Teacher's Guide - Bears Year 2000 and Beyond

Activity 5 - Do Bears Dream?

Level
All

Purpose

To explore the science and the mystery of bear hibernation
To investigate the imaginative possibilities of bears during their long winter sleep

Materials

Fact sheet on hibernation
Oil pastels or other art materials
Paper

Procedure

Pastel drawing
1. Review bear hibernation facts with students:

a) Hibernation is a survival strategy animals use to deal with limited food supply.
b) Bears hibernate differently than other mammals:
-They eat a lot in the fall before they go into the den and don’t wake up to eat for the whole winter
-They don’t even wake up to go to the bathroom! Their bodies recycle their waste.
-Unlike other animals that hibernate, bears don’t drop their body temperature or their heart rate very much.
c) Pregnant females wake briefly to give birth to cubs. Cubs nurse and survive on their own while mother goes back to sleep.

2. We know some things about bear hibernation, but many things are still mysteries. For example, we know what a bear’s body does, but we don’t know how it manages to survive this unique process. We don’t know whether or not bears dream when they hibernate.

a) Have you ever seen your pet twitch or heard it make strange noises as it sleeps? Do you think it might be dreaming?
b) Do you think bears dream?
Knowing what you do about bears, their behaviour, habitat, motivations, what do you think a bear would dream about during hibernation?
c) Brainstorm some ideas: Imagine what it would be like to sleep through an entire winter! What would you miss? What would you dream about?
Imagine things a bear might look forward to come spring, like a good meal (what would that be for a bear?); a swim in a lake; raising newborn cubs. Imagine things it might wish for the future, like more open spaces; fewer cars; more good things to eat. Imagine a bear’s ideal world down to the last detail!
d) Sometimes dreams reflect a fantasy world where the impossible happens. Sometimes they can seem so real you wonder if it really happened. What kinds of dreams might bears have?

4. Draw your bear’s dream.

a) With oil pastels you can smudge the colours together to get a dream-like effect, and also capture vivid colours that sometimes occur in dreams.
b) You can include the actual bear in the den a corner of the page, with the dream bubble happening all around, or you can focus entirely on the dream.
c) Does your bear have an active imagination, or does it dream about “real life?”

5. Share your finished artwork with the group.

a) How do the bear dreams differ? What elements are the same?
b) Have you learned anything new about bears by imagining their dreams?
c) Do you think research will ever be able to tell us whether or not bears dream?

Evaluation

Effective use of imagery
Ability to imagine bears as dreamers
Ability to apply scientific fact to an imaginary scenario

Curriculum Connections
Visual Art; Science

Introduction – Activities – Glossary – Guided Program
Whyte Museum – Bears: 2000 and Beyond Teacher's Guide

Activity 5 - Do Bears Dream?
Level	All
Purpose	To explore the science and the mystery of bear hibernation To investigate the imaginative possibilities of bears during their long winter sleep
Materials	Fact sheet on hibernation Oil pastels or other art materials Paper
Procedure	Pastel drawing 1. Review bear hibernation facts with students: a) Hibernation is a survival strategy animals use to deal with limited food supply. b) Bears hibernate differently than other mammals: -They eat a lot in the fall before they go into the den and don’t wake up to eat for the whole winter -They don’t even wake up to go to the bathroom! Their bodies recycle their waste. -Unlike other animals that hibernate, bears don’t drop their body temperature or their heart rate very much. c) Pregnant females wake briefly to give birth to cubs. Cubs nurse and survive on their own while mother goes back to sleep. 2. We know some things about bear hibernation, but many things are still mysteries. For example, we know what a bear’s body does, but we don’t know how it manages to survive this unique process. We don’t know whether or not bears dream when they hibernate. a) Have you ever seen your pet twitch or heard it make strange noises as it sleeps? Do you think it might be dreaming? b) Do you think bears dream? Knowing what you do about bears, their behaviour, habitat, motivations, what do you think a bear would dream about during hibernation? c) Brainstorm some ideas: Imagine what it would be like to sleep through an entire winter! What would you miss? What would you dream about? Imagine things a bear might look forward to come spring, like a good meal (what would that be for a bear?); a swim in a lake; raising newborn cubs. Imagine things it might wish for the future, like more open spaces; fewer cars; more good things to eat. Imagine a bear’s ideal world down to the last detail! d) Sometimes dreams reflect a fantasy world where the impossible happens. Sometimes they can seem so real you wonder if it really happened. What kinds of dreams might bears have? 4. Draw your bear’s dream. a) With oil pastels you can smudge the colours together to get a dream-like effect, and also capture vivid colours that sometimes occur in dreams. b) You can include the actual bear in the den a corner of the page, with the dream bubble happening all around, or you can focus entirely on the dream. c) Does your bear have an active imagination, or does it dream about “real life?” 5. Share your finished artwork with the group. a) How do the bear dreams differ? What elements are the same? b) Have you learned anything new about bears by imagining their dreams? c) Do you think research will ever be able to tell us whether or not bears dream?
Evaluation	Effective use of imagery Ability to imagine bears as dreamers Ability to apply scientific fact to an imaginary scenario
Curriculum Connections	Visual Art; Science