Folklife Resources for Educators
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There are 190 items in this list.
The A:shiwi (Zuni) People: A Study in Environment, Adaptation, and Agricultural Practices
by National Museum of the American Indian http://www.nmai.si.edu/education/files/poster_zuni.pdf
Teaching poster for grades 6-8 that examines the reciprocal relationships between the land and the A:shiwi people, also known as the Zuni, including how they have adapted to the semi-arid climate of New Mexico through a centuries-old farming technique known as "waffle gardens." Lesson plan includes background on how Native peoples have used observation and experimentation to develop science-based agricultural practices and also how A:shiwi waffle gardening reflects the traditional values of their culture. Poster meets national curriculum standards for Social Studies. (10 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Science; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Posters; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Land use; Traditional farming; Gardening; New Mexico--Social life and customs; Environmental protection; Geography; Indians of North America; Zuni Indians; Human ecology; Environmental sciences
Geographic locations: New Mexico |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Other Organizations:
Scholastic, Inc.
(800) 724-6527 http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/index.jsp
African Immigrant Experience
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=95
Multi-unit educational guide for K-12 grade levels with lesson plans and activities focusing on the life and experience of African immigrant communities in Pennsylvania. Topics featured include the refugee experience, why African immigrants are leaving their homes, and their work, families, and communities in Pennsylvania. The site includes transcripts of oral history interviews with African immigrants from Eritrea, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Mauritania, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Kenya, and Ethiopia. It also has a link to the online exhibit created by the Historical Society of Philadelphia entitled “Extended Lives: The African Immigrant Experience in Philadelphia,” that documents family life and experiences through primary source materials collected from community members. Materials in the guide are correlated to Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards for Reading and Writing, History, Geography, and Arts and Humanities.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Ethnic neighborhoods; Ethnic groups; History; Immigrants; Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs; Refugees; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; African Americans; Immigrant families; Immigrant labor; Sierra Leone--Social life and customs; Liberia--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Sudan; Sierra Leone; Pennsylvania; Nigeria; Mauritania; Liberia; Kenya; Ivory Coast; Guinea; Ghana; Ethiopia; Eritrea; Africa |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Alaska Native Dance
by Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations http://www.echospace.org/articles/285/sections/709
Curriculum resources for exploring similarities in the midst of diversity by introducing students to native dances performed by Alaskan cultural groups. Accompanying videos document a variety of dance forms performed by five native groups, with background about the characteristics of the dances and the cultural contexts and restrictions governing their performance. Curriculum ideas can be used in the classroom for teaching social studies, music, fine arts, geography, and physical education.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Geography; History and Social Studies; Music; Performing Arts; Sports and Recreation |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Music; Intercultural communication; Storytelling; Aleuts; Indians of North America; Tlingit Indians; Inupiat; Alaska--Social life and customs; Dance; Yupik Eskimos; Tsimshian Indians; Haida Indians
Geographic locations: Alaska |
Sponsoring Organization: Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations
http://www.echospace.org/
American Indian Perspectives on Thanksgiving
by National Museum of the American Indian http://americanindian.si.edu/education/files/thanksgiving_poster.pdf
Teaching poster, designed for educators and students in grades 4-8, examines the deeper meaning of the Thanksgiving holiday for American Indians through the themes of environment, community, encounters, and innovation. Appropriate for use at any time of the year, the poster includes information on teaching about American Indians and ideas for classroom activities. (10 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities; Posters |
Language: English |
Subjects: Thanksgiving Day; Indians of North America; Holidays
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music
by Costa-Kim, Patricia http://americansabor.org/classroom
Classroom curriculum and educator resources for middle and high school students focused on Latino music and culture found in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Antonio, Miami, and New York City. Topics include the social and cultural history of Latino music, Latino music's impact on American popular culture, the vocabulary and styles of Latino music, and Latino musicians. Although created to accompany an exhibition of the same name, the educational materials can stand alone. The site includes lessons, activities, and word games, video and audio recordings, biographical information on Latino musicians, interpretive maps, and bilingual accompanying resources. Most of the materials on the site can be found in both Spanish and English and in PDF-format.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities; Audio recordings |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: United States--Social life and customs; Maps in education; Puerto Ricans; Mexican Americans; Hispanic Americans; Music; Popular music; New York (N.Y.)--Social life and customs; Miami (Fla.)--Social life and customs; San Antonio (Tex.)--Social life and customs; San Francisco (Calif.)--Social life and customs; History; Hip hop; Salsa (Music); Rap (Music); Dance music; Dance; Immigrants; Cuban Americans; Merengue (Dance)
Geographic locations: United States; Texas; New York (N.Y.); Florida; California |
Sponsoring Organization: Experience Music Project 325 5th Avenue N Seattle WA 98109
(206) 770-2776 http://www.empmuseum.org/index.asp
Other Organizations:
Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) 470 L'Enfant Plaza, SW, Suite 7103 Washington DC 22024
(202) 633-3168 http://www.sites.si.edu/
Association for Cultural Equity - Teaching Resources
by Association for Cultural Equity http://www.culturalequity.org/rc/ce_rc_teaching.php
Educational resources and activities for use in the Pre-K through 12 classroom, based on archival materials in the Alan Lomax Archive. Can be incorporated into the curriculum areas of history, geography, language arts, social studies, visual arts, music, and dance. Includes lesson plans and streaming video for four of Alan Lomax's films in the American Patchwork series: "Appalachian Journey;" "Dreams and Songs of the Noble Old;" "Jazz Parades;" and "The Land Where the Blues Began." The site also includes classroom activities with streaming audio, focused on a variety of musical genres and characteristics, with examples recorded by Lomax in Spain, Italy, the Bahamas, England, Scotland, Trinidad, and the American South.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: South Carolina--Social life and customs; North Carolina--Social life and customs; Georgia--Social life and customs; Louisiana--Social life and customs; Mississippi--Social life and customs; Musical instruments; Southern States--Social life and customs; Folk music; Blues (Music); Ballads; Games; Children's songs; African Americans; Folk songs; Lullabies; Dance; Music; Dixieland music; Appalachian Region--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: United States; Trinidad; Spain; Southern States; Scotland; Mississippi; Louisiana; Italy; England; Caribbean Area; Bahamas; Appalachian Region |
Sponsoring Organization: Association for Cultural Equity 450 West 41st Street, Suite 602-606 New York NY 10036
(212) 268-4623 http://www.culturalequity.org/
At Home Away From Home: Tibetan Culture in Exile
by Museum of International Folk Art http://moifa.org/eventsedu/education/hah_tibet/index.html
Education guide designed for teachers to use with grades K-12, focusing on themes of the exhibition, "At Home Away from Home: Tibetan Culture in Exile," on display at the Museum of International Folk Art in 1999. The curriculum materials in the guide focus on the history and culture of Tibet, Tibetan Buddhism, and the exile of Tibetans from their homeland, especially to India and New Mexico. Activities and art projects feature Kalachakara sand mandalas, thangka paintings (religious scroll paintings on cotton), and the making of prayer flags. The content in this education guide is correlated to the New Mexico State Art and Social Studies Content Standards.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Prayer flags; Tibetan Americans; Tibet--Social life and customs; Mandala (Buddhism); Scrolls; Folk art
Geographic locations: Tibet; South Asia; New Mexico; India; Asia |
Sponsoring Organization: Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.moifa.org/
Barn Again ! Celebrating an American Icon - Teacher's Guide
by Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) http://www.sites.si.edu/education/BATeacher_Guide.pdf
Teacher resource guide with four lesson plans for grades 4-12 on the topic of the American barn as symbol, architecture, community gathering place, and window to the past. Created to accompany an exhibition of the same name developed by SITES, the materials can also function in a stand-alone capacity. They include research and activity-oriented lessons through which students gather information about barn raising, barn dances, corn husking, and quilting bees by reading oral history transcripts, examine architectural designs and historical photos of barns, and do interviews to learn more about barns and to hear barn stories. Lessons focus on the subjects of American Culture, American History, Architecture/Design, Folklife, Language and Visual Arts and address National Curriculum Standards for Social Studies. (48 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Barns; Architecture; Agriculture; United States--History; Farm life; Community life; Folklore; Inquiry-based learning; Interviewing; United States--Social life and customs; Needlework
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) 470 L'Enfant Plaza, SW, Suite 7103 Washington DC 20024
(202) 633-3168 http://www.sites.si.edu/
Baseball: Across a Divided Society - Primary Source Set
by Library of Congress http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/baseball/
Sheet music, video clips, images, trading cards, and photographs tell the story of how baseball emerged as the American national pastime. Featured primary source items show Americans from different backgrounds and social experiences embracing the sport. A Teacher Guide (7 p. PDF) provides background on baseball in the context of American social and economic history, including a focus on minority participation, and a discussion of baseball in both urban and rural contexts.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Sports and Recreation; History and Social Studies; Music |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Baseball; Sports; United States--Social life and customs; Social history
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Library of Congress 101 Independence Avenue, SE Washington DC 20540-1300
(202) 707-5000 http://www.loc.gov/teachers/
Bermuda Connections Cultural Resource Guide for Classrooms
by Ministry of Culture and Social Rehabilitation, Government of Bermuda http://www.communityandculture.bm/bermuda-connections
Educational guide for the K-12 curriculum with lesson plans, projects, and activities developed in connection with the 2001 Smithsonian Folklife Festival featuring the culture of Bermuda. The guide is composed of thirteen chapters introducing students to the cultural arts and heritage of Bermuda, including celebration, foodways, hospitality, play, performance, occupation, artistry, Bermudian identity, maritime life, musical traditions, and the effects of globalization. In addition, the guide provides guidance on doing interviews and fieldwork plus resources for further study and documentation of Bermudian community culture. Curriculum materials are intended for use in Bermuda, but could easily be adapted for classrooms elsewhere. (259 p. PDF)
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Festivals; Occupations--Folklore; Music; Folk music; History; Bermuda--Social life and customs; Fieldwork (Educational method); Interviewing; Maritime culture; Holidays; Folklore; Foodways; Celebration; Play; Hospitality
Geographic locations: Bermuda |
Sponsoring Organization: Ministry of Culture and Social Rehabilitation, Government of Bermuda 81 Court Street Hamilton, Bermuda HM 12
(441) 292-1681 http://www.communityandculture.bm/
Other Organizations:
Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage 600 Maryland Avenue, S.W., Suite 2001 MRC 520 Washington DC 20024
(202) 633-6440 http://www.folklife.si.edu/
Bluegrass in the Schools
by International Bluegrass Music Association http://www.ibma.org/events.programs/schools/lessonplans.asp
Lesson plans and activities for the K-12 curriculum introducing students to bluegrass music. Topics include the musical instruments and sounds of bluegrass, vocal harmonies, song lyrics, bluegrass festivals, the history of bluegrass, and in-depth study of individual bluegrass songs and ballads.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Musicians; Music; Ballads; Musical instruments; Folk songs; Bluegrass music; Folk music; Festivals
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: International Bluegrass Music Association 2 Music Circle South, Suite 100 Nashville TN 37203
(888) 438-4262 http://www.ibma.org/about.ibma/index.asp
Bullfrog in the Classroom
by Paddy Bowman, Marsha B. Weiner http://www.alabamafolklife.org/content/bullfrog-jumped-home
Curriculum guide that focuses on learning about children's songs and games collected by Byron Arnold in Alabama in 1947. It includes online audio clips, taken from a published 42-song CD, "Bullfrog Jumped: Children’s Folksongs from the Byron Arnold Collection," plus lesson plans and activities. The guide invites listeners of all ages to use the collection to teach young children old songs and games and to encourage the exploration and preservation of traditional childhood songs. The three Bullfrog Jumped lessons are aligned to the Alabama Course of Study and link to standards across the curriculum for Pre-K, and for grades K-5. Lessons are based on nine songs selected from the CD and include accompanying activities that can be used for library programs, family reunions, or other gatherings outside the classroom. In addition to the study guide, additional on-line materials about the folksong collection can be found on the Bullfrog Jumped site.
Grade Level: Pre-Kindergarten; K-2; 3-5 |
Curriculum: Music; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Music; Children--Folklore; Folk songs; Games; Children's songs
Geographic locations: Alabama |
Sponsoring Organization: Alabama Folklife Association PO Box 4697 Montgomery AL 36103-4697
(334) 242-3601, ex. 234. http://www.alabamafolklife.org/
CARNAVAL!
by Museum of International Folk Art http://www.moifa.org/eventsedu/education/carnaval_guide.pdf
Curriculum guide, developed in 2004 in conjunction with the traveling exhibition CARNAVAL! produced at the Museum of International Folk Art. The guide highlights Carnival traditions in areas in Europe and the Americas where the festival is an important part of community life. It includes background information on Carnival traditions in Laza, Spain; Venice, Italy; Basel, Switzerland; Tlaxcala, Mexico; Oruro, Bolivia; Recife and Olinda, Brazil; Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago; and New Orleans, Louisiana for incorporation into classroom lesson plans. There are an additional thirty pages of student activities with directions for making masks, costumes, giant puppets, floats, illuminated lanterns, simple musical instruments, and banners. National Content Standards for Fine Arts, Music, Dance, Theater, Social Studies, and Language Arts are included in the guide, which teachers can use to integrate Carnaval's content into their lesson plans. (50 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Religious life and customs; Carnival; Masks; Festivals; Ethnic folklore
Geographic locations: Mexico; Trinidad and Tobago; Switzerland; Spain; Louisiana; Italy; Brazil; Bolivia |
Sponsoring Organization: Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.moifa.org/
The Catskills: A Sense of Place
by The Catskill Center for Conservation and Development, Inc. http://www.catskillcenter.org/index.php/-catskill-center-/our-programs/education/sense-of-place
A series of five curriculum guides designed for grades 3-12 about the natural and cultural features of the Catskill Mountain Region. The five guides include: Module 1: Water Resources of the Catskills (208 p. PDF); Module 2: Geography & Geology of the Catskills (191 p. PDF); Module 3: Ecosystems of the Catskills (231 p. PDF); Module 4: Human History of the Catskills (165 p. PDF); and Module 5: Culture & Arts / Building Catskills Communities (192 p. PDF). Each module contains a bibliography of resource persons, publications, Web sites, and New York State standards-based lesson plans. A printed copy of the modules can be ordered at cost from the Catskill Center for Conservation and Development.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Cultural geography; New York (State)--Social life and customs; Geology; Human ecology; Geography; History; Environmental sciences; Recreation; Community life; Folklore
Geographic locations: New York (State); Catskill Mountains Region (N.Y.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Catskill Center for Conservation and Development, Inc. PO Box 504, 43355 Route 28 Arkville NY 12406
(845) 586-2611. ex. 108 http://www.catskillcenter.org/
Cerámica y Cultura: The Story of Spanish and Mexican Mayólica
by Museum of International Folk Art http://www.moifa.org/eventsedu/education/teachersguide.pdf
A teacher resource guide for grades K-12, created in 2003, which details the history and cultural background of Spanish and Mexican mayólica ceramic pottery. It was developed in conjunction with a traveling exhibition of the same name, which opened at the Museum of International Folk Art in 2002. The guide presents materials for educators to use in introducing students to forms and functions of mayólica ceramic pieces as a way to show how to study culture through the examination of objects and as a point of departure for developing their own creative expression. It includes background information on mayólica for incorporation into classroom lesson plans, questions for discussion, and student activities related to calligraphy, design-making, ceramic tiles, and other projects. (50 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Cultural relations; Spain--Social life and customs; Crafts; Pottery; Folk art; Ethnic arts; Material culture; Mexico--Social life and customs; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: Spain; Mexico; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.moifa.org/
Chasing El Niño
by NOVA Teachers http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/teachers/activities/2512_elnino.html
Classroom activity called "Forecasting Folklore" created to evaluate the accuracy of weather folklore by formulating questions and designing experiments that put them to the test. Includes links to NOVA's online site that tracks El Niño, the NOAA's El Niño page, and other resources. The "Forecasting Folklore" activity aligns with National Science Education Standards for grades 5 through 12 for Science Standard A: Science as Inquiry.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: El Niño Current; Weather--Folklore; Inquiry-based learning; Environmental sciences; Weather
Geographic locations: Pacific Ocean; General |
Sponsoring Organization: WGBH Educational Foundation 1 Guest Street Boston MA 02135
(617) 492-2777, Ext. 5400 http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/teachers/
Choctaw Baskets: Weaving the Past and Present
by Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations http://www.echospace.org/articles/427/sections/1311
Classroom activities, lesson plans, and web-based resources for the study of Choctaw baskets for grades 5-8. The materials focus on the geography and ecosystem of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, the ecology of canebreaks (river cane), the process of making Choctaw baskets, and the changes that occur in a culture as a result of interactions with other cultures. Curriculum suggestions conform to National Standards for Geography, History, and Language Arts.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Geography; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Science |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Intercultural communication; Plants; Ecology; Environmental sciences; Mississippi--Social life and customs; Weaving; Choctaw Indians; Basket making; Culture; Ethnobotany
Geographic locations: Mississippi |
Sponsoring Organization: Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations
http://www.echospace.org/
Choctaw Dances
by Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations http://www.echospace.org/articles/123/sections/189
Curriculum resources for exploring three types of Choctaw dances—social, animal, and war—that serve to bind Mississippi Chocktaw communities, honor the natural environment, and express cultural solidarity. An accompanying video illustrates some current traditional activities that connect the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians with their past, including dance, the use of traditional instruments, and participation in games such as stickball. Curriculum ideas can be used in the classroom for teaching social studies, dance, music, geography, and physical education.
