Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Tune In: An introduction to lions

25 minutes

Find Out: Analysing Lion King trailers

20 minutes

Take Action: A new Lion King story

5 minutes

Reflection

Learning intentions

Students will:

know that the objections and methods of lion conservation have evolved over the years
understand that movies often reflect the cultural contexts in which they were created.

Success criteria

Students can:

analyse movie trailers
draw connections between movie trailers and historical lion conservation contexts
create a short story to reflect present and future lion conservation objectives.

Tune In: An introduction to lions

Step 1

Begin by explaining to students that in this lesson, they will be focusing on lions.

Invite students to complete a THINK PAIR SHARE (pz.harvard.edu/resources/think-pair-share) around the following questions (also available on the Student Worksheet):

How would you describe the physical features of a lion to someone who had never seen one?
What behaviours or personality characteristics do we imagine lions to have? Use keywords (e.g. strong, royal, cheeky).

Once complete, invite students to share their answers with the class.

Step 2

Share the following video with students, explaining that it is the trailer for the Disney movie “Mufasa: The Lion King”:

Mufasa: The Lion King | Official Trailer - (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJwcDX-8Ytc

Once complete, invite students to reflect on how their descriptions of lions prepared earlier compare to the lions portrayed in this trailer. Consider the following questions:

Did our descriptions of the physical features of the lions match up with those in the trailer?
How did our descriptions of the behaviours or personality characteristics compare to those in the trailer?
What would you change or add to your earlier descriptions after seeing the trailer?

Optional: You could use the following synopsis to explain the plot of this movie to students:

“Mufasa: The Lion King” enlists Rafiki to relay the legend of Mufasa to young lion cub Kiara, daughter of Simba and Nala. The story introduces Mufasa as an orphaned cub, lost and alone until he meets a sympathetic lion named Taka - the heir to a royal bloodline. The chance meeting sets in motion an expansive journey of an extraordinary group of misfits searching for their destiny, and their bonds will be tested as they work together to evade a threatening and deadly foe.

Find Out: Analysing the Lion King trailers

Step 1

Explain to students that there have been a number of Disney movies about the Lion King:

The Lion King (1994)
The Lion King (2019)
Mufasa: The Lion King (2024).

The 1994 and 2019 movies tell a similar story of Simba (the son of Mufasa) and his rise to the role of Lion King. The new movie “Mufasa: The Lion King” tells the story of how Simba’s father became the Lion King.

Although these movies tell similar stories, the way the stories are told is different. This difference in part, reflects the use of CGI (computer-generated imagery) technologies in the 2019 and 2024 movies as opposed to traditional animation used in the 1994 movie. However, another difference is the way that our understanding of lions, lion populations and lion conservation has changed over time.

Step 2

Break the class into pairs and distribute one copy of the Lion Conservation Fact Sheet to each pair. Students need to read through Section 1 of the fact sheet and make note of anything they find interesting in the space provided on the fact sheet.

Step 3

Students will now view the trailers for the 3 Lion King movies. As they watch, invite them to pay attention to anything they notice in each trailer that might connect to what they read in the fact sheet. They can make notes about these points in the space provided on the fact sheet:

Trailer 1: The Lion King (1994)

The Lion King | Original Trailer | Disney+ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFzVJEksoDY)

Trailer 2: The Lion King (2019)

The Lion King Official Trailer - (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXvtBVidecc)

Trailer 3: Mufasa: The Lion King (2024)

Mufasa: The Lion King | Official Trailer -(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJwcDX-8Ytc)

Step 4

Give each student a copy of the Student Worksheet and invite them to respond to the questions about the 3 trailers:

Questions - Trailer 1

This trailer starts with music and beautiful scenery - how might this relate to lion conservation strategies at this time?
The animals in this trailer are often cute and funny and not very frightening - why do you think this is?
The main song in this trailer is about the circle of life - what does this relate to?

Questions - Trailer 2

The opening sequence of this trailer starts with the line "Life's not fair, is it, my little friend? While some are born to feast, others spend their lives in the dark begging for scraps" - what do you think this reflects from this time?
Another line in this trailer talks about the circle of life being a delicate balance - what do you think this means?

Questions - Trailer 3

In this trailer there is more talk about the rules of living in a pride - why do you think this is included?
There is also talk about the circle of life being broken - what do you think this means?

Learning extension: In all these trailers, but especially the more recent ones, there is a sense of foreboding and peril but also a feeling of triumph:

What do you think this might mean in terms of creating a story about lions and lion conservation?
How might this relate to creating a great story?

Take Action: A new Lion King story

Step 1

Direct students to read Section 2 of the Lion Conservation Factsheet. Explain that because it is the future, these are only suggestions and we can imagine a different future, perhaps one where lion populations are flourishing alongside all the other animals in the circle of life.

Step 2

Explain to students that they will now write a synopsis for a Lion King movie from the future. How will they convey the future challenges and opportunities for lions and lion conservation while creating an engaging and inspiring story? What kind of a world will they imagine for lions and other creatures in the circle of life?

Students could base their stories on one of the existing Lion King movies (i.e. a male lion must leave his childhood pride to create his own pride and become a lion king), or they could create their own story.

In creating their synopsis, students could:

create a list of compelling characters, including a lead
think about how the story will end
develop a plot line that leads to that ending, including an introduction, a complication and a resolution
think of an event or incident that serves as an obstacle for the main character to overcome
incorporate messages around lion conservation, either explicitly or subtly.

Students can share their synopsis with a classmate and edit for improvement before submitting a final version.

Learning extension: Students could build their synopsis into a longer story, create a storyboard for their story, or script and film their very own trailer.

Reflection

Invite students to work independently or in pairs to consider the following (also available on the Student Worksheet):

Think back to the 3 Lion King movie trailers you watched earlier - which one appealed to you the most and why? Do you respond better to more factual-like presentations of animals (such as in the 2019 and 2024 movies) or to cartoon animals with human-like features? Explain your answer.

The Changing Face Of The Lion King

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The Changing Face Of The Lion King

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