Grades/Level: Lower Elementary (K–2), Upper Elementary (3–5), Middle School (6–8), High School (9–12)
Subjects: Visual Arts, Science
Time Required: 3–5–Part Lesson
1–3 class periods
Author: J. Paul Getty Museum Education Staff

Lesson Overview

Students will classify the plants and animals depicted on a 16th-century ceramic basin made in Paris and determine what ecosystem the artist represented in this artwork.

Learning Objectives

Students will:
• identify the animals in an ecosystem and classify them as herbivores, carnivores, or omnivores based on physical characteristics and prior knowledge.
• determine which life forms in an ecosystem are producers, consumers, and decomposers and create a food web that shows transfer of matter within the ecosystem.
• analyze a food web, predict which life forms will influence an ecosystem, and predict how that ecosystem might change due to the influence of additional species.

Materials

Beginning Level Activity:
• An image of the Oval Basin by Bernard Palissy (see link below)
• Background Information and Questions for Teaching about the Oval Basin (see link below)
• Copies of Background Information for students
• Journals or bound paper
• Student Handout: Categorizing Life Forms (see link below)
• Student Handout: Herbivores, Carnivores, and Omnivores (see link below)

Intermediate Level Activity:
• Materials listed above plus:
• Student Handout: Producers, Consumers, and Decomposers (see link below)

Advanced Level Activity:
• Materials listed above plus:
• Drawing paper
• Pencils and colored pencils
• Internet access or life science texts for research
• A variety of small plastic animals and plants or clay (regular or self-hardening), paint, and paintbrushes

Lesson Steps

Beginning Level Activity

1. Divide class into working groups of two to three students. Display an image of the oval basin. Have the groups make a list in their journals of the life forms they see depicted on the basin. Students should also keep track of how many of each of the life forms they identify are visible on the basin.

2. As a class, review the lists and categorize the life forms into plants and animals using the Categorizing Life Forms student handout.

3. Each group should then try to determine what type of environment each animal and plant usually inhabits by using prior knowledge and details in the artwork. Students should brainstorm together and record their hypotheses in their journals. Ask students to think about where they have seen these animals in real life. Each group will share its results with the class. Make a comprehensive list of all the groups' hypotheses and clarify which ideas are correct. Discuss how incorrect answers may have been based on correct observations. For instance, one may guess that this is an ocean environment. This could be a result of seeing the crawfish, which looks very similar to a lobster.

4. Explain that basins like this would have been used to hold water. Have students describe the various colors and textures used in the background of the basin. Students should notice the patches of brown and the smooth yellow surface. Have the class imagine this basin filled with water. Ask them to describe any ecosystems the basin may resemble when it is filled with water. Ask students to identify which of these ecosystems includes all of these life forms. After the discussion, identify the ecosystem of the basin as a marshland.

5. Explain the terms herbivore, carnivore, and omnivore. Using the Herbivores, Carnivores, and Omnivores student handout, have the groups classify the animals in the basin based on what they see and what they know about each animal's habits and diets within a marshland ecosystem.

6. Ask each group to research the diet of one animal depicted on the basin in this marshland ecosystem and record findings in their journals. Groups will share their results with the class. Students can modify their classification of the animals in Step 5 based on class findings.

Intermediate Level Activity

7. Introduce the terms producer, consumer, and decomposer. Explain that consumers can function as primary, secondary, and tertiary consumers depending on what they consume.

8. Assign each working group one of the nine life forms depicted in the basin. Each group will determine if their life form is a decomposer, a primary or secondary consumer, or a producer using the definitions and their findings from the beginning activity. They should record their findings on the Producers, Consumers, and Decomposers student handout. Students can use prior knowledge and conduct research to form conclusions about their life form. Groups will present findings to the class and adjust their conclusions from Step 6 accordingly.

9. Students will apply their knowledge of producers, consumers, and decomposers by creating a food web for the marshland ecosystem depicted on the oval basin. Students will draw and label each type of life form in the basin/marshland ecosystem using colored pencils. Each web should include primary, secondary, and tertiary consumers. Each web should also indicate the transfer of matter. Students may sketch webs in their journals before drawing their final web on large drawing paper. For instructions on creating a food web, view the lesson "Casual Patterns in Ecosystems" on Harvard University's Understanding of Consequences Teacher Resource Web site.

Advanced Level Activity

10. Count the number of each type of life form depicted in the basin and review their roles in the ecosystem.

11. Discuss the term biodiversity. Explain that biodiversity refers to the number and variety of species in an environment. Biodiversity is affected by both biotic (plants and animals) and abiotic (environmental factors) systems. The biotic systems of the marshland have just as much effect on the habitat as the abiotic systems in the water, mud, and air in the marshland.

12. Explain that the habitat depicted in the Oval Basin is an unbalanced system. Discuss which animals or plants are dominant. Students should refer to the animals' placement in the food web and consider how many are depicted. As a class, brainstorm about what would happen if the basin was an actual environment. Which species could have the most effect on the other populations? In other words, if this was a real habitat, who would survive? Students should record predictions in their journals.

13. Analyze the food webs students created in the intermediate activity and discuss which life forms will dominate this ecosystem. Students will predict how the ecosystem might change with changes in both biotic and abiotic systems. Determine if changes would be desirable. What would need to be added to or subtracted from the habitat to keep it balanced? Ideas may range from changes in the number of a given species to introducing mates or new food sources into the environment. Using colored pencils, students will use the results of the discussion to create a sketch in their journals for a basin that has a balanced environment. Students should pay attention to the placement of animals as well as relative size to create visual balance. Students will share their ideas with the class.

Extensions

Have students create their own ecosystem plates in the style of Palissy in the following art extension:

1. Use the Questions for Teaching for this basin to have students visually analyze the artwork. Students will make their own decorative plate, bowl, or basin in the style of Palissy by using repetition of plants and animals and creating balance through the placement of the animals and plants in the composition.

2. First, students should identify a specific ecosystem for their subject. Then students will research the different types of plants and animals that live in the environment to include in their final composition. Advanced students can also include abiotic factors in their composition. Students will draw two to three designs in their journals.

3. Give each student a sturdy paper or plastic plate. Intermediate and advanced students may also create a serving plate or basin out of clay. Students may use store-bought plastic plants and animals or create their own out of self-hardening clay, to decorate their serving pieces. Students can use glaze or acrylic paint to add color and texture to their plates to create unified compositions. Once the decorative serving pieces are completed, display them around the room. Students should look closely at each piece and identify which habitat each artwork represents based on the life forms depicted, and the colors, textures, and overall composition.

Standards Addressed

Refer to the charts for national and California state standards for this curriculum, found in the links at the top right of this page.