Grade Level: All ages |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Sports and Recreation |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Music; Celebration; Dance; Mississippi--Social life and customs; Indians of North America; Choctaw Indians; Games; Musical instruments
Geographic locations: Mississippi |
Sponsoring Organization: Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations
http://www.echospace.org/
Civil War Music - Primary Source Set
by Library of Congress http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/civil-war-music/
Sound files, sheet music, photographs, letters, and maps help students better understand the American Civil War through the study of the popular song, "When Johnny Comes Marching Home." The resources in this primary source set are intended for classroom use. Includes a Civil War Music teacher's guide (6 p. PDF), and photographs, audio recordings, maps, and manuscript materials drawn from the Library of Congress' online digital collections. There is also a link to primary source analysis tools.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Audio recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Popular music; Music; United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865; Maps in education
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Library of Congress 101 Independence Avenue, SE Washington DC 20540-1300
(202) 707-5000 http://www.loc.gov/teachers/
Collections Seldom Seen
by Museum of International Folk Art http://www.moifa.org/eventsedu/education/seldomseen/cssintrocur.html
Curriculum guide that grew out of an exhibition, "Collections Seldom Seen," at the Museum of International Folk Art which brought together objects from the permanent collections chosen by several museum curators. The guide includes cultural and historical background on the chosen objects organized by geographic focus (Asia, Latin America, the United States, and Europe) and textile arts in general, plus two lesson plans with student activities, based on New Mexico state standards. The lesson plans are "How to Make a Japanese Scroll" and "Print Making," based on woodblock printing traditions used in the making of Brazilian literatura de cordel. The guide also highlights the role of the curator in the development of museum exhibitions.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Decorative arts; Jewelry; Folk art; Scrolls; Museums--Curatorship; Clothing and dress; Wood-engraving; Textile fabrics; Pottery; Costume; Chapbooks, Brazilian
Geographic locations: United States; Philippines; Morocco; Mexico; Japan; Europe; Cameroon; Brazil; Bolivia; Austria; Asia |
Sponsoring Organization: Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.moifa.org/
The Colonia Mexicana of Bethlehem Steel
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=922
Lesson plan with activities related to the influx of Mexican immigrant workers employed by Bethlehem Steel during the early 20th century and history in Pennsylvania. The unit is geared to the middle and high school classroom for use in the curriculum areas of history, geography, and the arts and humanities. The unit focuses on Bethlehem Steel's recruitment of workers from Mexico, beginning in 1923, with student activities centering on the analysis of a Mexican corrido and newspaper articles from the time. Background materials include a glossary, resources for teachers and students, and links to primary source materials, including photographs and oral histories, drawn from the collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and other materials. The lesson plan is correlated to the Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, History, Geography, and Arts and Humanities.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Geography; Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: Industrialization; Cultural geography; Steel industry and trade; Immigrant labor; Iron and steel workers; Mexico--Social life and customs; Ballads; Labor history; Immigrants; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Mexican Americans; Music; Corridos
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania; Mexico |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Confino Primary Source Activity Lesson Plan - Elementary School
by Tenement Museum http://www.tenement.org/documents/lessonplans/web5_lessonplan_ConfinoElementary.pdf
Lesson plan with activities for elementary school grades to demonstrate how primary sources and documents can be used to piece together stories from the past. The primary source materials on the site include manuscripts and photographs pertaining to a young immigrant girl of Greek American heritage named Victoria Confino. In the early decades of the twentieth century, Victoria was a resident with her family at 97 Orchard Street, the current location of the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. The lesson plan guides students in examining the primary source materials to learn about Victoria and her family. Appropriate for use with history, social studies, and geography curricula.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Immigrant families; Greek Americans; Inquiry-based learning; History; New York (N.Y.)--Social life and customs; Immigrants; Family--History; Tenement houses
Geographic locations: New York (N.Y.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Lower East Side Tenement Museum 91 Orchard Street New York NY 10002
(212) 431-0233 http://www.tenement.org/
Confino Primary Source Activity Lesson Plan - Middle School
by Tenement Museum http://www.tenement.org/documents/lessonplans/web5_lessonplan_ConfinoMiddleSchool.pdf
Lesson plan with activities for middle school grades to show how primary sources and documents can be used to piece together stories from the past. The primary source materials for this lesson include manuscripts and photographs pertaining to a young girl of Greek American heritage named Victoria Confino who was a resident at 97 Orchard Street, the location of the current Lower East Side Tenement Museum. Students are guided in examining the primary source materials to learn about Victoria and her family. Appropriate for use with history, social studies, and geography curricula.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Geography |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Tenement houses; Greek Americans; Immigrants; New York (N.Y.)--Social life and customs; History; Inquiry-based learning; Family--History; Illinois--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: New York (N.Y.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Lower East Side Tenement Museum 91 Orchard Street New York NY 10002
(212) 431-0233 http://www.tenement.org/
Corridos sin Fronteras: A New World Ballad Tradition
by Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) http://www.corridos.org/main2.asp?language=E
Bilingual (Spanish and English) interactive educational website for elementary, middle, and high school teachers and students. Site introduces students to the historical and cultural importance of the corrido, a popular narrative poem or ballad found in Spanish-speaking areas of the Americas. The site includes lesson plans and historical and contextual background on the development of the corrido, including its use in expressions of social justice and the telling of stories of oppression and history. Examples of corridos are presented through video and audio recordings on the site and students are encouraged to create their own corridos. Subject areas covered include music, the performing arts, history, language arts, and Spanish-language traditions of Mexico and the United States.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: Music; Storytelling; Texas--Social life and customs; Mexico--Social life and customs; Corridos; Ballads; Songwriting; Mexican Americans
Geographic locations: United States; Texas; Mexico |
Sponsoring Organization: Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) 470 L'Enfant Plaza, SW, Suite 7103 Washington DC 20024
(202) 633-3168 http://www.sites.si.edu/
Country Music Hall of Fame - Teacher Resource Guide
by Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum http://countrymusichalloffame.org/assets/Uploads/Files/TeachersResourceGuide2.pdf
Teacher resource guide with seven lesson plans for K-12 education focusing on the history of country music and its role in American culture. Materials are intended for pre- and post-visit lessons for classes coming to the County Music Hall of Fame, but can be used equally well in a stand-alone capacity. Lessons cover the topics of musical instruments, the characteristics and roles of museums, the public image of musical performers, country music in America, and music in general. The lessons contain curriculum connections to Language Arts, Music, the Visual Arts, Math, and Social Studies. (22 p. PDF)
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Math |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Art; Performance; History; Country music; Music; Musical instruments; Musicians; United States--Social life and customs; Museums--Curatorship; Popular music
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Country Music Hall of Fame 222 Fifth Avenue, South Nashville TN 37203
(615) 416-2088 http://countrymusichalloffame.org/
Cowboy Poets - Teaching Guide
by Paddy Bowman http://www.folkstreams.net/context,276
Teaching guide for grades 10-12 to accompany an excerpt of the film “Cowboy Poets,” created by Kim Shelton in 1988. Fourteen minutes of the 50-minute film are chosen as a focus for the teaching guide. The film excerpt documents Wally McRae, a cowboy poet from southeastern Montana, a third-generation rancher and gentleman-philosopher, who uses his poetic gifts to make personal statements about continuity within the ranching community and the strength of cowboy traditions under siege in the modern world. The teaching guide and film explore the topics of cowboy culture and poetry, family ranch life, environmental conservation, and community resistance to a giant coal corporation in the neighborhood. The entire film is also available as streaming video on folkstreams.net.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans; Primary sources; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Environmental protection; Educational films; Montana--Social life and customs; Ethnographic films; Family--History; Coal mines and mining; Family--Folklore; Family-owned business enterprises; Cowboys--Poetry; Ranch life
Geographic locations: Montana |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Craft Revival: Shaping Western North Carolina Past and Present
by Hunter Library, Western Carolina University http://www.wcu.edu/craftrevival/index.htm
Educational website documenting the Craft Revival movement in western North Carolina from 1895 to 1945, drawing on a virtual collection of photographs, documents, craft objects, and artifacts maintained by Western Carolina University’s Hunter Library. The site includes over 25 accompanying lesson plans for grades 3-12, which focus on weaving, basketry, pottery, and other mountain crafts and traditions found in the Southern Highlands of North Carolina. Additional lesson plans cover cottage industries, industrialization, the Cherokee presence, and the social, economic, and cultural aspects of the Craft Revival in the Appalachian Mountain South. Curriculum areas covered include language arts, social studies, history, art, and math.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Math |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Textile fabrics; Quilting; Occupations--Folklore; Labor history; Industrialization; History; Crafts; North Carolina--Social life and customs; Pottery; Basket making; Weaving; Social history; Cherokee Indians; Appalachian Region--Social life and customs; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: North Carolina; Appalachian Region, Southern |
Sponsoring Organization: Hunter Library, Special Collections Western Carolina University Cullowhee NC 28723
(828) 227-2499 http://www.wcu.edu/1597.asp
Crossroads of the Heart: Creativity and Tradition in Mississippi
by Mississippi Arts Commission http://www.arts.state.ms.us/crossroads/main.html
Educational website that profiles community-based Mississippi traditional artists and musicians. It includes a teacher's guide with background on the traditions described, a glossary of terms, student activities, and a resource guide for additional materials and websites. The site is organized into five sections: "Mississippi Music" (blues, gospel, fiddling, and sacred harp singing); "Handmade Objects" (Choctaw basketry, wood carving, pottery, and pine needle basketry); "Maritime Traditions" (boatbuilding, netmaking, Vietnamese fishing and boatbuilding, and model boatbuilding); "Mississippi Quilting" (quilter Hystercine Rankin, Crossroads Quilters, and quilter Elaine Carter); and "Mississippi Narrative" (storytelling, church oratory, and fiction). Each artistic form highlighted includes streaming audio of interviews and musical performances or photos documenting the traditional form. For upper elementary and middle school.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Decorative arts; Crafts; Choctaw Indians; Wood-carving; Basket making; Fiddle tunes; Mississippi--Social life and customs; Folk art; Oral tradition; Quiltmakers; Music; Blues (Music); Maritime culture; Material culture; Ethnic arts; Ethnic folklore; Quilting; African Americans; Vietnamese Americans; Gospel music; Shape-note singing; Boatbuilding; Fishing nets; Fishing; Storytelling; Needlework
Geographic locations: Mississippi |
Sponsoring Organization: Mississippi Arts Commission 501 North West Street, Suite 1101A Jackson MS 39201
(601) 359-6030 http://www.arts.state.ms.us/
Cultural Exchange: Jewish and Muslim Connections
by The Jewish Museum - New York http://www.thejewishmuseum.org/core/uploaded/pdfs/cultural_exchange.pdf
Curriculum guide designed to introduce middle and high school students to the dynamic cultural exchange that occurred between Jews and Muslims in medieval Spain. It also explores adaptations by Jews of motifs influenced by Muslim cultures in Turkey, Syria, Persia, Morocco, and Tunisia during the 19th and 20th centuries. Although the guide was created to prepare students for visiting the Jewish and Muslim Connections exhibit at the Jewish Museum, it can be used as a stand-alone resource. The materials focus on three subject areas: Cultural Folklore, Places of Worship, and Traditional Texts, each presented with historical background, suggested activities, and discussion questions. Individual themes and activities can be integrated into social studies, history, creative writing, geography, arts, and humanities curricula in the classroom. (28 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Geography; History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Art; Islam; Cultural relations; Decoration and ornament; Jews; Muslims; Architecture; Material culture; Middle East--Social life and customs; Spain--Social life and customs; History; Asia--Social life and customs; Religious life and customs; Sacred space; Intercultural communication
Geographic locations: Turkey; Tunisia; Syria; Spain; Morocco; Iran; Africa, North |
Sponsoring Organization: Jewish Museum - New York 1109 5th Avenue at 92nd Street New York NY 10128
(212) 423-3225 http://www.thejewishmuseum.org/
Cultural Protocols in Everyday Life
by Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations http://www.echospace.org/articles/353/sections/899
Middle and high school classroom activities and web-based resources for the study of the cultural protocols or preferred behaviors that everyone uses in their lives. Using the themes of cross-cultural communication and cultural change, curriculum ideas incorporate examples of celebration and cultural forms of conduct from native groups in Massachusetts and Hawaii that can be used in the classroom to discuss these issues in a wider context. Includes links to photographs, video clips, and documents drawn from several museum collections. Curriculum materials conform to National Standards for Geography and can be used for teaching Social Studies, Language Arts, and History.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Geography; Language Arts; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities; Primary sources; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Celebration; Intercultural communication; Wampanoag Indians; Culture; Hawaii--Social life and customs; Massachusetts--Social life and customs; Indians of North America
Geographic locations: United States; Massachusetts; Hawaii |
Sponsoring Organization: Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations
http://www.echospace.org/
Culturally-Based Curriculum Resources
by Alaska Native Knowledge Network http://ankn.uaf.edu/Resources/course/view.php?id=2
Culturally responsive curriculum resources for the study of Alaska native knowledge systems and ways of learning. Database includes units, lesson plans, activities, and background material for use in the K-12 classroom, geared primarily for use in the curriculum fields of math and science. The materials are created within a culturally aligned curriculum framework reflecting indigenous knowledge systems, and incorporate oral tradition, learned skills, traditional practice, folk medicine, and native ecological perspectives which make them valuable for application in social science and humanities curricula.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; Performing Arts; Music; Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Land use; Traditional medicine; Environmental sciences; Alaska--Social life and customs; Plants; Human ecology; Material culture; Indians of North America; Maritime culture; Oral tradition; Weather; Fishing; Animals
Geographic locations: Alaska |
Sponsoring Organization: Alaska Native Knowledge Network University of Alaska Fairbanks, PO Box 756730 Fairbanks AK 99775-6730
(907) 474-1902 http://ankn.uaf.edu/
Dakotah Storyteller: Mary Louise Defender Wilson
by Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education http://locallearningnetwork.org/guest-artist/mary-louise-defender-wilson/
K-12 curriculum ideas for studying the life and artistry of 1999 NEA National Heritage Fellow Mary Louise Defender Wilson, storyteller and performer of songs, dances, and legends of the Dakotah (Sioux) and Hidatsa people. These materials can be used in the curriculum areas of language arts, geography, social studies, history, visual arts, and science. Includes audio recording of Wilson telling the Dakotah story “The Woman Who Turned Herself to Stone,” a transcript of an interview with her, background on Native American storytelling and language, and additional resources.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Geography; Science; Performing Arts; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Storytellers; Maps in education; Dance; Hidatsa Indians; Sioux Indians; Tales; Indians of North America; North Dakota--Social life and customs; Storytelling; Ecology; Dakota Indians; Oral history; Legends
Geographic locations: North Dakota |
Sponsoring Organization: Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education c/o City Lore 72 East First Street
New York NY 10003 http://locallearningnetwork.org/
Dane County Cultural Tour 2002
by Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures http://csumc.wisc.edu/cmct/DaneCountyTour/
Description of a four-day field trip taken by a classroom of fourth and fifth graders from Randall Elementary School in Madison, Wisconsin, to farming communities, small towns, and suburbs in south central Wisconsin. They visited ethnic communities and occupational sites, met and interviewed folk artists, musicians, and community historians, and documented their experiences through writing and photography. Many of the field reports included were written by students. This site gives an idea of the places they visited, and the traditions and folklore they discovered, and includes a "How We Did It" section for ideas on organizing similar cultural tours.
Grade Level: 3-5 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Recreation; Community life; Foodways; Folk art; Inquiry-based learning; Farm life; Photography; Traditional farming; Folklore; Fieldwork (Educational method); Interviewing; Wisconsin--Social life and customs; Occupations--Folklore; Religious life and customs
Geographic locations: Wisconsin; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures 901 University Bay Drive Madison WI 53705
(608) 256-4640 http://csumc.wisc.edu/
Other Organizations:
Randall Elementary School 1802 Regent Sreet Madison Wisconsin 53705
(608) 204-3302 http://www.greatschools.net/wisconsin/madison/877-Randall-Elementary-School/
Dave - I Made This Jar
by Digital Traditions http://www.digitaltraditions.net/html/D_Resources.cfm
Educator guide that focuses on the contributions of the enslaved potter and poet, David Drake, who worked in the pottery industry that flourished in the Edgefield District of South Carolina in the 1800s. Curriculum materials were designed to be consulted in conjunction with the McKissick Museum's "I Made This Jar" exhibit, but they may be be used independently of the exhibit. Lesson plans address pottery making, written and oral traditions in poetry, and the economics of slavery in relation to antebellum craft work. The guide also includes student activities, teacher background, and a bibliography. It was created for classroom use in grades 3-12, with guidance on teaching content and skills geared to different grade levels. (45 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Music |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: African Americans; South Carolina--Social life and customs; Pottery; Slavery; Poetry; Crafts; Potters; Decorative arts; Artisans
Geographic locations: South Carolina |
Sponsoring Organization: Digital Traditions Folklife Resource Center, McKissick Museum Columbia SC 29208
(803) 777-3714 http://www.digitaltraditions.net/Index.cfm
Other Organizations:
McKissick Museum University of South Carolina Columbia SC 29208
(803) 777-7251 http://www.cas.sc.edu/mcks/
Discovering the 9th Street Market: A Treasure Hunt for Clues to the Past
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.philaplace.org/resource/466/
Curriculum unit on the interactive PhilaPlace web site, (http://www.philaplace.org/), designed to encourage students to explore Philadelphia’s 9th Street market as a means to understand its hundred-year history and the transformation of its businesses and neighborhood over time. Unit includes teacher resources and classroom activities aimed for the middle and high school grades, aligned with Pennsylvania State Standards. A Treasure Hunt activity worksheet and map provide guidance for students visiting the Philadelphia market. (16 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Inquiry-based learning; Ethnic markets; Geography; Markets; Place-based education; Ethnic neighborhoods; Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs; Community life; History; Maps in education; Family-owned business enterprises
Geographic locations: Philadelphia (Pa.); Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Double Exposure Lesson Plan: Eye on Your Community
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/pdfs/dd_comm.pdf
Lesson plan geared to grades 3-7 for helping students learn how to use a camera to document people, places, and things that make up their neighborhood or school. Addresses the Illinois State Board of Education Goals and Standards for art and the tools, techniques, and processes used to create specific effects in the arts. (2 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Photography; Community life; Neighborhoods; Fieldwork (Educational method)
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: MuseumLink Illinois 1011 East Ash Street Springfield IL 62703
(217) 782-7475 http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/
Other Organizations:
Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Dust Bowl Migration -- Primary Source Set
by Library of Congress http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/dust-bowl-migration/
Photographs, recorded music, and song lyrics document the daily ordeals of rural migrant families from the Great Plains during a decade marked by both the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. The resources in this primary source set are intended for classroom use. Includes a Dust Bowl Migration Teacher Guide (8 p. PDF), photographs, and sound recordings collected at California migrant labor camps, and a link to primary source analysis tools.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Music |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Audio recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: United States--History--1933-1945; Labor history; United States--Social life and customs; Social history; Texas--Social life and customs; New Mexico--Social life and customs; Oklahoma--Social life and customs; California--Social life and customs; Music; Dust Bowl Era, 1931-1939; Folk songs; Migration, Internal; Migrant agricultural laborers; New Deal, 1933-1939; Great Plains--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Great Plains; United States; Texas; Oklahoma; New Mexico; California |
Sponsoring Organization: Library of Congress 101 Independence Avenue, SE Washington DC 20540-1300
(202) 707-5000 http://www.loc.gov/teachers/
Ethnic Fraternal Societies and Mutual Aid: An American Tradition with Old World Roots
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=87
Lesson plan related to the origins, functions, rise, and eventual decline of fraternal and self-help organizations among immigrants and African Americans with activities for middle and high school students. The lesson focuses on ways that immigrants and African Americans developed alternative social structures and mutual assistance organizations that served their social, psychological, cultural, and economic needs. It also explores issues of diversity, ethnic identity, and whether the government or the people are responsible for providing the social and economic safety net of mutual aid. Background materials include a glossary, resources for teachers and students, and links to primary source materials, including photographs and oral histories, drawn from the collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania The lesson plan is correlated to the Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, History, and Geography.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Fraternal organizations; Ethnicity; Ethnic groups; Immigrants; United States--History; United States--Social life and customs; African Americans
Geographic locations: United States; Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
European and Native American Mapping Activity
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/exhibits/lewis_clark_il/pdfs/european_nativeamerican_mappingactivity.pdf
Activity for grades 6-8 to help students distinguish and describe the differences and similarities between European and Native American mapping concepts and methods after studying and drawing in both styles to represent the same location. Activity addresses the Illinois State Board of Education Standards and Goals for Geography and History. (5 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Geography |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: History; Geography; Indians of North America; Maps in education; Europe--Social life and customs; Place-based education
Geographic locations: United States; Europe |
Sponsoring Organization: Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Everyone Has Interesting Stuff: Teaching with Objects in the Classroom - Middle School
by Tenement Museum http://www.tenement.org/documents/lessonplans/web5_lessonplan_TeachingObjectsMiddleSchool.pdf
Lesson plan and activities for middle school grades to demonstrate how studying physical objects can help students learn about people, places, and the past. Appropriate for use with history and social studies curricula.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Material culture; Inquiry-based learning; History
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: Lower East Side Tenement Museum 91 Orchard Street New York NY 10002
(212) 431-0233 http://www.tenement.org
Everyone Has Interesting Stuff: Teaching with Objects in the Classroom - Elementary School
by Tenement Museum http://www.tenement.org/documents/lessonplans/web5_lessonplan_TeachingObjectsElementary.pdf
Lesson plan and activities for elementary grades to discover how studying physical objects can reveal stories about the people who used them. Appropriate for use with history and social studies curricula.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: History; Material culture; Inquiry-based learning
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: Lower East Side Tenement Museum 91 Orchard Street New York NY 10002
(212) 431-0233 http://www.tenement.org/
Everyone Has Interesting Stuff: Teaching with Objects in the Classroom - High School
by Tenement Museum http://www.tenement.org/documents/lessonplans/web5_lessonplan_TeachingObjectsHighSchool.pdf
Lesson plan and activities for high school students to demonstrate how studying physical objects can reveal stories about people's lives. Appropriate for use with history and social studies curricula.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Material culture; Inquiry-based learning; History
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: Lower East Side Tenement Museum 91 Orchard Street New York NY 10002
(212) 431-0233 http://www.tenement.org/
Explore Culture Online
by Arizona State Museum http://www.statemuseum.arizona.edu/explore.shtml
Online educational activities, podcasts, videos, exhibitions, oral histories, databases, bibliographies, and multimedia resources created for the Arizona State Museum about their exhibits, collections, and programs related to the material culture of Southwest Native Americans. Includes cultural and archaeological topics such as masks, pottery, textiles, painting, and weaving from Northern Mexico, New Mexico, and Arizona. Can be used in the classroom.
