go to related article »

Overview | Does seeing the unusual flora and fauna in the movie “Avatar” inspire a sense of wonder at the natural world? How might the film awaken interest in plant and animal life on Earth? In this lesson, students reflect on their experiences with nature, compare it to their impressions of the fictional Pandora and then use their observation and research skills skills to investigate awe-inspiring living things here on Earth. They then construct fantastical beings using features of the organisms they studied.

Materials | Computers with Internet access (optional), projection equipment, field guides for common insects, trees, birds, etc.; magnifying glasses, sketchbooks

Warm-up | Invite students to share their most memorable experiences in the natural world (and read others’) by responding to The Learning Network’s Student Opinion question “What Are the Most Amazing Things You’ve Ever Seen in the Natural W...

If they need further prompting, tell students that they might reflect on how different habitats, climates and cultures shape our relationship with nature. Students might even post an appropriate link to share a picture of or information about their favorite animal, plant or natural location. In class, invite students to orally share, elaborate on, and discuss each other’s experiences as well.

If Internet access is not available, you might have students do this for homework or have them address the question in their journals and share.

Next, show one or more trailers or clips from the movie “Avatar.” Direct students to pay particular attention to the fantastical flora, fauna, animals and people of the fictional planet of Pandora as they watch (and be sure to show a clip that includes ample images of the Pandora environment). They might even take some informal notes, which they will use in a few minutes.

Invite students to share their experiences and impression of what they saw in the clips and in the movie as a whole, if they have seen it – again, focusing on the natural elements rather than on the plot, characters or conflicts, or on their overall “reviews” of the film.

Ask: Which particular elements of nature caught your attention? How did the landscape, forests and fantastical creatures of Pandora that were created for the movie make the film different from other movies? Were you amazed or awed by what you saw? How would you compare your “experience” of Pandora with your experiences with nature on Earth?

Have students work in pairs to create a two-column chart with the headings “Reminds me of…” and “Different because…” in their journals. Write this focus question on the board: How did the flora and fauna of Earth inspire the imaginary world of Pandora? Tell students to add their observations to the chart, using their observations and notes; those who have seen the film can help elaborate with further examples.

For example, they might note that the humanoid Na’vi people have the basic body shape of humans and feline faces, but are clearly different from us because of their blue color, large size and ability to connect to other creatures through a special neural interface. After a few minutes, have students share their observations.

You might also show with this clip from an interview with director James Cameron, in which he discusses the creation of Pandora’s life forms.

Finally, ask: Why are so many people in awe of the world of Pandora? Does the flora and fauna on Earth deserve equal awe and fascination? Do we just need to see it with “new eyes”? Does Pandora reawaken in you a desire to study and investigate the wildlife on our own planet? Does it inspire you to look at Earth’s creatures differently and, if so, how?

Related | In her essay “Luminous 3-D Jungle Is a Biologist’s Dream,” Carol Kaesuk Yoon shares the feeling of joy and wonderment she experienced when viewing the world of Pandora created by James Cameron’s film “Avatar”:

When watching a Hollywood movie that has robed itself in the themes and paraphernalia of science, a scientist expects to feel anything from annoyance to infuriation at facts misconstrued or processes misrepresented. What a scientist does not expect is to enter into a state of ecstatic wonderment, to have the urge to leap up and shout: “Yes! That’s exactly what it’s like!”

So it is time for all the biologists who have not yet done so to shut their laptops and run from their laboratories directly to the movie theaters, put on 3-D glasses and watch the film “Avatar.” In fact, anyone who loves a biologist or may want to be one, or better yet, anyone who hates a biologist — and certainly everyone who has ever sneered at a tree-hugger — should do the same. Because the director James Cameron’s otherworldly tale of romance and battle, aliens and armadas, has somehow managed to do what no other film has done. It has recreated what is the heart of biology: the naked, heart-stopping wonder of really seeing the living world.

Read the entire article with your class, using the questions below.

Questions | For reading comprehension and discussion:

What movies can you think of that have underlying scientific themes? Do they get the science right? Does it bother you if they misrepresent scientific facts?
When watching clips or the movie “Avatar,” did you find yourself “marveling over the new and trying quickly to put this novelty into some kind of sensible place in the mind”? Why or why not?
In your opinion, is the “world so jaded” that don’t really see nature? Does it “take a lizard that can glow like fire and hover like a helicopter and a staring troop of iridescent blue lemurs to wake us up”?
How are scientists typically portrayed in movies? Does the stereotype of on-screen scientists affect your interest in science, either positively or negatively? Are there movies that have inspired you to take more science classes or to learn more?

LESSON PLAN: Nature’s Call: Drawing Inspiration From ‘Avatar’ to Study and Create Organisms

Nature’s Call: Drawing Inspiration From ‘Avatar’ to Study and Create Organisms

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