Buffalo Snot GIFs! Learning about pollination on the prairies

Bees, humming birds and other small animals are what come to mind when you hear the word "pollinators". What about the buffalo?

In the prairies and especially in Southern Alberta, buffalo (or bison) are key players in spreading seeds and pollinating the prairies. Drawing, snot and flowers - what else could kids love? We used the Everyone Can Create: Create a Motion Graphic project as a starting point to animate the stages of how buffalo snot helps maintain our ecosystem. This is so fun to do with a range of ages and skills. We typically have 1-hour with youth, but the full animation can be made in sections to fit the timeframe or abilities of your class.

Full GIF showing 1) a buffalo grazing 2) sneezing out seed-filled snot 3) trampling over it to start seed germination 4) flower growing

Note that this activity was developed to be delivered to those living in or around Blackfoot Confederacy Territory (Southern Alberta) and language may not be constant with local teachings if located on or near Blackfeet Territory (Montana).

Steps & Student Creativity!

We build the background together to learn how Keynote works and the different features students can use. Right off the bat you start to see how everyone lets their creativity shine.

Created by Gr 11 student

Then it's adding in the buffalo, but we wanted to make sure students could personalize the animal since the Buffalo (or iini in Blackfoot) plays such an important role in their culture. Everyone snapped a picture right in Keynote and used it as a reference image to build their animal. You could use any of the icons or premade digital shapes to animate.  

Student focused on creating details of their buffalo

This student took the humour route

From there they have the skills to add in the future steps and story elements to complete the animation. I love letting them explore all the different animation options and there is always an exploring buffalo at some point before we get back on track.

At the end, the fun doesn't end because now they can export their animations as GIFs to take home and share with friends and family!

The full Keynote is here to take a peak at all the details, and if you need a bit more of a step by step guide based on this activity specifically I've included our full Activity Guide that is meant to highlight and walk you through every little step.

Happy GIF making!

Project Overview:

• Topics: Biology, Indigenous STEM, Apple Keynote, Technology, Digital Art
• Grade Level: Grades 3 to 12 
• Time: Prep: 10 to 20 minutes / Delivery: 60 to 120 minutes
• Complexity: Moderate
• Big Ideas:
• Seed Dispersal & Pollination
• Blackfoot cultural connections 
• Importance of animals (buffalo/bison) in an ecosystem
• Animation techniques & apple software 

Attachments

Buffalo Snot - Full Animation.key

Download  (864 KB)

Attachments

Buffalo Snot GIFs - Full Activity Guide.pdf

Download  (1.6 MB)