Grade Level: All ages; K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Podcasts; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: Arizona--Social life and customs; Indians of North America; Painting; Tohono O'odham Indians; Hopi Indians; Archaeology; Pottery; Games; Weaving; Textile fabrics; Material culture; Masks; Navajo Indians; Mexico--Social life and customs; Crafts; New Mexico--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: New Mexico; Mexico; Arizona |
Sponsoring Organization: Arizona State Museum The University of Arizona Tucson AZ 85721-0026
(520) 621-6302 http://www.statemuseum.arizona.edu/
Explore Your Community: A Community Heritage Poster for the Classroom
by American Folklife Center http://www.loc.gov/folklife/poster/
Poster designed for the middle and high school classroom to encourage students to learn more about their own communities by engaging in documentation and field projects. Includes suggestions for heritage studies and community projects, such as interviewing friends and classmates about school-related traditions and developing a walking tour of a local historical neighborhood. The poster is also available free of charge from the American Folklife Center.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities; Posters |
Language: English |
Subjects: Inquiry-based learning; Oral history; Place-based education; Fieldwork (Educational method); Folklore--Fieldwork; Community life
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: American Folklife Center Library of Congress Washington DC 20540-4610
(202) 707-5510 http://www.loc.gov/folklife/index.html
Other Organizations:
Rural School and Community Trust 1530 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 240 Arlington VA 22209
(703) 243-1487 http://www.ruraledu.org/index.php
Exploring Community History and Cultural Influence
by Teaching Tolerance http://www.tolerance.org/activity/exploring-community-history-and-cultural
Activities for students in grades 6-12 that explore the concept of culture in individual lives, families, communities, regions, and cultural groups for use in a Social Studies curriculum.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Cultural relations; Ethnicity; Ethnic groups; Culture; Cultural pluralism; Community life; Intercultural communication
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: Teaching Tolerance 400 Washington Avenue Montgomery AL 36104
(332) 956-8200 http://www.tolerance.org/
Exploring Diversity in Pennsylvania History
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=74
Resources for teachers related to the diverse ethnic histories of Pennsylvania. Curriculum materials include lesson plans, student handouts, background readings, and links to primary source materials drawn from the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and Balch collections related to the topics of settlement, community, work and industrialization, and interethnic relations. Geared to the middle and high school classroom, the units include resources for studying the settlement, history, and culture of Germans, Irish, Italians, Chinese, Latinos, South Asians, Africans, and Koreans in Pennsylvania. Lesson plans are correlated to a variety of Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Cultural relations; Ethnicity; Geography; Immigrant labor; Asian Americans; Industrialization; Ethnic neighborhoods; Ethnic groups; Cultural pluralism; Korean Americans; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; German Americans; Irish Americans; Italian Americans; Chinese Americans; Arab Americans; Hispanic Americans; East Indian Americans; African Americans; Immigrants; Labor history; Emigration and immigration; Intercultural communication
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Family Ties and Fabric Tales
by Teaching Tolerance http://www.tolerance.org/activity/family-ties-and-fabric-tales
Lesson with activities for students in elementary, middle, and high school on researching family history by conducting interviews. Included is a Family Data Sheet for use in collecting oral histories and activities on mapping the historical settlement patterns of families. Intended for use in Reading and Language Arts and Social Studies curricula.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Maps in education; Oral history; Interviewing; Inquiry-based learning; Fieldwork (Educational method); Family--History
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: Teaching Tolerance 400 Washington Avenue Montgomery AL 36194
(334) 956-8200 http://www.tolerance.org/
Family Tradition: The Williams Family Legacy Teacher's Guide
by Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum http://countrymusichalloffame.org/assets/Uploads/Files/2768FamTrad-LessonGuide.pdf
Teacher resource guide with eight lesson plans for grades 3-12 designed to help classes prepare for a tour of "Family Tradition: The Williams Family Legacy," an exhibit held at the Country Music Hall of Fame. The materials can also be used as a stand-alone unit about Hank Williams and his family's contributions to American music. Lessons cover the topics of Hank Williams and his family, including their roles as songwriters, musicians, performers, and collectors of country music. The lessons address curriculum objectives in the Tennessee State Curriculum Standards in Language Arts, Music, Math, and Social Studies. (21 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Music; Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Performing Arts |
Resource Type: Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: United States--History--1945-; Music; Songwriting; Family--History; Family--Folklore; Musicians; Country music; Tennessee--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: United States; Tennessee |
Sponsoring Organization: Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum 222 Fifth Avenue, South Nashville TN 37203
(615) 416-2088 http://countrymusichalloffame.org/
The Fisk Jubilee Singers: Singing Our Song -- Teacher's Guide
by Tennessee Arts Commission Folklife Program http://www.arts.state.tn.us/resources/fisk_jubilee_singer_guide.pdf
The Fisk Jubilee Singers: Singing our Song Teacher’s Guide is designed to assist classroom teachers and youth leaders in introducing students to the story and significance of the Fisk Jubilee Singers. It includes nine lessons with accompanying CD, DVD, and sheet music which are incorporated into the lessons. A bibliography, discography, videography, and webography provide additional resources for further study. The lessons in the guide can be adapted for students of various ages. Topics covered in the guide include the history and music of jubilee, black spirituals, and African American choral music. It also considers how the evolution of these musical forms contributed to the development of musical culture in Nashville, the prominence of Fisk University, and the African American civil rights movement. The lessons can be used in music, social studies, and language arts classes and support the Tennessee State Curriculum Standards in these areas. Free hard copies of the teacher's guide, and an accompanying DVD & CD, are available upon request by contacting: Dana.Everts-Boehm@tn.gov
(44 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12; Undergraduate |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Jubilee singers; Tennessee--Social life and customs; Music; African Americans; Spirituals (Songs); United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865; Songs; Slavery; Civil rights
Geographic locations: Tennessee |
Sponsoring Organization: Tennessee Arts Commission Folklife Program 401 Charlotte Avenue Nashville TN 37243-0780
(615) 741-1701 http://www.tn.gov/arts/folklife.htm
Other Organizations:
Tennessee Arts Commission
http://www.arts.state.tn.us
Folk Artists: New Roots
by Institute for Cultural Partnerships http://www.culturalpartnerships.org/fan/
Educational web pages designed for use with students in grades 5-8 which provide activities and primary source materials about recent immigrant and refugee communities in Pennsylvania. A 12-page teacher's guide, "Using the Folk Arts of Newcomers in Your Classroom," offers curriculum suggestions and activities for exploring traditional forms of culture found in the Ahikskan Turk, Bosnian, Chinese, East Indian, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Sudanese, and Vietnamese communities in Pennsylvania. Accompanying the guide are stories and videos, some in Spanish, of individual Puerto Rican, Chinese, and Mexican individuals, representing dance, foodways, and other cultural and artistic traditions. The guide correlates with Pennsylvania Academic Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening, and the Arts and Humanities.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities; Video recordings; Primary sources |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: Crafts; Foodways; Vietnamese Americans; Bosnian Americans; Ethnic arts; Dance; Hispanic Americans; Chinese Americans; Puerto Ricans; Immigrants; Refugees; Folk artists; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Ethnic groups; Ethnic folklore; Sudanese Americans; East Indian Americans; Mexican Americans; Asian Americans; Ahiskan Turks; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Institute for Cultural Partnerships 3211 North Front Street Harrisburg PA 17110-1342
(717) 238-1770 http://www.culturalpartnerships.org/
Folk Arts in Education - A Resource Handbook II
by Marsha MacDowell, LuAnne Kozma http://www.folkartsineducation.org/
Resource handbook examining folklife, folklore, and folk arts in education throughout the United States with sample curricula from over fifty programs for youth in K-12 educational settings, museums, arts and humanities councils, and other non-profit cultural and arts organizations. The 262-page handbook includes many web-based educational resources, plus a webography and bibliography, for the study of folk arts that encourage students to become involved in hands-on, experiential learning, fieldwork, and place-based research in local community settings. It is available on the site in downloadable form or for sale in hardcopy or on CD through the Michigan State University Museum's Michigan Traditional Arts Program Store.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Sports and Recreation; Science; Performing Arts; Music; Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Festivals; Fieldwork (Educational method); Folklore; Occupations--Folklore; Oral history; Inquiry-based learning; Music; Oral tradition; Place-based education; Holidays; Vernacular architecture; Urban folklore; United States--Social life and customs; Rites of passage; Storytelling; Artisans; Community life; Children--Folklore; Folk music; Folk songs; Folklore--Fieldwork; Folk art; Foodways; Ethnic arts; Culture; Ethnic folklore; Family--Folklore; History; Needlework
Geographic locations: United States; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Michigan State University Museum Michigan State University East Lansing MI 48824
(517) 353-2370 http://museum.msu.edu/
Other Organizations:
Michigan Traditional Arts Program Michigan State University Museum East Lansing Michigan 48824-1045
(517) 353-2370 http://museum.msu.edu/s-program/MTAP/
Folklife and Fieldwork: An Introduction to Field Techniques
by American Folklife Center http://www.loc.gov/folklife/fieldwork/
A guide to conducting folklife fieldwork, updated in 2005. (46 p. PDF) Includes information on what to collect, how to do fieldwork, and provides examples of release forms, data sheets, and logs for audio, video, and still photography. Also has tips on using tape recording, video, and photographic equipment. A Spanish-language translation of the guide is included, under the title "La Tradición Popular y la Investigación de Campo Una introducción a las técnicas
de investigación." (46 p. PDF) Both English and Spanish versions are also available in free published versions from the American Folklife Center.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: Photography; Video recording; Folklore--Fieldwork; Oral history; Interviewing; Sound recordings
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: American Folklife Center Library of Congress Washington DC 20540-4610
(202) 707-5510 http://www.loc.gov/folklife/
Folklife and Folk Art Education Resource Guide
by Fife Folklore Archives http://library.usu.edu/Folklo/edresources/index.html
Guide created in 1997 with lesson plans and activities related to teaching a general folklife and folk art curriculum for the upper elementary school grades. It also provides background on the diverse ethnic, occupational, and regional traditions of the state of Utah. Included in the guide are sample cultural surveys for fourth and fifth graders to use in doing fieldwork plus activities such as hosting a folklife fair. Some of the many traditional arts areas explored are cowboy poetry, children's folklore, occupational folklore, foodways, celebrations, and verbal folklore genres.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Crafts; Folklore; Material culture; Utah--Social life and customs; Children--Folklore; Cowboys--Poetry; Oral tradition; Fieldwork (Educational method); Folk art; Folklore--Fieldwork; Occupations--Folklore; Foodways; Celebration
Geographic locations: Utah; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Fife Folklore Archives Utah State University Libraries Logan UT 84322-3000
(435) 797-2869 http://library.usu.edu/Folklo/index.html
Folklife in the Classroom
by Montana Arts Council http://art.mt.gov/folklife/folklife_classroom.asp
Activities, lesson plans, and background about Montana folk arts and artists. Activities include the topics of "Cowboy Music & Poetry," "Documenting Traditions," "Indian Rawhide Drum Making," and "Quilting Traditions." Site also includes lesson plans, activities, and posters related to individual Montana traditional artists. The artists represent Blackfeet Indian beadwork, knifemaking, wood artistry, and traditional rawhide work from the White Clay People (Gros Ventre) tradition. Each lesson plan is in a 5 p. PDF format. Lesson plans are correlated to Montana Standards for Arts.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities; Posters |
Language: English |
Subjects: Gros Ventre Indians; Blackfeet Indians; Drum making; Knife making; Hides and skins; Beadwork; Cowboys--Poetry; Quilting; Folklore--Fieldwork; Montana--Social life and customs; Folk art; Folk artists; Cowboys--Songs and music; Music; Musical instruments; Indians of North America; Decorative arts; Needlework
Geographic locations: Montana |
Sponsoring Organization: Montana Arts Council 830 N Warren Street Helena MT 59620
(406) 444-6430 http://art.mt.gov/default.asp
Folkstreams Generic Lesson Plan
by Folkstreams http://www.folkstreams.net/educators/WkshtLesson.htm
Generic lesson plan for grades 10-12 for use with films available as streaming video on folkstreams.net. Lesson plan template offers suggestions for viewing films as literary texts and primary sources, analyzing documentary filmmaking techniques, and guiding students in reflecting on the traditions, sense of place, identity, and beliefs of American cultural groups and communities.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12; Undergraduate |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Performing Arts; Music |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans; Primary sources; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: United States--Social life and customs; Folk music; Folklore; Ethnographic films; Educational films; United States--History
Geographic locations: United States; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net
Folkvine
by Florida Division of Cultural Affairs http://www.folkvine.org/home.php
Folklore-oriented interdisciplinary website featuring documentation of Florida art and artists, from such traditions as lacemaking, quilting, painting, shoemaking, and sculpting using papier mache, bones, and other materials. The site also incorporates circus traditions and cultural arts representing African American, Peruvian American, Puerto Rican, and Hawaiian backgrounds. The documentation of the selected traditional artists and their communities is available through audio and video clips, photographs, and background textual materials.
Grade Level: All ages; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Audio recordings; Podcasts |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: Decorative arts; Peruvian Americans; Circus; African Americans; Folk artists; Folk art; Florida--Social life and customs; Lace and lace making; Quilting; Puerto Ricans; Shoemaking; Outsider art; Needlework
Geographic locations: Florida |
Sponsoring Organization: Florida Division of Cultural Affairs 500 South Bronough Street Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6470 http://www.florida-arts.org/
Folkwriting: Lessons about Place, Heritage and Tradition for the Georgia Classroom
by Diane W. Howard, Laurie Kay Sommers http://www.valdosta.edu/folkwriting/
Curriculum materials created in 2002 that combine the teaching of folklore concepts and fieldwork with the development of writing skills. Using lesson plans, activities, and resources for K-12 classrooms, background is given in the writing process and the concept of folklife as a subject for writing assignments. The guide includes instructions for doing folklore fieldwork and interviews, geared to different grade levels. Although written with Georgia traditions and curriculum standards in mind, the curriculum materials are applicable to the study of other states or regions. (354 p. PDF)
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Fieldwork (Educational method); Georgia--Social life and customs; English language--Writing; Holidays; Folklore; Folklore--Fieldwork
Geographic locations: Georgia; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Valdosta State University 1500 N. Patterson Avenue Valdosta GA 31698
(229) 333-5946 http://www.valdosta.edu/
Food and Culture, Past and Present in Choctaw Culture
by Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations http://www.echospace.org/articles/173/sections/421
Curriculum resources for grades 4-12 that explore the effects of colonization, cultural interaction, and change on the local foodways of the Mississippi Choctaw culture. Topics covered include how food choices are influenced by the geography and ecosystems of a cultural group’s homeland, how cultural celebrations and ceremonies are related to available food resources, and how a group’s ways of obtaining food has changed since European contact. Curriculum suggestions and activities conform to National Standards for English Language Arts, Geography, and History.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Geography; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Science |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Ecology; Mississippi--Social life and customs; Celebration; History; Indians of North America; Health; Food; Foodways; Choctaw Indians; Intercultural communication; Ethnobotany
Geographic locations: Mississippi |
Sponsoring Organization: Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations
http://www.echospace.org/
German Settlement in Colonial Pennsylvania
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=77
Lesson plan with activities related to German settlement in colonial Pennsylvania, geared to the middle and high school classroom, for use in the curriculum areas of history, geography, reading and writing. The lesson focuses on the hardships of the trans-Atlantic journey, immigration patterns and how they have changed over time, and reasons why people immigrated to the Colonies, especially from Germany to Pennsylvania. Background materials include a glossary, resources for teachers and students, and links to primary and secondary source materials drawn from the collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. The lesson plan is correlated to the Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, History, and Geography.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Geography; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Ethnic groups; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Immigrants; History; German Americans; Emigration and immigration; Geography; Cultural geography; United States--History--Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Ghetto Life 101
by Sound Portraits Productions http://soundportraits.org/on-air/ghetto_life_101/
In 1993, two teenagers from Chicago's South Side collaborated with public radio producers to create the radio documentary "Ghetto Life 101," based on audio diaries of life in the Ida B. Wells housing projects. A study guide (24 p. PDF) was written for classroom use to accompany the audio segments. It adds new voices and historical perspectives to the original radio documentary. Topics covered in the study guide include growing up in the ghetto, the character of urban neighborhoods, and responding to violence in the inner city. In addition to the study guide, the Ghetto Life 101 web site includes the original audio documentaries, their transcripts, and photos.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Illinois--Social life and customs; Sound recordings; Violence; Neighborhoods; Community life; African Americans; Fieldwork (Educational method); Interviewing; Inner cities; Urban folklore; City and town life
Geographic locations: Illinois |
Sponsoring Organization: Sound Portraits Productions 80 Hanson Place, 2nd Floor Brooklyn NY 11217
(646) 723-7020 http://soundportraits.org/
God Given: Cultural Treasures of Armenia - Teacher's Guide
by Susan Eleutario http://www.ndstudies.org/media/prairie_artists_norik_astvatsaturov_god_given_cultural_treasures_of_armenia
Teacher's guide for "God Given : Cultural Treasures of Armenia," a documentary featuring the metal repoussé artistry and life experiences of Norik Astvatsaturov, formerly of Azerbaijan and currently living in North Dakota. The curriculum materials provide an opportunity for students to examine issues related to the geography, history, and culture of Armenia, as well as ethnic conflict, the plight of refugees, and the experience of being an immigrant in the United States. The video is approximately 10 minutes long and is available on the website. Lesson plans in the teacher's guide (16 p. PDF) have benchmarks and standards for grades 9-12 for the Visual Arts, Language Arts, and Social Studies.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Geography |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Immigrants; Ethnic groups; Emigration and immigration; Refugees; Decoration and ornament; North Dakota--Social life and customs; Armenia--Social life and customs; Material culture; Armenian Americans; Art; Artisans; Decorative arts; Metal-work; History; Geography
Geographic locations: North Dakota; Armenia |
Sponsoring Organization: North Dakota Council on the Arts 1600 E. Century Avenue, #6 Bismarck ND 58503-0649
(701) 328-7590 http://www.nd.gov/arts/
Good Food, Served Right: A Photographic Essay on North Country Food Traditions
by TAUNY-Traditional Arts in Upstate New York http://www.northcountryfolklore.org/goodfood/index.html
Teacher resource guide with activities (20 p. PDF) that accompanies an online photographic exhibit of foodways and their traditions in the North Country region of New York State. The curriculum materials can be used for a variety of ages and grade levels. Includes photographs, audio recordings of oral interviews, and background on the food cultures of diverse groups of people who live in the North Country.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Foodways; Food; New York (State)--Social life and customs; North Country (N.Y.)--Social life and customs; Ethnic folklore; Ethnic groups
Geographic locations: North Country (N.Y.); New York (State) |
Sponsoring Organization: TAUNY-Traditional Arts in Upstate New York 53 Main Street Canton NY 13617
(315) 386-4289 http://tauny.org/
The Grand Generation: Interviewing Guide & Questionnaire
by Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) http://smithsonianeducation.org/migrations/seek1/grand1.html
Educational website designed as a guide for collecting folklore and oral history from older tradition-bearers. It features a general guide to conducting interviews and a sample list of questions which may be adapted to specific needs and circumstances. The site also includes some examples of ways to preserve and present your findings and a selection of further readings. The site was produced to accompany the exhibition, "The Grand Generation: Memory, Mastery, Legacy," organized by the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage and SITES, but can easily serve in a stand-alone capacity to instruct students in grades 3 through college in the documentation of family folklore and oral history collected from elders.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12; Undergraduate |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Interviewing; Inquiry-based learning; Folklore--Fieldwork; Family--Folklore; Family--History; Older people; Oral history
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) 470 L'Enfant Plaza, SW, Suite 7103 Washington DC 20024
(202) 633-3168 http://www.sites.si.edu/
Other Organizations:
Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage 600 Maryland Avenue, S.W. Suite 2001 Washington DC 20024
(202) 633-6440 http://www.folklife.si.edu/
Grand Generation Discussion Guide
by Paddy Bowman http://www.folkstreams.net/context,281
Discussion guide for grades 10-12 to accompany the film “The Grand Generation,” created by filmmakers Marjorie Hunt, Paul Wagner, and Steve Zeitlin in 1993. The 28-minute film, available as streaming video on folkstreams.net, is a portrait of six older Americans from Maryland, Mississippi, New York, Washington, D.C., New Mexico, and Tennessee, each with their roots in a unique cultural heritage and their own distinctive perspectives on the nature of aging. The discussion guide and film consider the issues of creative aging, diversity, race relations, gender roles, hard times and resilience, creativity, the cycle of life, and technological change in the lives of the featured elders.
Grade Level: 9-12; Undergraduate |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Primary sources; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Labor unions; Race relations; Aging; Folk art; Old age; Folklore; Older people; Educational films; Ethnographic films; Oral history; Older artists; Gender role
Geographic locations: Washington (D.C.); Tennessee; New York (N.Y.); New Mexico; Mississippi; Maryland |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Grenada and Carriacou Teaching Resources
by Association for Cultural Equity http://www.culturalequity.org/rc/ce_rc_teaching_grenada.php
Educational materials for use in the K-12 classroom in the curriculum areas of music, dance, and language arts, based on archival collections from the Lesser Antilles in the Alan Lomax Archive. The site includes classroom activities focused on a variety of musical genres and characteristics, with video and audio examples recorded by Lomax in Grenada and Carriacou in 1962 and 1991.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Music; Performing Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Audio recordings; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Quadrille (Dance); Carriacou Island (Grenada)--Social life and customs; Rhythm; Grenada--Social life and customs; Drumming; Dance; Dance music; Sea songs; Drum; Creole dialects
Geographic locations: Grenada; Carriacou Island (Grenada) |
Sponsoring Organization: Association for Cultural Equity 450 West 41st Street, Suite 602-606 New York NY 10036
(212) 268-4623 http://www.culturalequity.org/
Haiti Teaching Resources
by Association for Cultural Equity http://www.culturalequity.org/rc/ce_rc_teaching_haiti.php
Educational materials for use in the K-12 classroom in the curriculum areas of music, dance, and language arts, based on Haitian archival collections in the Alan Lomax Archive. The site includes classroom activities focused on a variety of musical genres and characteristics, with video and audio examples recorded by Lomax in Haiti in 1936.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Sports and Recreation; Performing Arts; Music; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English; French |
Subjects: Drum; Work songs; Rhythm; Occupations--Folklore; Music; Games; Children's songs; Lullabies; Dance music; Haiti--Social life and customs; Merengue (Dance); Drumming
Geographic locations: Haiti |
Sponsoring Organization: Association for Cultural Equity 450 West 41st Street, Suite 602-606 New York NY 10036
(212) 268-4623 http://www.culturalequity.org/
Harvest Ceremony: Beyond the Thanksgiving Myth
by National Museum of the American Indian http://americanindian.si.edu/education/files/NMAI_Harvest_Study_Guide.pdf
Study guide that assists teachers in preparing lessons about the first Thanksgiving, from the Native American perspective. It includes information about the Wampanoag Indians, their initial encounters with the "pilgrims," the importance of corn, instructions on how to make johnny cakes, and information about the Wampanoag today, with suggested classroom discussion topics. (5 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Corn; Wampanoag Indians; Thanksgiving Day; Holidays
Geographic locations: New England; Massachusetts |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Harvesting: Interrelationships Between Humans and Plants
by Teaching Tolerance http://www.tolerance.org/activity/harvesting-interrelationships-between-humans-and-plants
Activities for students in grades 3-12 to introduce them to the field of ethnobotany in order to explore cultural diversity and ethnic traditions. Topics considered include cultural food preferences, the folklore of plants, and the historical relationships that different cultural communities have with plants. For use in social studies, science, and health curricula.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Ethnic groups; Ethnobotany; Gardening; Ethnic folklore; Cultural pluralism; Plants; Community life; Food; Foodways
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: Teaching Tolerance 400 Washington Avenue Montgomery AL 36104
(334) 956-8200 http://www.tolerance.org/
Harvesting the River Lesson Plan: Taking an Oral History
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/RiverWeb/harvesting/pdfs/OralHistory.pdf
Lesson plan for students in grades 5-12 to introduce them to recording and writing up an oral history from a family or community member after hearing and/or reading oral histories. Materials include a link to "Harvesting the River," an online audio, video, and image archive of the Illinois State Museum, based on research done on communities and activities found along the Illinois River. Lesson includes interviewing guidelines and procedures, as well as information on how to use the materials documented by the students. Addresses the Illinois State Board of Education Standards and Goals for History and Social Studies. (3 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Fishing; Oral history; Interviewing; Inquiry-based learning; Community life; Family--Folklore; Family--History; Illinois--Social life and customs; History; Boats and boating; Rivers; Transportation
Geographic locations: [No specific location]; Illinois |
Sponsoring Organization: Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Haudenosaunee Guide for Educators
by National Museum of the American Indian http://www.nmai.si.edu/education/files/HaudenosauneeGuide.pdf
Teaching guide that provides background and activities on the Haudenosaunee, a confederation of six Native American nations commonly known as the Iroquois Confederacy. The nations include the Mohawk, the Oneida, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, the Seneca, and the Tuscarora. The Teaching Guide was created by staff from the Museum of the American Indian in collaboration with Haudenosaunee scholars and community members. It includes background information about the history, traditions, cultural life, arts, and patterns of social and civic interaction of the Haudenosaunee peoples, with suggestions for classroom discussion questions and activities, such as the making of cornhusk dolls. (24 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Iroquois Indians; Oneida Indians; Seneca Indians; Dollmaking; Indians of North America; New York (State)--Social life and customs; Oklahoma--Social life and customs; Mohawk Indians; Cayuga Indians; Wisconsin--Social life and customs; Tuscarora Indians; Onondaga Indians
Geographic locations: Wisconsin; Oklahoma; New York (State) |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Heartfelt/Handmade Activity: Hand-Molded Pottery
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/pdfs/hh_pottery.pdf
Pottery-making activity, geared to K-12 grade levels, with accompanying resources and images of 19th century folk art from the Illinois State Museum website. Introduces students to hand-molded and decorated pottery and folk art of the kind that was made before the age of electric equipment. Addresses Illinois Board of Education Goals and Standards for Art. (2 p. PDF)
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Crafts; Folk art; Pottery
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: MuseumLink Illinois 1011 East Ash Street Springfield IL 62703
(217) 782-7475 http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/
Other Organizations:
Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Heritage Arts Build-A-Picture Activities
by New Hampshire State Council on the Arts http://www.nh.gov/folklife/learning/index.htm
Activities to introduce students in grades 3-12 to New Hampshire traditions and heritage arts. Puzzle activities on traditional arts topics include ash basket making, blacksmithing, dog sledding, fly tying, contra dance, and sheep sheering. The activities are designed to help students learn about traditional arts and artists, broaden literacy skills, develop basic research interests, and nurture writing skills. Background information is provided to expand on the activities in the classroom and community.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: New Hampshire--Social life and customs; Folk art; Folk artists; Crafts
Geographic locations: New Hampshire |
Sponsoring Organization: New Hampshire Council on the Arts 2 1/2 Beacon Street, Suite 225 Concord NH 03301-4447
(603) 271-2789 http://www.nh.gov/nharts/
Hispanic Exploration in America -
Primary Source Set
by Library of Congress http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/hispanic-exploration/
Maps, drawings, a sound recording, paintings, written documents and presentations outline the role of Hispanic explorers in the discovery, exploration, and development of America. The resources in this primary source set are intended for classroom use. Includes a Hispanic Exploration in America teacher guide (7 p. PDF), and audio recordings, maps, and other manuscript materials drawn from the Library of Congress' online digital collections. There is also a link to primary source analysis tools.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Audio recordings; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: America--Discovery and exploration--Spanish; Maps in education; Explorers; Hispanic Americans; History
Geographic locations: United States; Spain |
Sponsoring Organization: Library of Congress 101 Independence Avenue, SE Washington DC 20540-1300
(202) 707-5000 http://www.loc.gov/teachers/
Hispanic Folk Arts and The Environment: A New Mexican Perspective
by Alejandro Lopez http://www.nmcn.org/heritage/folk_arts/
Curriculum guide in English and Spanish on aspects of Spanish exploration and settlement in the Rio Grande corridor of New Mexico. Includes four focus areas with lesson plans and activities: 1) Land, River, and Hispanic Settlements; 2) Building Community: The Roots of Adobe; 3) Foodways of the Rio Grande; and 4) Rio Grande Weaving. Curriculum materials are correlated to New Mexico State Content Standards for Art, Science, Social Studies, Language Arts, Mathematics, and Physical Education.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Sports and Recreation; Science; Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities; Primary sources |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: Weaving; America--Discovery and exploration--Spanish; Folk art; Hispanic Americans; Adobe brick; History; New Mexico--Social life and customs; Foodways; Architecture
Geographic locations: Spain; New Mexico |
Sponsoring Organization: New Mexico CultureNet 913 Placita Chaco Santa Fe NM 87505-6253
(505) 474-8500 http://www.nmcn.org/
Other Organizations:
Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.moifa.org/
Hmong Cultural Tour
by Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures http://csumc.wisc.edu/cmct/HmongTour/themes/index.htm
Teacher's guide for organizing cultural tours for students in the upper elementary grades, developed as an educational resource for a Madison Children's Museum exhibit, Hmong at Heart, created in 2004. This site documents a class trip of 4th and 5th graders to seven cities in Wisconsin to introduce them to Hmong culture and communities firsthand. Includes a "How We Did It" section, to help teachers plan their own cultural field trips, and students' essays about the trip. Hmong traditions and history, including music, foodways, crafts, games, healing practices, and textile arts are described in the "Field Guide to Hmong Culture," (91 p. PDF). Links to the "Teachers' Guide to Local Culture" (69 p. PDF), which includes a generic lesson plan for grades 3-5, with adaptations for K-2, plus teaching strategies. Also links to the "Kids' Guide to Local Culture," (139 p. PDF), which includes student activities.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Interviewing; Inquiry-based learning; Foodways; Traditional medicine; Music; Games; Textile fabrics; Folklore--Fieldwork; Community life; Storytelling; Fieldwork (Educational method); Hmong Americans; Wisconsin--Social life and customs; Crafts
Geographic locations: Wisconsin |
Sponsoring Organization: Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures 901 University Bay Drive Madison WI 53705
(608) 262-8180 http://csumc.wisc.edu/
Other Organizations:
Madison Children's Museum 100 State Street Madison WI 5370f3
(608) 256-6445 http://www.madisonchildrensmuseum.org/
Honky Tonks, Hymns, and the Blues: American Music from Back Roads to Big City
by National Public Radio http://www.honkytonks.org/
Study guides for NPR radio series on southern musical traditions in the U.S. The website provides audio of original radio presentations, including interviews and musical sound clips. Each section deals with a different theme, including: "Honky Tonk Women: The Changing Role of Women in Country Music," "Riding the Rails to Stardom: The Maddox Brothers and Rose," "Country Guitar: The Music Meets Technology and Changing Times," "A Pure Sound: Country Music and the Moral Message," "Thomas A. Dorsey: From 'Georgia Tom' to the Father of Gospel Music," "Música Norteña: Accordion on the Texas Border," "Country Fiddling: From Back Porch to Big City, "The Rise of the Country Blues," "Jimmie Rodgers: Birth of the Country Superstar," "Lone Star Swing: Bob Wills and the Texas Tradition," "Black and White: Crossing the Border, Closing the Gap," and "The Carter Family on the Air: Border Radio and Country Music." Appropriate for use in the secondary school classroom.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Audio recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Popular music; African Americans; Honky-tonk music; Country music; Blues (Music); Gospel music; Western swing (Music); Conjunto music; Music; Guitar music
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: National Public Radio 635 Massachusetts Avenue, NW Washington DC 20001
(202) 513-2000 http://www.npr.org/
Immigrants in Coal Country: Anthracite Mining in Pennsylvania
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=89
Lesson plan with activities related to issues of work and immigration among ethnic workers in the hard coal region of northeastern Pennsylvania. The unit is geared to the middle and high school classroom for use in the curriculum areas of history, civics and government, geography, performing arts, and reading and writing. The unit focuses on the link between labor and ethnicity in a coal mining region, changes in the mining industry over time, and the culture of anthracite coal miners, including their music, working conditions, and life experiences. Background materials include a glossary, resources for teachers and students, and links to primary and secondary source materials, drawn from the collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and other materials. The lesson plan is correlated to the Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, History, Geography, and Arts and Humanities.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Geography; Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Ethnic groups; Coal miners; Industrialization; Immigrant labor; Ethnicity; Community life; Music; History; Labor history; Cultural geography; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Ballads; Folk songs; Coal mines and mining; Immigrants; Civics
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
In the Wake of the Hurricanes - Helping Students Document Hurricanes: Interviewing and Fieldwork in the Classroom
by Louisiana Voices Folklife in Education Project http://www.louisianavoices.org/KatrinaUnit/KatrinaUnit.pdf
Classroom resource for teachers working with 5th through 12th grade students to help them understand and cope with the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The unit involves teaching students to interview each other, community members, and family about hurricane experiences. Includes lesson plans, activities, and handouts correlated to Louisiana Content Standards. (64 p. PDF) In addition, three art lesson plans provide guidance on working with students and hurricane recovery.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Folklore--Fieldwork; Oral history; Inquiry-based learning; Interviewing; Hurricanes; Louisiana--Social life and customs; Weather
Geographic locations: Louisiana |
Sponsoring Organization: Louisiana Voices Louisiana Division of the Arts Baton Rouge LA 70804
(225) 342-8180 http://www.crt.state.la.us/arts/
Indivisible Educator's Guide
by Center for Creative Photography http://www.indivisible.org/resources.htm
An educator's guide for K-12 students that combines photography and first-person narratives to explore community life, identity, and civic action (72 p. PDF). Lesson plans are available on taking documentary photographs, collecting oral histories, and analyzing gathered fieldwork documentation. It includes descriptions of twelve community documentation projects undertaken throughout the United States. Created in 2000 in connection with a national documentary project called "Indivisible: Stories of American Community." A selection of slides and an audio cd of excerpted project interviews accompanies the lessons.
Sponsoring Organization: Center for Creative Photography University of Arizona Libraries Tucson AZ 85721-0103
(520) 621-7968 http://www.creativephotography.org/
Other Organizations:
Center for Documentary Studies Duke University Durham NC 27705
(919) 660-3663 http://cds.aas.duke.edu/
Iñupiaq Whale Hunt
by Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations http://www.echospace.org/articles/137/sections/207
Curriculum resources for grades 5-8 that explore the role of the whale hunt among the Inupiat people along the Chukchi Sea of northern Alaska. Topics covered include how the whale hunt nourishes the Inupiaq people and sustains and builds community. An accompanying video with discussion questions illustrates Inupiaq subsistence hunting and fishing and demonstrates how whaling fulfills many of the nutritional, economic, social and cultural needs of Inupiaq life. Curriculum suggestions can be applied to the areas of social studies, history, language arts, and geography.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Geography; Hunting; Whaling; Alaska--Social life and customs; Indians of North America; Inupiat; Food; Foodways; Celebration; Environmental sciences; Fishing
Geographic locations: Alaska |
Sponsoring Organization: Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations
http://www.echospace.org/
Iowa Folklife: Our People, Communities, and Traditions
by Iowa Arts Council http://www.uni.edu/iowaonline/folklife/intro/index.htm
Learning guide for middle and high school students plus elders in senior centers based on field documentation of Iowa traditional culture, communities, and groups done in preparation for the Festival of American Folklife and the Festival of Iowa Folklife, both held in 1996. The guide includes lesson plans with objectives, background, conceptual and hands-on activities, and handouts, arranged by subject matter: Social Studies, Language Arts, Music, and Art. Accompanying the lesson plans are activities with guidance on developing a community research archive, collecting field recordings, and creating exhibitions, festivals, and publications based on fieldwork done by students. On the site are two streamed videos for classroom viewing, streamed audio of a CD exemplifying a variety of Iowa traditional musical styles, and "Inherit Iowa," a senior citizen activity guide.
Grade Level: All ages; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: European Americans; Scandinavian Americans; Crafts; Iowa--Social life and customs; Ethnic folklore; Festivals; Folklore--Fieldwork; Inquiry-based learning; Folk artists; Music; Foodways; Community life; Fieldwork (Educational method); Immigrants; Folk music; Holidays; German Americans; Czech Americans; Hmong Americans; African Americans; Mexican Americans; Occupations--Folklore; Material culture; Fishing; Maritime culture; Quilting; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: Iowa |
Sponsoring Organization: Folk & Traditional Arts Program Iowa Arts Council Des Moines IA 50319-0290
(515) 242-6195 http://www.iowaartscouncil.org/programs/folk-and-traditional-arts/resources.shtml
Other Organizations:
Iowa Arts Council 600 E. Locust Street Des Moines IA 50319-0290
(515) 281-6412 http://www.iowaartscouncil.org/
Iowa Folklife -- Volume II
by Iowa Arts Council http://www.uni.edu/iowaonline/folklife_v2/
Online curriculum resource guide for K-12 students and educators that explores the traditional music, foods, dance, rituals and crafts of Iowa's diverse cultures. A companion resource to "Iowa Folklife: Our People, Communities, and Traditions," it includes content pages, audio samples, suggested readings, lesson plans and other online resources. Lesson plans and accompanying materials focus on the blues, Gospel, Latino music, Old Time music, Polka, First Nations Peoples, Vietnamese Tet, and cultural traditions from Laotians, Danes, Bosnians, and Asian Indians who have settled in Iowa.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Holidays; Religious life and customs; Vietnamese Americans; Vietnamese New Year; Iowa--Social life and customs; East Indian Americans; Foodways; Dance; Polka; Old-time music; Music; Blues (Music); Gospel music; Hispanic Americans; Bosnian Americans; Indians of North America; Meskwaki Indians; Laotian Americans; Danish Americans; Crafts; Asian Americans
Geographic locations: Iowa |
Sponsoring Organization: Folk & Traditional Arts Program Iowa Arts Council Des Moines IA 50319-0290
(515) 242-6195 http://www.iowaartscouncil.org/programs/folk-and-traditional-arts/resources.shtml
Other Organizations:
Iowa Arts Council 600 E. Locust Street Des Moines IA 50319-0290
(515) 281-6412 http://www.iowaartscouncil.org/index.shtml
Journeys and Transformations: British Columbia Landscapes
by Virtual Museum of Canada http://www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/exhibits/journeys/english/teacher.html
Teacher's guide that presents background, teaching ideas, and activities about the physical environments of British Columbia, including its mountains, forests, waters, grasslands, and cities. For each environment, sub-topics focus on the geography, natural history, First Peoples lives, and historical development of British Columbia. Materials include artifacts and historical accounts of indigenous inhabitants. Focusing on the theme of transformation, this interactive site provides curriculum background on the interactions of the physical landscape, native and newcomer populations, and culture.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: City and town life; Cultural geography; Immigrants; Land use; British Columbia--Social life and customs; Indians of North America; Environmental sciences; Environmental protection; Ecology; Canada--Social life and customs; Cultural relations; Intercultural communication
Geographic locations: Canada |
Sponsoring Organization: Virtual Museum of Canada 15 Eddy Street, 15-4-A Gatineau, Quebec, Canada K1A OM5
(819) 994-1200 http://www.museevirtuel-virtualmuseum.ca/index-eng.jsp
Jubilation! : African American Celebrations in the Southeast
by Digital Traditions http://www.digitaltraditions.net/html/J_Resources.cfm
Educator guide that explores the special nature of African-American celebrations within the family and community, and encourages students to discover their own cultural heritage. It focuses on rites of passage and community celebrations among African Americans in the Southeastern United States, with guidance in documenting celebrations and doing oral history. Includes lesson plans, activities, teacher background, and a bibliography of adult and children's literature. The guide is geared towards students in grades 3-12. (51 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: United States--Social life and customs; Folklore--Fieldwork; Rites of passage; Southern States--Social life and customs; African Americans; Holidays; Family--Folklore; South Carolina--Social life and customs; North Carolina--Social life and customs; Celebration
Geographic locations: Southern States |
Sponsoring Organization: Digital Traditions Folklife Resource Center, McKissick Museum Columbia SC 29208
(803) 777-3714 http://www.digitaltraditions.net/Index.cfm
Other Organizations:
McKissick Museum University of South Carolina Columbia SC 29208
(803) 777-7251 http://www.cas.sc.edu/mcks/
Junior Appalachian Musicians: Celebrating the Musical Heritage of the Southern Appalachians
by Junior Appalachian Musicians, Inc. http://www.jaminfo.org/index.html
Web-based educational resources for grades K-12 providing lesson plans, instructional videos, and sound recordings to encourage students to participate in and learn about stringband, old-time, and bluegrass music and dance traditions of the Southern Appalachians. Includes instructional audio files and videos for performing old-time music on banjo, dulcimer, fiddle, guitar, and mandolin, plus interviews with old-time musicians.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Music |
Resource Type: Activities; Audio recordings; Lesson plans; Primary sources; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Appalachian Region--Social life and customs; Music; Dance; Banjo music; Bluegrass music; Dulcimer music; Guitar music; Mandolin music; Music--Instruction and study; Old-time music; Fiddle tunes
Geographic locations: Appalachian Region, Southern |
Sponsoring Organization: Junior Appalachian Musicians, Inc. 608 W. Stuart Dr. Galax VA 24333
(276) 238-0526 http://www.jaminfo.org/index.html
Keeping Us in Stitches Activity: Be a Quilt Detective
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/pdfs/ks_detect.pdf
Research activity with accompanying resources, geared to grades 6-10, for uncovering history recorded in handmade objects by researching quilt patterns, fabrics, and colors. Site includes links to Illinois State Museum quilt collections. Addresses the Illinois State Board of Education Goals and Standards for artistic expressions of culture and analyzing and classifying art by style, period, and culture. (3 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Textile fabrics; Crafts; Quilting; Quiltmakers; Quilts; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: MuseumLink Illinois 1011 East Ash Street Springfield IL 62703
(217) 782-7475 http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/
Other Organizations:
Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Keeping Us in Stitches Activity: Interviewing a Quilter
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/pdfs/ks_interview.pdf
Activity for students to help them understand the process of quilting by interviewing a quilter in a classroom setting. Guidelines offer suggestions for preparing interview questions, taking notes during the interview, and documenting what is learned from the experience. Site includes links to Illinois State Museum quilt collections. Activity addresses Illinois State Board of Education Goals and Standards for how the arts function in history, society, and everyday life. (2 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Decorative arts; Quilting; Quiltmakers; Interviewing; Inquiry-based learning; Needlework
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: MuseumLink Illinois 1011 East Ash Street Springfield IL 62703
(217) 782-7475 http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/
Other Organizations:
Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Key Ingredients: America by Food - Teacher's Guide
by Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) http://www.sites.si.edu/education/KI%20Teacher%27s%20Guide.pdf
Teacher resource guide with five lesson plans plus handouts for grades 4-12 on the topic of family and local food traditions. Created to accompany an exhibition of the same name developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), the materials can also function in a stand-alone capacity. They include research and activity-oriented lessons during which students gather recipes, interview family members, create an exhibition on their state's agricultural history, and examine the effects of the media on their food choices. Lessons focus on the subjects of American Culture, American History, Multiculturalism, and Technology, and address National Curriculum Standards for Social Studies and Health Education. (32 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Health; Food; Foodways; Inquiry-based learning; Interviewing; United States--History; Agriculture
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) 470 L'Enfant Plaza, SW, Suite 7103 Washington DC 20024
(202) 633-3168 http://www.sites.si.edu/
King County and Western Washington Cultural Geography, Communities, Their History and Traditions
by Northwest Heritage Resources http://www.northwestheritageresources.org/
Ten-week curriculum unit of forty lesson plans (85 p. PDF), with accompanying essays on cultural background and traditional art forms, plus a searchable database of Washington state traditional artists. Designed for use by 7th and 8th grade Social Studies teachers for the Washington State Culture and History curriculum. Curriculum unit focuses on the traditional art forms of Cantonese Opera, Kathak Dance, Hmong Basketry, and Oud Music of the Arabic World. Cultural background essays describe communities of Puget Salish, Chinese Americans, Asian Indians, Laotian Americans, and Arab Americans living in Washington state.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Geography; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Indians of North America; Chinese Opera; Coast Salish Indians; Music; Dance; Basket making; Kathak (Dance); Laotian Americans; Chinese Americans; Arab Americans; East Indian Americans; Washington (State)--Social life and customs; Cultural geography; Crafts; Asian Americans
Geographic locations: Washington (State) |
Sponsoring Organization: Northwest Heritage Resources 3505 NE 187th Street Lake Forest Park WA 98155
(206) 306-1181 http://www.northwestheritageresources.org/
The Kwakwaka'wakw: A Study of a North Pacific Coast People and the Potlatch
by National Museum of the American Indian http://americanindian.si.edu/education/files/Kwak_Poster_TG.pdf
Teaching poster for grades 6-8 with accompanying lesson plans and activities that explore cultural traditions and values of the Kwakwaka'wakw people of British Columbia, Canada that express concepts of wealth and the importance of cultural continuity. Curriculum materials focus on this North Pacific Coast People's potlatch practice, its history, the values inherent in it, and the important role it plays in establishing and maintaining family connections to the past, to ancestors, and to the spirits of all living things. Poster meets national curriculum standards for Social Studies. (9 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities; Posters |
Language: English |
Subjects: Kwakwaka'wakw Indians; Indians of North America; Family--Folklore; Potlatch; History; British Columbia--Social life and customs; Community life
Geographic locations: Canada |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Lakota Winter Counts - The Teachers' Guide
by National Museum of the American Indian http://wintercounts.si.edu/html_version/html/learning_teachers.html
Teacher's guide to an online exhibit of Lakota "winter counts" for students in grades K-10. Lakota winter counts are pictographic calendars reflecting the history of a community, made by keeping track of the passage of years. Studying these creative historiographical tools offers a unique representation of the history of the Lakota Sioux people during the 18th and 19th centuries. The teacher's guide includes background information, lesson plans, resource lists, and primary sources from the Smithsonian's collections, plus instructions on navigating the online exhibit. Meets national curriculum standards for Social Studies. (33 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture; Science |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: South Dakota--Social life and customs; North Dakota--Social life and customs; Community life; Indians of North America; Lakota Indians; Great Plains--Social life and customs; History; Oral history; Oral tradition; Storytelling; Pictographs
Geographic locations: South Dakota; North Dakota; Great Plains |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Latino Philadelphia
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=104
Five-unit educational guide with lesson plans and activities in documenting and interpreting the history and experience of Philadelphia’s Latino communities. The materials in this guide are geared to the middle and high school classroom for use in the curriculum areas of history, geography, reading, writing, and the arts and humanities. The five units focus on Latino Identity and Diversity; Coming to Philadelphia; Labor and Struggle; Building Community; and Arts and Culture. Background materials include a glossary, resources for teachers and students, information on doing oral history, and links to primary source materials, drawn from the collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and other materials. The lesson plan is correlated to the Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards for Reading and Writing, History, Geography, and Arts and Humanities.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Geography; Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: Cultural geography; Oral history; Immigrant labor; Immigrants; Ethnicity; Ethnic folklore; Ethnic neighborhoods; Emigration and immigration; Music; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs; History; Community life; Mural painting and decoration; Hispanic Americans
Geographic locations: Philadelphia (Pa.); Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Learn NC
by UNC School of Education http://www.learnnc.org/
K-12 teaching and learning resources from the School of Education at the University of North Carolina. Includes lesson plans and learning materials (text and multimedia) on all curriculum areas for use by students independently or as part of classroom instruction. Resources can be browsed by grade level, subject area, and curriculum objective. Lesson plans include folklore, traditional culture, and many other topics. All lesson plans are aligned to the North Carolina Standard Course of Study.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Sports and Recreation; Science; Performing Arts; Music; Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Traditional medicine; Oral history; Music; Material culture; History; Foodways; Folklore; Folk art; Fieldwork (Educational method); Ethnic groups; Ethnic arts; Dance; Culture; Cultural geography; North Carolina--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: North Carolina; General |
Sponsoring Organization: LEARN North Carolina The University of North Carolina, School of Education Chapel Hill NC 27599-7216
(919) 962-8888 http://soe.unc.edu/
Lewis & Clark - The National Bicentennial Exhibition Teaching Units and Lesson Plans
by Missouri Historical Society http://www.lewisandclarkexhibit.org/4_0_0/index.html
Curriculum materials for grades 4-12 with a virtual exhibit of the "Lewis & Clark: The National Bicentennial Exhibition" that explores the cultural landscape the explorers encountered in the early 19th century. The teaching units with lesson plans and suggested activities cover the topics of: Preparing for the Trip; Politics & Diplomacy; Women; Mapping; Animals; Language; Warriors/Soldiers; Trade & Property; and Plants, each comparing and contrasting Lewis and Clark's experiences with what those of the Native Americans they met might have been. The lessons are geared to upper elementary, middle school, and high school levels, are inquiry-based, and use primary source materials, artifacts, and Indian interviews featured in the online exhibition. Also includes video clips, maps, and a variety of documents. Units are linked to Missouri State Standards and National Council for the Social Studies and National Science Teachers Association standards.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Geography; History and Social Studies; Science |
Resource Type: Activities; Audio recordings; Lesson plans; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Clothing and dress; Missouri--Social life and customs; Indians of North America--Languages; Indians of North America; Indian women; Maps in education; Women; Great Plains--Social life and customs; Plants; Explorers; Oral history; Oral tradition; Animals; Inquiry-based learning; Intercultural communication
Geographic locations: Washington (State); United States; Missouri; Great Plains |
Sponsoring Organization: Missouri History Museum P.O. Box 11940 St. Louis MO 63112
(314) 746-4599 http://www.mohistory.org/
A Life in Beads: The Stories a Plains Dress Can Tell
by National Museum of the American Indian http://americanindian.si.edu/education/files/NMAI_lifeinbeads.pdf
Teaching poster for grades 4-6 with accompanying lesson plans and activities that explore the traditional art of dressmaking and dress decoration among women of Native American tribes from the Great Plains region. Through the stories and art of contemporary women from the Assiniboine and Sioux tribes in Montana, students will learn about materials used in the past and today, as well as the cultural values and meanings behind dress decoration. Meets national curriculum standards for Social Studies. (10 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities; Posters |
Language: English |
Subjects: Decorative arts; Geography; History; Indian women; Montana--Social life and customs; Indians of North America; Sioux Indians; Beadwork; Assiniboine Indians; Dressmaking; Women artists; Clothing and dress; Decoration and ornament; Great Plains--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Great Plains; United States; Montana |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Living Traditions: Museums Honour the North American Indigenous Games
by Virtual Museum of Canada http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/Exhibitions/Traditions/English/teachers_corner.html
Activities and background for 8th grade students related to traditional North American indigenous games, such as lacrosse, Eastern Woodland games, archery, longball, paddling and canoe racing traditions, and the tag game known as wolf (or hunter) and moose (or caribou). The site also includes information about the North American Indigenous Games, a multi-sport event involving indigenous athletes.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Sports and Recreation |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English; French |
Subjects: Canada--Social life and customs; Sports; Games; Indians of North America--Games; Indians of North America; Recreation; History
Geographic locations: United States; Canada |
Sponsoring Organization: Virtual Museum of Canada 15 Eddy Street, 15-4-A Gatineau, Quebec, Canada K1A OM5
(819) 994-1200 http://www.museevirtuel-virtualmuseum.ca/index-eng.jsp
Lone Dog's Winter Count: Keeping History Alive
by National Museum of the American Indian http://www.nmai.si.edu/education/files/poster_lone_dog_final.pdf
Teaching poster developed for 4th through 8th grades to explore the oral culture and history-keeping techniques of the Nakota people who made the Lone Dog Winter Count. Originally, languages of the Northern Great Plains Indians were not written, but spoken. Using oral tradition, Native communities developed creative tools to help them remember their complex histories. A "winter count" was one way that Nakota storytellers recorded their histories and kept track of the passage of years. Poster includes lesson plan on the Native American practice of making winter counts and activities for creating pictograph calendars as mnemonic devices. Meets national curriculum standards for Social Studies. (10 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities; Posters |
Language: English |
Subjects: History; Assiniboine Indians; North Dakota--Social life and customs; Nakota Indians; Oral tradition; Storytelling; Pictographs; South Dakota--Social life and customs; Indians of North America; Geography; Great Plains--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Great Plains; South Dakota; North Dakota |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Louisiana Foodways Unit Activity
by Louisiana Voices Folklife in Education Project http://www.louisianavoices.org/pdfs/Unit7/FoodwaysPacket.pdf
Classroom resource for teachers working with elementary and high school students to introduce the wide variety of food customs found in the state of Louisiana. The unit includes teacher background on Louisiana's food traditions, plus lesson plans and activities for engaging students in interviewing and documenting local and family foodways, correlated to Louisiana Content Standards. (39 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Foodways; Folklore--Fieldwork; Inquiry-based learning; Interviewing; Fieldwork (Educational method); Family--Folklore; Louisiana--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Louisiana |
Sponsoring Organization: Louisiana Voices Louisiana Division of the Arts Baton Rouge LA 70804
(225) 342-8180 http://www.crt.state.la.us/arts/
Louisiana Voices : An Educator's Guide to Exploring our Communities and Traditions
by Paddy Bowman, Sylvia Bienvenu, Maida Owens http://www.louisianavoices.org/edu_get_start.html
Comprehensive resource guide for K-12 educators on the folklife of Louisiana. Although written for Louisiana, lessons and activities are adaptable to any region. The guide contains forty two lessons and many activities in nine units, correlated to Louisiana Content Standards, particularly those in English Language Arts and Social Studies. Units include: 1) Defining Terms; 2) Classroom Applications of Fieldwork; 3) Discovering the Obvious; 4) The State of Our Lives; 5) Oral Traditions; 6) Louisiana's Musical Landscape; 7) Material Culture; 8) The Worlds of Work and Play; and 9) The Seasonal Round and the Cycle of Life. It includes over 1000 pages, some in PDF-format, and links to many essays, slide shows, video and audio clips, and other web resources.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; Music; Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English; French; Spanish |
Subjects: Interviewing; Play; Performance; Celebration; Seasons; Family--Folklore; Games; Place-based education; Inquiry-based learning; Folklore--Fieldwork; Folklore; Music; Foodways; Louisiana--Social life and customs; Oral tradition; Storytelling; Material culture; Occupations--Folklore; Rites of passage; Holidays; Crafts; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: Louisiana; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Louisiana Voices Louisiana Division of the Arts Baton Rouge LA 70804
(225) 342-8180 http://www.crt.state.la.us/arts/
Lucreaty Clark, White Oak Basket Maker
by State Library and Archives of Florida http://www.floridamemory.com/OnlineClassroom/lucreaty/
Lesson plans, photographs, and audio interviews with Lucreaty Clark, basket maker, about the history and practice of making white oak baskets. Correlated to Florida State Standards, the lesson plans were created for grades 6-8 in a Social Studies or Language Arts curriculum. The primary source materials in this educational unit belong to the State Library and Archives of Florida's Florida Folklife Collection, available on the Florida Memory Web site.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Artisans; Women; Florida--Social life and customs; Material culture; African Americans; Basket making; Crafts
Geographic locations: Florida |
Sponsoring Organization: State Library and Archives of Florida 500 S. Bronough Street Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://dlis.dos.state.fl.us/index.cfm
Other Organizations:
Florida Memory Project State Library and Archives of Florida Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://www.floridamemory.com/
A Lyrical Life: The Struggle and Hope of South Sudan -- Teacher's Guide
by Susan Eleutario, Troyd Geist http://www.ndstudies.org/media/a_lyrical_life_the_struggle_and_hope_of_south_sudan
Teacher's guide for "A Lyrical Life: The Struggle and Hope of South Sudan," a documentary about the culture, history, music, and dance of the Ma'di people of southern Sudan and northern Uganda. Issues brought up in the video and lesson plans include religious conflict, slavery, race, genocide, displacement, war, and refugee status in southern Sudan. Also featured are the renewal of hope and the reconciliation process that is taking place in Africa and in America in places like North Dakota, where the featured musicians currently live. The video is approximately 26 minutes long and is available on the website. Lesson plans in the teacher's guide (22 p. PDF) have benchmarks and standards for grades 9-12 for Language Arts, Social Studies, and Music.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Emigration and immigration; War; Slavery; History; Religion; Refugees; Sudan--Social life and customs; Uganda--Social life and customs; North Dakota--Social life and customs; Music; Dance; Sudanese Americans; Ma'di (African people)
Geographic locations: Uganda; Sudan; North Dakota |
Sponsoring Organization: North Dakota Council on the Arts 1600 E. Century Avenue, #6 Bismarck ND 58503-0649
(701) 328-7590 http://www.nd.gov/arts/
The Maine Song and Story Sampler
by Maine Folklife Center http://umaine.edu/folklife/msss-curriculum-connection-series/
Educational website with thirteen lesson plans plus activities for K-12 teachers that focuses on the folklore, social conditions, history, politics, economics, and cultural life of the state of Maine. Includes access to the Maine Song and Dance Sampler Map with links to audio recordings of stories and songs from the Maine Folklife Center's archival collections, searchable by people or place. The curriculum suggestions are correlated to Maine educational standards for Social Studies.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities; Audio recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Maine--Social life and customs; Folklore; Oral history; Oral tradition; History; Social history; Social justice; Songs; Tales; Occupations--Folklore; Fishing; Labor unions; Labor history; Civics
Geographic locations: Maine |
Sponsoring Organization: Maine Folklife Center 5773 South Stevens, Room 112B Orono ME 04469-5773
(207) 581-1891 http://umaine.edu/folklife/
Other Organizations:
University of Maine Orono ME 04469
207-581-1865 http://www.umaine.edu/
Mapping Our Neighborhood History
by Historical Society of Philadelphia http://www.philaplace.org/resource/465/
Curriculum unit on the interactive PhilaPlace web site, (http://www.philaplace.org/), that offers a guide to developing local history projects so that students can explore the history and culture of their own neighborhoods. It includes teacher resources and classroom activities aimed for the middle and high school grades, aligned with Pennsylvania State Standards. The unit provides information on incorporating mapping technology into the classroom through the use of Google Maps and also gives guidance on conducting oral histories to gather additional background information through the voices of neighborhood residents. (20 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Interviewing; History; Geography; Oral history; Vernacular architecture; Architecture; Community life; Place-based education; Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs; Neighborhoods; Maps in education; Inquiry-based learning; City and town life
Geographic locations: Philadelphia (Pa.); Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Mapping South 4th Street to Fabric Row
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.philaplace.org/resource/468/
Curriculum unit on the interactive PhilaPlace web site, (http://www.philaplace.org/), that offers guidance in exploring maps using the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for a older commercial and residential area of inner city Philadelphia that includes many retail fabric stores to help develop interpretive and analytical skills for the study of history. It includes teacher resources, lessons, and classroom activities aimed for the middle and high school grades, aligned with Pennsylvania State Standards. The unit provides information on reading maps using GIS technology in connection with researching primary source material on census and land use to examine historical urban trends in immigration, occupation, ethnicity, and industrial and commercial development. Unit can be adapted to the study of the history of American urban areas other than Philadelphia. (75 p. PDF and 7 Excel spreadsheets with census information)
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Family-owned business enterprises; Stores, Retail; Census; Industrialization; Ethnic neighborhoods; Ethnic groups; Land use; Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs; Maps in education; Textile fabrics; Geography; Inner cities; Business enterprises; City and town life
Geographic locations: Philadelphia (Pa.); Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Master Cajun Fiddler: Michael Doucet
by Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education http://locallearningnetwork.org/guest-artist/michael-doucet/
K-12 curriculum ideas for studying the life and artistry of Michael Doucet, a Cajun fiddler, singer, and bandleader and a 2005 NEA National Heritage Fellow. Includes lesson and activity suggestions, an audio recording of an interview with Michael Doucet (with transcript), audio samples of his fiddling, and additional resources for the study of Cajun culture and music. These materials can be used in lessons in the curriculum areas of Language Arts, Social Studies, Folklife Studies, Visual Arts, Music, and History to examine Cajun culture in Louisiana.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English; French |
Subjects: Music; Louisiana--Social life and customs; Fiddle tunes; Fiddlers; Cajun music; Cajuns; Foodways
Geographic locations: Louisiana |
Sponsoring Organization: Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education c/o City Lore 72 East First Street
New York NY 10003 http://locallearningnetwork.org/
Masters of the Building Arts Activity Guide
by Betty Belanus, Marjorie Hunt http://www.folklife.si.edu/resources/pdf/BuildingArtsGuide.pdf
Adapted from a family activity guide to accompany the 2001 Smithsonian Folklife Festival program focused on the building arts and the artistry and skill of craftspersons. This guide offers activity suggestions for persons of all ages related to making stone walls, stained glass windows, and architectural terra cotta, and to working with ornamental ironwork, adobe, stone carving and masonry, and timber framing. (41 p. PDF)
Grade Level: All ages |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Artisans; Occupations--Folklore; Building trades; Material culture
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage 600 Maryland Avenue, S.W., Suite 2001 MRC 520 Washington DC 20024
(202) 633-6440 http://www.folklife.si.edu/
The Men Who Dance the Giglio - Teaching Guide
by Paddy Bowman http://www.folkstreams.net/context,277
Teaching guide for grades 10-12 to accompany an excerpt of the film “The Men Who Dance the Giglio,” created by filmmaker Jeff Porter in 1995. Nine minutes of the 28-minute film are chosen as a focus for the teaching guide. The film excerpt documents the Saint Paulinus Festival and its 2.5-ton giglio statue carried by 125 men in a Catholic religious procession through the streets of the Williamsburg neighborhood in Brooklyn, N.Y. The teaching guide and film explore the topics of community and neighborhood festivals, Italian American culture, ethnicity, and sacred and secular celebrations found in urban areas. The entire film is also available as streaming video on folkstreams.net.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Music |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans; Primary sources; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Educational films; Ethnographic films; Brooklyn (New York, N.Y.)--Social life and customs; Community life; Ethnicity; Religious processions; Italian American Catholics; Religious life and customs; Urban folklore; Festivals; Italian Americans; Celebration
Geographic locations: New York (N.Y.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Mexican-American Corona Maker: Eva Castellanoz
by Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education http://locallearningnetwork.org/guest-artist/eva-castellanoz/
K-12 curriculum ideas for studying the life and artistry of 1987 NEA National Heritage Fellow Eva Castellanoz, master corona maker and healer, who has been making paper and wax flower bouquets and coronas, or crowns, in the Mexican-American community for over fifty years. These resources can be used in the curriculum areas of language arts, geography, social studies, and the visual arts. Includes an activity for making paper and wax flowers, background on her Mexican-American culture, her life in Oregon,including her role as a community curandera, or healer, and additional resources for background research.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Mexican Americans; Healers; Paper flowers; Paper work; Oregon--Social life and customs; Migrant agricultural laborers
Geographic locations: Oregon; Mexico |
Sponsoring Organization: Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education c/o City Lore 72 East First Street
New York NY 10003 http://locallearningnetwork.org/
The Music District - Teaching Guide
by Paddy Bowman http://www.folkstreams.net/context,275
Teaching guide to accompany an excerpt of the film “The Music District,” created by filmmaker Susan Levitas in 1996. Nine minutes of the 56-minute film are chosen as a focus for the teaching guide. This excerpt profiles the "Junk Yard Band," a Go-Go group who explain and perform a pop music genre popular among African American youth in Washington, D.C. As Go-Go bands became popular in D.C. clubs and communities in the 1980s and 1990s, young people started break dancing contests and developed a distinctive musical style combining call-and-response lyrics with funk, jazz, rhythm and blues, and popular music. The discussion guide and film explore the topics of African American popular music and dance found in a vibrant urban youth culture noted for its creativity and improvisation. The entire film is also available as streaming video on folkstreams.net.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Video recordings; Primary sources; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Community life; Ethnic neighborhoods; Dance; Break dancing; Rap (Music); Washington (D.C.)--Social life and customs; Educational films; Urban folklore; Popular music; African American youth; Music; Ethnographic films; Go-go (Music)
Geographic locations: Washington (D.C.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net
Native American Dolls
by National Museum of the American Indian http://smithsonianeducation.org/images/educators/lesson_plan/native_dolls/native_dolls.pdf
Teaching guide for K-12 education with lesson plan and activities on diverse traditions of Native American dolls and dollmaking. Native doll makers describe how their work keeps old traditions alive and helps in developing new traditions. Includes examples of Navajo, Inupiat, Ojibwe, Seneca, and Seminole dolls exhibited in the National Museum of the American Indian and transcripts of interviews with their makers. The lesson is useful for teaching about cultural differences where students are encouraged to compare and contrast Native dolls with those from their own background. It meets national curriculum standards for History and Geography. Lesson plan originally published in the fall 2004 issue of "Smithsonian In Your Classroom." (28 p. PDF)
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Geography; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Geography; Seneca Indians; Inupiat; Seminole Indians; Dollmaking; Indians of North America; Indian dolls; Navajo Indians; Women artists; Oral history; Ojibwe Indians
Geographic locations: United States; New York (State); New Mexico; Minnesota; Florida; Alaska |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Other Organizations:
Smithsonian Center for Education and Museum Studies 600 Maryland Avenue, Suite 1005 Washington DC 20024
(202) 633-5330 http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/
Native American Lesson Plan: Someone's in the Kitchen
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/nat_amer/post/htmls/activities/re_recipes.html
Lesson plan for introducing students to Native American foodways, including information on how to measure ingredients and prepare traditional foods, as well as background on the role of food in Native American culture. Can be used with ESL students. Addresses the Illinois State Board of Education Goals and Standards for Math, Language Arts, and Social Science.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Math |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Foodways; Food; Indians of North America
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
A Native Place
by National Museum of the American Indian http://www.nmai.si.edu/education/files/NMAI-TGDweb.pdf
Teaching Guide for grades 4-8 that celebrates the establishment of the Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall in Washington, DC and the cultures and achievements of American Indian peoples. Included in this guide are three lesson plans with activities: "A Place of Pride," "A Welcoming Spirit," and "The Peoples' Knowledge." Curriculum materials focus on issues of Native history, museums, cultural representation, worldview, beliefs, philosophy, and material culture. They also encourage an understanding of, and respect for the strength, richness, and diversity of Native cultures. The Teaching Guide meets national curriculum standards for Language Arts, U.S. History, Social Studies, Geography, Science Literacy, and Fine Arts/Visual Arts. (5 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Geography; Science; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Culture; History; Museums--Curatorship; Material culture; Indians of North America
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Other Organizations:
Scholastic, Inc.
(800) 724-6527 http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/home.jsp
Native Words, Native Warriors
by National Museum of the American Indian http://www.nmai.si.edu/education/codetalkers/
Interactive curriculum website for grades 6-12 that explores the lives and experiences of American Indian Code Talkers, the servicemen who used their traditional tribal languages to transmit secret messages for the US military during World War I and World War II. Includes lesson plans, correlated to National Curriculum Standards for Social Studies and National Standards for History, captioned photographs, maps and documents, discussion questions, activities, and audio recordings of spoken word and Native American music.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Navajo Indians; Comanche Indians; Indians of North America; Indians of North America--Languages; Indian code talkers; World War, 1914-1918; World War, 1939-1945; Maps in education
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Natural Dyes from Plants Lesson
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/pdfs/dye_plants.pdf
Lesson plan for grade levels 4-12 to learn about how fabric dyes were made from natural substances such as onion skins, walnuts, bark, and flowers by Native Americans and early European settlers. Includes guidelines for preparing natural dyes and dyeing fibers or fabrics. Additional background information is provided to help students understand how dyeing traditions express aspects of culture that may change when different peoples come into contact with each other. Addresses Illinois State Board of Education Goals and Standards for History, Social Science, and the Visual Arts. (10 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Dyes and dyeing; Indians of North America; European Americans; Textile fabrics; Ethnobotany
Geographic locations: United States; Europe |
Sponsoring Organization: MuseumLink Illinois 1011 East Ash Street Springfield IL 62703
(217) 782-7475 http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/
Other Organizations:
Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Nebraska By Heart
by Nebraska Folklife Network http://www.nebraskafolklife.org/
A multidisciplinary instructional unit developed in 2007 for grades 6-8 designed to explore folk and traditional arts and folklife, generally and as they exist in Nebraska. The unit includes four lesson plans: 1) An Exploration of Folklife and Folk Arts; 2) Folk Arts and Folklife in Nebraska Culture; 3) Understanding the Folk Process; and 4) Reflecting on Folk Arts, Folklife, and Culture.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Nebraska--Social life and customs; Oral tradition; Material culture; Folk art; Folklore; Crafts
Geographic locations: Nebraska; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Nebraska Folklife Network 5620 Hunts Drive Lincoln Nebraska 68512
(404) 420-5442 http://www.nefolklife.org/
Needles and Pins: Textiles and Tools
by Museum of International Folk Art http://moifa.org/eventsedu/education/needlesandpins/nandpintro.html
Education guide designed for teachers to use with grades 1-8, focusing on themes of an exhibition, "Needles & Pins: Textiles and Tools," on display at the Museum of International Folk Art from 2007 to 2009. The lesson plans and art activities focus on textiles and the tools used to make them. It includes background on the art and technology of weaving and permanently coloring cloth, including the techniques of printing, stamping, and painting. Activities in the guide include the making of a Ghanaian Adinkra banner and a weaving project. The lesson plans are correlated to the New Mexico State Art Content Standards.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Crafts; Textile fabrics; Adinkra cloth; Weaving; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: Ghana; General; Africa, West |
Sponsoring Organization: Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.moifa.org/
Netmaking and Net Fishing in Florida
by State Library and Archives of Florida http://www.floridamemory.com/OnlineClassroom/netmaking/
Lesson plans, photographs, and audio interviews with longtime net maker and Fernandina, Florida resident Billy Burbank III about the history and practice of the net making trade. Correlated to Florida State Standards, the lesson plans were created for grades 6-8 in a Social Studies or Language Arts curriculum. The primary source materials in this educational unit belong to the State Library and Archives of Florida's Florida Folklife Collection, available on the Florida Memory Web site.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Florida--Social life and customs; Fishing nets; Maritime culture; Fishing
Geographic locations: Florida |
Sponsoring Organization: State Library and Archives of Florida 500 S. Bronough Street Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://dlis.dos.state.fl.us/index.cfm
Other Organizations:
Florida Memory Project State Library and Archives of Florida Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://www.floridamemory.com/
Neutrogena Curricula
by Museum of International Folk Art http://www.moifa.org/eventsedu/education/neutrogena/index.html
Two lesson plans for grades 1-8 related to objects from around the world found in the Museum of International Folk Art's Neutrogena collections. The first lesson plan deals with hats and headdresses and the second with resist-dye techniques used in textile design. Both include background information for teachers, resource lists, and ideas for extending the lessons into other curricular areas. The lesson plans are both correlated to the New Mexico State Content Standards for Art and Social Studies.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Resist-dyed textiles; Headgear; Hats; Textile fabrics; Crafts
Geographic locations: South America; Japan; Indonesia; General; Africa, West |
Sponsoring Organization: Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.internationalfolkart.org/
Ojibwa Sewn Bead Designs
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/ismdepts/anthro/beads/sewn_beads_lesson.html
Activity geared to grades 6-9 to examine and recreate the Ojibwa sewn beading styles that were influenced by seventeenth-century French floral embroidery and fabric prints imported by French traders, using beaded objects found in the museum's collections and on the web. Includes discussion of Ojibwa beading styles and their motifs. Addresses the Illinois State Board of Education Goals and Standards for the Visual Arts and Social Science.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Sewing; Beadwork; Crafts; Ojibwe Indians; Decorative arts; Decoration and ornament
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Oral Traditions
by Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations http://www.echospace.org/articles/127/sections/193
Curriculum resources for the study of Tlingit oral traditions for grades 5-8. The materials focus on the interconnections of story and dance in the Tlingit culture of Southeastern Alaska and include a video that features Tlingit oral tradition. Topics covered include how oral tradition tells us who we are, where we came from, and how it serves to communicate important cultural values. It also focuses on how the Tlingit people use art, song, dance, and storytelling to express their identity. Curriculum suggestions conform to National Standards for English Language Arts.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Celebration; Tales; Dance; Music; Intercultural communication; Storytelling; Oral tradition; Alaska--Social life and customs; Tlingit Indians; Clothing and dress; Material culture; Indians of North America
Geographic locations: Alaska |
Sponsoring Organization: Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations
http://www.echospace.org/
Our Arts, Our Land: A Young Reader's Guide to Selected Folk Arts of Hawaii
by Michael Schuster, Carl Hefner, J.W. Junker http://www2.hawaii.edu/%7Ehefner/pages/index.htm
Music, photographs, and interviews of traditional master artists from Hawaii designed as an introduction to folk arts for young people. The audio recordings were originally aired on Hawaii Public Radio as part of the "Pacific Visions" radio series. Hawaiian traditional arts represented include chant, lauhala weaving, fishnet knotting, quilting, slack key and steel guitar music, medicinal herbs, gourd carving, and hula ki'i puppetry. Also included are practitioners of Chinese Opera, Okinawan koten music and dance, Filipino dance, Korean pansori singing, and Japanese Mingei pottery. A folk arts quiz is provided for students.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English; Hawaiian |
Subjects: Decorative arts; Asian Americans; Crafts; Basket making; Folk artists; Folk art; Fishing nets; Pottery; Weaving; Music; Quilting; Puppets; Traditional medicine; Chinese Americans; Hawaiians; Japanese Americans; Maritime culture; Korean Americans; Chinese Opera; Hawaii--Social life and customs; Needlework
Geographic locations: Hawaii; East Asia; Asia |
Sponsoring Organization: Hawai'i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts 250 South Hotel Street, 2nd floor Honolulu HI 96813
(808) 586-0300 http://hawaii.gov/sfca/
The Painted Bride – Teaching Guide
by Paddy Bowman http://www.folkstreams.net/context,274
Teaching guide for grades 10-12 to accompany the film “The Painted Bride,” created by filmmakers Amada Dargan and Susan Slyomovics in 1990. The 25-minute film, available as streaming video on folkstreams.net, features traditional wedding customs practiced among Pakistani Muslim immigrants in Queens, New York. It follows a mehndi body painting artist as she creates intricate designs on the hands and feet of a bride-to-be while the bride’s friends sing humorous songs mocking the groom and future in-laws. The teaching guide and film explore tensions between American and Pakistani ideas of gender roles, identity, clothing, and ritual, including issues of cultural diversity in an immigrant community.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Intercultural communication; Educational films; Queens (New York, N.Y.)--Social life and customs; Immigrants; Gender role; Courtship; Mehndi (Body painting); Ethnicity; Clothing and dress; Costume; Ethnographic films; Cultural pluralism; Rites of passage; Marriage customs and rites; Islamic marriage customs and rites; Cultural relations; Immigrant families
Geographic locations: New York (State); New York (N.Y.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Papel Picado: A Traditional Mexican Folk Art
by Museum of International Folk Art http://www.moifa.org/eventsedu/education/muertos/papelpicado.html
Lesson plan with art activities created by the Museum of International Folk Art on the topic of traditional cut paper folk art called "papel picado," found in former Spanish colonies. For most holidays in Mexico, the brightly-colored strings of cut tissue paper banners are strung in homes and across streets. Curriculum materials are geared towards grades 1-8 and are correlated with the New Mexico State Content Standards for Art.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Holidays; Mexico--Social life and customs; Paper work; Folk art; Crafts; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: Mexico |
Sponsoring Organization: Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.moifa.org/
Pass It On: Cultural Traditions of the Lower Eastern Shore
by Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art http://www.wardmuseum.org/Education/TeachersandStudents/TeacherTrainingResources/PassItOnK12CurriculumActivity/tabid/583/Default.aspx
K-12 curriculum and activity guide to the cultural life, history, landscape, and traditions of the Lower Eastern Shore of Maryland. Curriculum units with lesson plans and activities include: I) Following the Water (19 pp. PDF); II) Living Off the Land (36 pp. PDF); III) Sporting and Playing (14 pp. PDF) ; and IV) Folklore and Folklife (32 pp. PDF). There is also a map of the Eastern Shore, a glossary of terms, a bibliography for further research, and links to audio and video clips. The curriculum has been synchronized with Maryland state content standards for Social Studies, and can be used for classes in History, Geography, Science, Economics, and Art.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Sports and Recreation; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture; Science |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Foodways; Oral history; Seasons; Eastern Shore (Md. and Va.)--Social life and customs; Chesapeake Bay Region (Md. and Va.)--Social life and customs; Maryland--Social life and customs; Maritime culture; Boats and boating; Fishing; Recreation; Folklore; Agriculture; Farm life; Boatbuilding; History; Environmental protection; Ecology; Watermen; Hunting; Play
Geographic locations: Maryland; Eastern Shore (Md. and Va.); Chesapeake Bay Region (Md. and Va.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art 909 South Schumaker Drive Salisbury MD 21804
(410) 742-4988 http://www.wardmuseum.org/
People and Fish: Angling, Fisheries Management, and Folkways
by Colorado 4-H Sportfishing Program http://www.4hfishing.org/main_resource_ethics.html
Curriculum and activities for 4-H youth and leaders involved in conservation, sportfishing, and outdoor education. A multidisciplinary teaching resource focusing on “People and Fish,” with units on angling ethics, fisheries management, and the folkways of fishing. The folkways unit includes guidance on collecting fishing stories and interviews, information on regional fish foodways, and an exploration of the material culture of fishing. Resource includes activities emphasizing self-documentation, such as “Keeping a Fishing Field Journal.” This resource is available as part of a National 4-H Sportfishing Curriculum. (77 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Science; Sports and Recreation |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Ethics; Inquiry-based learning; Foodways; Environmental sciences; Outdoor education; Fishing; Maritime culture; Fishery management; Interviewing; Storytelling; Environmental protection; Fishers
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: Colorado 4-H Sportfishing Program Colorado State University Extension Ft. Collins CO 80523
(719) 846-7403 http://www.4hfishing.org/
Performing Asveq (The Walrus Hunt)
by Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations http://www.echospace.org/articles/129/sections/195
Curriculum resources for grades 5-8 focused on how young people of Inupiaq and Yupick heritage express their cultural identity through song and dance. Topics covered focus on performing arts that provide a direct way to participate in one’s cultural community, to preserve culture for future generations, and to express joy in being a part of a culture. An accompanying video illustrates a song and dance describing a walrus hunt developed by students from an Anchorage high school. Curriculum suggestions conform to National Standards for English Language Arts and can be used in the classroom to teach social studies, music, and performing arts.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Performing Arts; Music |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Yupik Eskimos; Hunting; Indians of North America; Dance; Music; Alaska--Social life and customs; Storytelling; Tales; Inupiat; Walrus hunting
Geographic locations: Alaska |
Sponsoring Organization: Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations
http://www.echospace.org/
Philaplace: Sharing Stories from the City of Neighborhoods
by Historical Society of Philadelphia http://www.philaplace.org/
Interactive web site that connects stories to places across time in Philadelphia’s neighborhoods. The site uses a multimedia format and includes interactive maps (both contemporary and historical), photographs, and audio and video clips drawn from the collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. It encourages new historical and cultural interpretations and interconnections between community stories and the historical record. The site includes suggestions and activities for educators working with students in middle and high school.
Grade Level: All ages |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Immigrant labor; Place-based education; Immigrants; Inner cities; Family-owned business enterprises; Maps in education; Vernacular architecture; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Community life; Neighborhoods; Architecture; Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Philadelphia (Pa.); Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Piedmont Blues Guitarist: John Cephas
by Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education http://locallearningnetwork.org/guest-artist/john-cephas/
K-12 curriculum ideas for studying the life and artistry of John Cephas, a 1989 NEA National Heritage Fellow and Piedmont Blues guitarist. Includes lesson suggestions, a transcript of an interview with John Cephas, an audio sample of his music, and additional resources. These materials can be used in lessons in the curriculum areas of Language Arts, Social Studies, Geography, Folklife Studies, Visual Arts, Music, and History to examine blues music, race relations, and traditional culture in the Piedmont region of Appalachia.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Legends; Maps in education; Blues (Music); Race relations; Appalachian Region--Social life and customs; Work songs; African American musicians; Oral history; Music; Guitar music; Virginia--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Virginia; Appalachian Region |
Sponsoring Organization: Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education c/o City Lore 72 East First Street
New York NY 10003 http://locallearningnetwork.org/
Pilebutts: Working Under the Hammer – Study Guide
by Maria Hetherton http://www.folkstreams.net/context,267
Study guide for middle and high school students to accompany the film “Pilebutts: Working Under the Hammer,” created by Maria Brooks and Archie Green in 2003. The 28-minute film, available as streaming video on folkstreams.net, features the camaraderie and tough, risk-laden work of men and women of Oakland, California’s Pile Drivers Local Union Number 34, who drive the pilings for structures such as bridges, docks, freeways, and skyscrapers in the San Francisco Bay Area. The guide can be integrated into social studies and language arts curricula and serves as an introduction for students to labor culture and history in its focus on an occupational community in the Bay Area.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Pile drivers; Hazardous occupations; Ethnographic films; Labor unions; Labor history; Educational films; Construction workers; Oakland (Calif.)--Social life and customs; San Francisco Bay Area (Calif.)--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: California |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Place as a Mirror of Self and Community
by Teaching Tolerance http://www.tolerance.org/activity/place-mirror-self-and-community
Lesson with activities for students in grades 3-5 in a Social Studies curriculum that explores the intersection of cultural and human difference and community by looking at the role special places of all kinds play in people's lives.
Grade Level: 3-5 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Community life; Place-based education; Maps in education
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: Teaching Tolerance 400 Washington Avenue Montgomery AL 36104
(334) 956-8200 http://www.tolerance.org/
Plum Stone Dice Game
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/pdfs/re_dice.pdf
Activity geared to students in grades 4-8 in which they learn some background about the Native American plum stone dice game and also the rules for playing it. Addresses the Illinois State Board of Education Goals and Standards. (3 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Sports and Recreation |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Games; Indians of North America; Recreation
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: MuseumLink Illinois 1011 East Ash Street Springfield IL 62703
(217) 782-7475 http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/
Other Organizations:
Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Poor Pat Must Emigrate: 19th Century Irish Immigration
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=79
Lesson plan with activities related to the topic of nineteenth century Irish immigration to Pennsylvania, geared to the high school classroom, for use in the curriculum areas of history, the performing arts, reading and writing. The lesson plan focuses on the reasons why Irish immigrated to Pennsylvania and examines their patterns of immigration, including who came to the United States and who stayed in Ireland, plus community dynamics and discrimination faced in nineteenth century America. Background materials include a glossary, resources for teachers and students, and links to primary source materials such as ballads and correspondence, drawn from the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. It is correlated to the Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, and History.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Performing Arts; Music |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Immigrant labor; Music; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Ballads; Immigrants; History; Emigration and immigration; Irish Americans
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Prairie Activity: Prairie Quilt
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/pdfs/pr_quilt.pdf
K-8 unit on prairie life and quilting that introduces students to the prairie, including fauna, flora, land forms, settlement, and cultural life, linking it to its representation in traditional quilt patterns. Students are guided in using digital cameras to document images of the prairie that can be used in quilt blocks. Unit addresses Illinois Board of Education Goals and Standards in the Arts. (2 p.PDF)
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Decorative arts; Illinois--Social life and customs; Quilts; Quilting; Prairie; Needlework
Geographic locations: [No specific location]; Illinois |
Sponsoring Organization: MuseumLink Illinois 1011 East Ash Street Springfield IL 62703
(217) 782-7475 http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/
Other Organizations:
Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Preserving the Past with Oral History
by Emily Pennel http://www.preservationnation.org/resources/teaching-preservation/classroom-resources/resources/preservation_arkansas_oral_history.pdf
Lesson plan to use with students in grades 4-12 that introduces them to the basics of collecting oral history. Includes suggested questions to ask, tips to remember while interviewing, sample release forms, guidelines for transcribing interviews, and considerations to take into account in choosing appropriate technology for recording. Included are also examples of oral history projects that classes can use with their completed interviews. The lesson is correlated to Arkansas Curriculum Standards for History and Social Studies.(12 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Oral history; Interviewing; Inquiry-based learning
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: Arkansas Historic Preservation Program 1500 Tower Bulding, 323 Center Street Little Rock AR 72201
(501) 324-9880 http://www.arkansasheritage.com/
Puerto Rican Mundillo (bobbin-lace) Maker: Rosa Elena Egipciaco
by Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education http://locallearningnetwork.org/guest-artist/rosa-elena-egipciaco/
K-12 curriculum ideas for studying the life and artistry of Rosa Elena Egipciaco, a 2003 NEA National Heritage Fellow. Egipciaco is a master bobbin lacemaker of Puerto Rican heritage who lives in New York City. These resources and activities can be used in the curriculum areas of language arts, math, and the visual arts.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English; Spanish |
Subjects: Decorative arts; New York (N.Y.)--Social life and customs; Puerto Ricans; Crafts; Lace and lace making; Needlework
Geographic locations: New York (N.Y.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education c/o City Lore 72 East First Street
New York NY 10003 http://locallearningnetwork.org/
Quilts in Women’s Lives – Teaching Guide
by Paddy Bowman http://www.folkstreams.net/film,37
Teaching guide for grades 10-12 to accompany an excerpt of the film “Quilts in Women’s Lives,” created by filmmaker Pat Ferrero in 1981. Fifteen minutes of the 28-minute film are as a focus for the teaching guide. This excerpt features three women quilters -- artist and teacher Grace Earl, artist and Bulgarian immigrant Radka Donnell, and African American traditional quilter Nora Lee Condra. The teaching guide and film explore the lives, art, work, and philosophy of the three women quilters from different backgrounds. The entire film is also available as streaming video on folkstreams.net.
Grade Level: 9-12; Undergraduate |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Quilting; Women artists; Women; African American quiltmakers; Quilts; Quiltmakers; Ethnographic films; Bulgarian Americans; Educational films; African Americans; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Red Alexander: Shipwright and Folk Artist - Study Guide
by Maria Hetherton http://www.folkstreams.net/context,279
Study guide for middle and high school students to accompany the film “Red Alexander: Shipwright and Folk Artist,” created by Archie Green and Chris Simon in 1998. The 25-minute film, available as streaming video on folkstreams.net, focuses on the life and craft of a retired shipwright whose exquisite models of working ships mirror his fifty-year career building ships on the Oakland Estuary in California. The guide can be integrated into social studies and language arts curricula and serves as an introduction for students to labor culture and history in its focus on an occupational community in the Bay Area.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Primary sources; Lesson plans; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Ethnographic films; Ship models; Artisans; Folk artists; Labor history; Educational films; Occupations--Folklore; Older people; Oakland (Calif.)--Social life and customs; Oral history; Maritime culture; Shipwrights; Shipbuilding
Geographic locations: California |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Rivers of Steel Curriculum
by Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area http://www.riversofsteel.com/for-educators/curriculum/
The Rivers of Steel Curriculum offers an introduction to the study of the industrial and cultural heritage of southwestern Pennsylvania. Background information and activities in the curriculum are included in its four units: 1) Coal and Coke; 2) Folklife -- Hidden In Plain Sight; 3) Seeing Pittsburgh, and 4) Steel Heritage, all available in PDF format. Activities can be altered for classroom use as needed, according to age, ability level, or curriculum area. The site also has related video clips of traditional and industrial arts in the region in a section called "Open Hearth 5."
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; Math; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Folklore; Coal miners; Coal mines and mining; Industrialization; Iron and steel workers; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Steel industry and trade; Community life; Immigrant labor; Neighborhoods
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area 623 E. Eighth Avenue Homestead PA 15120
(412) 464-4020 http://www.riversofsteel.com/
Rogarshevsky Primary Source Activity Lesson Plan
by Tenement Museum http://www.tenement.org/documents/lessonplans/web5_lessonplan_RogarshevskyPrimarySourceHighSchool.pdf
Lesson plan with activities for students in high school to demonstrate how primary source documents can be used to piece together stories from the past. The primary source materials for this lesson include manuscripts pertaining to Abraham Rogarshevsky, a Russian immigrant, and his wife Fannie, who lived on Orchard Street in the Lower East Side of New York where the Tenement Museum is currently located. The lesson plan guides students in examining the documents to learn about the lives and occupations of the Rogarshevsky family. Appropriate for use with history, social studies, and geography curricula.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Geography; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Tenement houses; Family--History; Inquiry-based learning; History; New York (N.Y.)--Social life and customs; Immigrants; Immigrant labor; Russian Americans; Immigrant families
Geographic locations: New York (N.Y.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Lower East Side Tenement Museum 91 Orchard Street New York NY 10002
(212) 431-0233 http://www.tenement.org/
Row Upon Row: Sea Grass Baskets of the South Carolina Lowcountry
by Digital Traditions http://www.digitaltraditions.net/html/Row_Resources.cfm
Educator guide that introduces students in grades 1-12 to the sea grass basket making tradition of the South Carolina lowcountry. Lesson plans address the basic concepts of tradition, folk groups, and folk art, with examples drawn from lowcountry basket making and basket makers. In addition, the guide focuses on the value of studying one's own local history and emphasizes the connections between African American hairstyles and heritage. The units of the guide include student activities and teacher background, geared separately towards elementary, middle and high school levels. Curriculum covered is useful for classes in social studies, art, language, and South Carolina history, and is correlated to the South Carolina Basic Skills Assessment Program. (100-page PDF)
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: African Americans; Basket making; South Carolina--Social life and customs; Hairstyles; Maps in education; Folklore; Folk art; Crafts
Geographic locations: South Carolina; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Digital Traditions Folklife Resource Center, McKissick Museum Columbia SC 29208
(803) 777-3714 http://www.digitaltraditions.net/Index.cfm
Other Organizations:
McKissick Museum University of South Carolina Columbia SC 29208
(803) 777-7251 http://www.cas.sc.edu/Mcks/
Rural Roads, City Streets: Italians in Pennsylvania
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=669
Lesson plan with activities related to Italian American life and history in Pennsylvania, geared to the middle and high school classroom, for use in the curriculum areas of history, civics and government, geography, reading, and writing. The unit focuses on the history of Italian immigration, settlement, and ethnic identity in Pennsylvania and major themes in Italian immigrant life. Background materials include a glossary, resources for teachers and students, and links to primary source materials, including photographs and oral histories, drawn from the collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and other materials. The lesson plan is correlated to the Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, History, and Geography.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Geography; Performing Arts; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Immigrant labor; Italian Americans; Identity (Psychology); Ethnicity; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Ethnic groups; Ethnic neighborhoods; Oral history; Community life; Cultural geography; Civics
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
Sacred Harp
by State Library and Archives of Florida http://floridamemory.com/onlineclassroom/sacred_harp/
Lesson plans, photographs, and audio recordings documenting sacred harp singing in Florida. Includes field recordings by Alton Morris recorded in 1949 in Gainesville. Correlated to Florida State Standards, the lesson plans were created for a Music curriculum for grades 6-8. The primary source materials in this educational unit belong to the State Library and Archives of Florida's Florida Folklife Collection, available on the Florida Memory Web site.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Music; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Shape-note singing; Music; Florida--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Florida |
Sponsoring Organization: State Library and Archives of Florida 500 S. Bronough Street Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://dlis.dos.state.fl.us/index.cfm
Other Organizations:
Florida Memory Project State Library and Archives of Florida Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://www.floridamemory.com/
Sacred Places: California Missions from Different Perspectives
by Carol Fischer http://www.getty.edu/education/teachers/classroom_resources/curricula/arts_lang_arts/a_la_lesson09.html
Curriculum guide for grades 3-5 which explores the concept of sacred places by looking at works of art representing sacred space and studying the California missions. Includes lesson plan, activities, and links to photographs and art works from the J. Paul Getty Museum's collections. The guide addresses California state standards for Visual arts, Language Arts, History, and Social Studies.
Grade Level: 3-5 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Spanish mission buildings; California--Social life and customs; History; Art; Religious life and customs; Decorative arts; Sacred space; Architecture; Hispanic Americans
Geographic locations: California |
Sponsoring Organization: J. Paul Getty Museum 1200 Getty Center Drive Los Angeles CA 90049-1687
(310) 440-7330 http://www.getty.edu/museum/
The Seasonal Round
by Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education http://locallearningnetwork.org/the-seasonal-round/
Curriculum unit that provides a point of inquiry for K-12 students to explore how seasonal changes reflect and influence daily life and culture, holidays, festivals, and personal, family and community celebrations. Includes ideas and activities for examining and documenting how traditions vary from season to season, affected by weather, agricultural patterns, ecology, religious practice, and the recurrent yearly cycles of human life.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Rites of passage; Farm life; Weather--Folklore; Foodways; Folklore--Fieldwork; Fieldwork (Educational method); Holidays; Festivals; Birthdays; Ecology; Family--Folklore; Seasons; Weather; Agriculture; Occupations--Folklore; Celebration
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education c/o City Lore 72 East First Street
New York NY 10003 http://locallearningnetwork.org/
Seminole Doll Making
by State Library and Archives of Florida http://www.floridamemory.com/OnlineClassroom/seminole_dolls/
Lesson plans, photographs, and audio interviews with Seminole doll maker Mary B. Billie and her daughter, Claudia C. John, about the history and practice of Seminole doll making. Correlated to Florida State Standards, the lesson plans were created for a Visual Arts curriculum for grades 6-8. The primary source materials in this educational unit belong to the State Library and Archives of Florida's Florida Folklife Collection, available on the Florida Memory Web site.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Florida--Social life and customs; Seminole Indians; Dollmaking; Crafts; Indians of North America
Geographic locations: Florida |
Sponsoring Organization: State Library and Archives of Florida 500 S. Bronough Street Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://dlis.dos.state.fl.us/index.cfm
Other Organizations:
Florida Memory Project State Library and Archives of Florida Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://www.floridamemory.com/
Shapes, Sound Holes, and Strings Teacher's Guide
by Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum http://countrymusichalloffame.org/assets/Uploads/Files/2014-07SSS-lessoninside2.pdf
Teacher resource guide with ten lesson plans for grades K-8 designed to help teachers introduce their students to some of the traditional instruments featured in country music and to the sounds they create. The materials can be used in connection with a tour of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum or as a stand-alone unit. Lessons cover the topics of sound, the voice, country music instruments, including the guitar, banjo, fiddle, mandolin, and also the playing of country music. They address curriculum objectives in the Tennessee State Curriculum Standards in Language Arts, Music, Math, Social Studies, and Science. (24 p. PDF)
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Math; Music; Science; Performing Arts |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Sound; Country music; Musical instruments; Music; Musicians; United States--Social life and customs; Fiddle tunes; Banjo music; Guitar music; Mandolin music
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum 222 Fifth Avenue, South Nashville TN 37203
(615) 416-2088 http://countrymusichalloffame.org/
Show-Me Traditions: An Educators Guide to Teaching Folk Arts and Folklife in Missouri Schools
by Eleutario, Susan http://maa.missouri.edu/mfap/articles/showme_new.pdf
Educational guide with eight lesson plans and accompanying activities for fourth and fifth grade students that introduces concepts of folk arts and folklife in general and Missouri traditional art forms and artists in specific. The guide is organized as follows: Section I: Defining Folk Arts and Folklife; Section II: Discovering Folk Arts in Everyday Life; and Section III: Folk Artists in Missouri. Background information is provided on Missouri traditional arts and artists from the fields of Bluegrass music, Colombian-American dance and costume, Ozark riverways and boats, Irish-American music and dance, cowboy and spoken word poetry, German-American bobbin lace making, Missouri fiddling and old-time dance, and African-American storytelling. Site includes links to audio and video recordings plus additional background resources. Missouri curriculum connections are noted for Communication Arts, Social Studies, Fine Arts, Music, and Physical Education. (56 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5 |
Curriculum: Sports and Recreation; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities; Video recordings; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Fiddle tunes; Cowboys--Poetry; German Americans; Boats and boating; Fiddlers; Clothing and dress; Bluegrass music; Lace and lace making; Poetry; Ozark Mountains Region--Social life and customs; Storytelling; Folk music; Folk artists; Missouri--Social life and customs; Folklore; Folk art; Family--Folklore; Folk songs; Material culture; Celebration; Festivals; Dance; Legends; Oral tradition; Foodways; Community life; Place names; Colombian Americans; African Americans; Irish Americans; Interviewing; Names, Personal
Geographic locations: Ozark Mountains Region; Missouri |
Sponsoring Organization: Missouri Folk Arts Program 21 Parker Hall Columbia MO 65211-2330
(573) 882-6296 http://maa.missouri.edu/mfap/
Silk Road Encounters Education Kit
by Silk Road Project http://www.silkroadproject.org/Education/Resources/SilkRoadEncounters/tabid/339/Default.aspx
Teacher's guide (48 p. PDF) and sourcebook (48 p. PDF) that explore the diverse yet interrelated topics of trade, art, music, religion, history, and geography along the Silk Road to supplement classroom materials for students from elementary through high school. The teacher's guide has six lesson plans: 1) The Silk Roads Big Map; 2) Creating a Three-Dimensional Timeline; 3) Trading in the Silk Road Cities; 4) Belief Systems of the Silk Road; 5) Musical Innovation along the Silk Roads; and 6) Treasures of the Silk Roads.) Activities tiered for different educational levels accompany the lessons. A sourcebook provides background information for the lessons on the geography, history, belief systems, arts, music, and the travel of ideas and techniques along the Silk Road.
Sponsoring Organization: Silk Road Project 20 Westminster Street Providence RI 02903
(401) 427-6980 http://www.silkroadproject.org/tabid/36/default.aspx
A Singing Stream: A Black Family Chronicle - Curriculum Guides
by Folkstreams http://www.folkstreams.net/film,2
Three curriculum guides to accompany the film “A Singing Stream: A Black Family Chronicle,” created by filmmaker Tom Davenport with Daniel Patterson and Allen Tullos in 1986. The 57-minute film, available as streaming video on folkstreams.net, traces the history of the Landis family of Granville County, North Carolina, over the lifetime of its oldest surviving member, 86-year-old Bertha Landis. In the film, her sons' gospel quartet, "The Golden Echoes" rehearses and performs during a Landis family reunion. Family members also describe their migration North, work, race relations, music, and family ties. The site includes a film study guide by Beverly Patterson for 8th and 9th grades that explores African American history, music, family life and culture, and film as a social and historical document. Also available is an intergenerational film discussion guide by Paddy Bowman that offers ideas for considering issues of Jim Crow segregation, voting rights, gospel music-making, and faith and resilience in African American families. In addition, the site includes a teaching guide for grades 10-12 by Paddy Bowman focusing on aspects of the film mentioned above plus background essays on gospel quartets, Bertha Landis, and Granville County, North Carolina.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12; Undergraduate |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Music; Performing Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans; Primary sources; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: African Americans; North Carolina--Social life and customs; Segregation; Civil rights; Family--History; Gospel music; Race relations; Oral history; Music; African American families; Ethnographic films; Family reunions; Educational films; Family--Folklore; Race discrimination
Geographic locations: North Carolina |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Skeleton Esqueleto Puppets and Día de Muertos Ofrendas
by Museum of International Folk Art http://moifa.org/eventsedu/education/muertos/skeletonpuppets.html
Two activities associated with Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) for students in grades 1-8. Also known as All Souls' Day, Día de Muertos is rooted in both indigenous and Catholic religious belief and is increasingly being celebrated throughout the United States. The Skeleton Esqueleto Puppets activity will help students learn how puppets can reflect the cultures from which they come from, using Mexican skeleton puppets as an example. The Día de Muertos Ofrendas activity will give students an understanding of how ofrendas, or altars, are set up in people's homes for dead relatives during this holiday. The activities correlate to New Mexico State Content Standards for Art and Social Studies.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Religious life and customs; Holidays; Altars; Puppets; All Souls' Day; Mexico--Social life and customs; Crafts; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: United States; Mexico |
Sponsoring Organization: Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.moifa.org/
The Smithsonian Folklife and Oral History Interviewing Guide
by Marjorie Hunt http://www.folklife.si.edu/explore/Resources/InterviewGuide/InterviewGuide_home.html
Interviewing guide for collecting folklife field research and oral history from tradition-bearers, and family and community members. Created in 2003, it provides guidelines on conducting interviews, with sample questions that may be adapted to specific needs and circumstances. Also includes ideas on preserving and presenting field research findings, a selection of further readings, a glossary of key terms, and sample forms, such as release forms, tape and photo logs, and interview information forms. (35 p. PDF) Can be used for classroom projects.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Interviewing; Oral history; Folklore--Fieldwork; Fieldwork (Educational method); Inquiry-based learning
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Smithsonian Institution Washington DC 20013-7012
(202) 633-6440 http://www.folklife.si.edu/archives_resources/about.aspx
The Sonic Memorial Project - For Educators
by The Sonic Memorial Project http://www.sonicmemorial.org/public/index.html
Based on programs created for National Public Radio's Lost and Found Sound, the Sonic Memorial Project developed as a cross-media collaboration of independent radio and new media producers, artists, historians, and people from around the world who contributed recordings to the September 11 Digital Archive. SonicMemorial.org is an open archive with an online audio installation of the history of the World Trade Center, New York City. In addition to the audio recordings, the site includes a curriculum for educators with modules of lesson plans on the following topics: 1) History and Time; 2) Memorials; 3) The Places and Stories of Our Lives; 4) Civic Ideals and Practices; 5) Culture and Identity, and 6) How to Talk about 9/11. Accompanying follow-up activities and resources can be used with the lesson plans. The curriculum materials were written to support national standards in Social Studies education.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: United States--Social life and customs; September 11 Terrorist Attacks, 2001; Oral history; Memorials; History; Storytelling; World Trade Center (New York, N.Y.); United States--History
Geographic locations: United States; New York (N.Y.) |
Sponsoring Organization: Sonic Memorial Project National Public Radio Washington DC 20001
(877) 894-8500 http://sonicmemorial.org/sonic/public/index.html
Other Organizations:
National Public Radio 635 Massachusetts Avenue, NW Washington DC 20001
(202) 513-2000 http://www.npr.org/
South Philly Kaleidoscope: The 9th Street Market Mural
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.philaplace.org/resource/467/
Curriculum unit on the interactive PhilaPlace web site, (http://philaplace.org/), designed to encourage students to explore the mural at 8th and Christian Street to learn about the history and changes in the Philadelphia’s 9th Street market in Philadelphia over time and to examine the role of public art. It includes teacher resources and classroom activities aimed for the middle and high school grades, aligned with Pennsylvania State Standards. (18 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Public art; Ethnic markets; Mural painting and decoration; Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs; Community life; Ethnic neighborhoods
Geographic locations: Philadelphia (Pa.); Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
The Spirit of Islam: Experiencing Islam Through Calligraphy
by Virtual Museum of Canada http://www.moa.ubc.ca/spiritofislam/resources/education_overview.html
Curriculum materials that introduce students to Islam and how it is perceived and stereotyped by exploring its philosophical and ethical background, its calligraphy, and the Muslim presence in Canada. The site includes six lesson plans with activities that allow students to gain an understanding of Islam and the role calligraphy plays in it. It also offers the outlines of a project designed to help students learn how to overcome cultural stereotypes. Included are links to a virtual exhibit about calligraphy, special spaces for prayer and Islamic learning, and significant objects in Islamic life.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities; Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Cultural relations; Architecture; Sacred space; Muslims; Ethnicity; Cultural pluralism; Canada--Social life and customs; Calligraphy; Islam; Material culture; Intercultural communication
Geographic locations: Canada |
Sponsoring Organization: Virtual Museum of Canada 15 Eddy Street, 15-4-A Gatineau, Quebec, Canada K1A OM5
(819) 994-1200 http://www.museevirtuel-virtualmuseum.ca/index-eng.jsp
Sweet is the Day: A Sacred Harp Family Portrait - Teacher's Guide
by Folkstreams http://www.folkstreams.net/context,64
Teacher’s guide for grades 6-8 to accompany the film, “Sweet is the Day: A Sacred Harp Family Portrait,” created by Jim Carnes and Erin Kellen in 2001. The 59-minute film, available as streaming video on folkstreams.net, tells the story of the Woottens, one of the key singing families who helped Sacred Harp music survive and flourish for more than 150 years in the South. The film intertwines scenes of family gatherings, singing conventions, and farm life in the Sand Mountain region of northeast Alabama with family recollections and songs from the shape-note tradition. The teaching guide and film explore shape-note music and Sacred Harp singing, including the importance of the tradition in the lives of families in the Sand Mountain community.
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Performing Arts; Music |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Primary sources; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Music; Oral history; Shape-note singing; Farm life; Religious life and customs; Appalachian Region--Social life and customs; Choral societies; Alabama--Social life and customs; Family--Folklore; Community life; Ethnographic films; Family--History; Singing conventions; Singing schools; Educational films
Geographic locations: Alabama |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Teacher Lesson Plans
by John Michael Kohler Arts Center https://www.jmkac.org/TeacherLessonPlans
Lesson plans for the home and the K-12 classroom on such topics as Wisconsin folklore and regional history, the arts and social change, and visionary environmental art. The lesson plans are divided into "Constructed Realities Lesson Plans," and "Environmental Builders Lesson Plans," and are based on exhibits that the John Michael Kohler Arts Center has featured. Included are lessons with activities, in PDF format, focusing on traditional, ethnic, and visionary artists, and legendary figures from Wisconsin folklore.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Legends; Outsider art; Wisconsin--Social life and customs; Folklore; Folk artists; History; Art; Social history; Social justice
Geographic locations: Wisconsin |
Sponsoring Organization: John Michael Kohler Arts Center 608 New York Avenue Sheboygan WI 53081
(920) 458-6144 http://www.jmkac.org/
Teacher's Guide for Nevada Folk Arts Roster
by Nevada Arts Council http://nevadaculture.org/nac/dmdocuments/RosterTeacherGuide.pdf
Folk arts education guide created to accompany the Nevada Folk Arts Roster program and to provide an overview of the traditional arts and folklife of ethnic communities in Nevada. Includes lesson plans for the general study of folklife and also lessons on Mexican, African, Asian, Western and Eastern European, Hawaiian, and Native American cultures in Nevada, plus information on individual traditional artists working in the state. Accompanying worksheets and activities provide guidance in doing fieldwork. Lessons are designed for 4th and 7th grade students, but may be adapted for other age groups or skill levels. Correlated to Nevada Standards for Education for the areas of History, Social Studies, Geography, Library, Music, Physical Education, Visual Arts, and English Language Arts. (46 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Geography; Sports and Recreation; Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Crafts; Basket making; Mariachi music; Ukrainian Americans; Ethnic arts; Musicians; Family--Folklore; European Americans; Nevada--Social life and customs; Folklore--Fieldwork; Folklore; Folk art; Folk artists; African Americans; Asian Americans; Hawaiians; Indians of North America; Mexican Americans; Cowboys--Poetry; Cowboys--Songs and music; Irish Americans; Ranch life; Pysanky; Duck decoys
Geographic locations: Nevada; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Nevada Arts Council - Folklife Program 716 North Carson Street, Suite A Carson City NV 89701-4079
(775) 687-6680 http://nevadaculture.org/nac/
Teacher's Guide to "In My Heart, I Am a Dancer"
by Debora Kodish, Deborah Wei http://www.folkloreproject.org/programs/education/dancer/index.php
Curriculum guide to accompany the publication, "In My Heart I am a Dancer," about the Cambodian community in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Topics include Cambodian classical dance and costume, and the history and culture of Cambodia. Created for use with children in grades K-4 and also with older students. The guide includes background for teachers in working in the classroom with folk arts plus lesson plans, activities, and questions for students as they read the text.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Music; Math |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs; Beadwork; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Refugees; Dance; Cambodian Americans; Cambodia--Social life and customs; Immigrants; Folk artists; Cultural pluralism; Costume; Crafts; Ethnicity
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania; General; Cambodia |
Sponsoring Organization: Philadelphia Folklore Project 735 South 50th Street Philadelphia PA 19143
(215) 726-1106 http://www.folkloreproject.org/
Other Organizations:
School District of Philadelphia Education Office, 440 N. Broad St. Philadelphia PA 19130
(215) 400-4000 http://www.phila.k12.pa.us/
A Teacher's Guide to Kentucky Folklife
by Kentucky Historical Society http://www.history.ky.gov/pdf/Education/Folklife_Guide_Feb04.pdf
Teacher's guide to Kentucky folklife written in 2004 with lesson plans, student activities, and background essays. The guide has individual units on folklore in general and Kentucky folklife in the following areas: fieldwork, interviewing, folk art, foodways, occupational folklife, traditional music, and recreational folklife. The lessons can be used separately or together and are intended for use in the upper elementary and middle school classroom. (87 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Folk music; Folk art; Occupations--Folklore; Kentucky--Social life and customs; Games; Music; Folklore--Fieldwork; Folklore; Interviewing; Material culture; Foodways; Crafts
Geographic locations: Kentucky; General |
Sponsoring Organization: Kentucky Historical Society 100 W. Broadway Frankfort KY 40601
(502) 564-1792 http://history.ky.gov/
Other Organizations:
Kentucky Arts Council 500 Mero Street, 21st Floor, CPT Frankfort KY 40601
(502) 564-3757 http://artscouncil.ky.gov/
Teacher's Guide to the Teen Reporter Handbook
by University of Alberta Libraries http://www.youthsource.ab.ca/teacher_resources/oral_guide.html
Teacher's guide accompanying the "Teen Reporter Handbook: How to Make Your Own Radio Diary," a publication created by NPR's Radio Diaries project to train young people in interviewing and making sound recordings about their own lives, their communities, and their families. (14 p. PDF) Includes link to the "Teen Reporter Handbook" (22 p. PDF). Also includes an oral history unit for classroom teaching and other resources related to doing oral history, such as oral history websites, lesson plans, instructions for developing oral history questions, and guidelines on recording an interview.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Journalism; Inquiry-based learning; Interviewing; Oral history; Fieldwork (Educational method); Radio
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: University of Alberta Libraries 5-02 Cameron Library, University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
T6G2J8 http://www.library.ualberta.ca/
Other Organizations:
Radio Diaries 169 Avenue A, Suite 13 New York NY 10009
http://www.radiodiaries.org/
Teaching Lewis & Clark: Tribal Cultures & Homelands - Elementary/Middle School
by Washington State Historical Society http://stories.washingtonhistory.org/LC-columbia/teaching/cultures_2.htm
Lesson plan with activities for grades 3-8 that explore the cultural aspects of the native peoples who Lewis and Clark met along the Columbia River in the early 19th century. Special focus is placed on foodways and how Native Americans in the region used the various physical environments they had access to for fish, game, and roots and berries. A seasonal round template can be downloaded for students as an activity. The materials are correlated to Washington State Benchmarks for Economics, Geography, and History.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Science; History and Social Studies; Geography |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Seasons; Plants; Rivers; Geography; Foodways; Hunting; Fishing; Washington (State)--Social life and customs; Indians of North America; History
Geographic locations: Washington (State) |
Sponsoring Organization: Washington State Historical Society 1911 Pacific Avenue Tacoma WA 98402
(888)-238-4373 http://www.washingtonhistory.org/default.aspx
Teaching Folklife: Educational Materials for Students and Teachers
by Hayden Roberts http://www.arts.state.tn.us/images/folklife/Teaching%20Folklife.pdf
This educational resource contains lesson plans designed to introduce teachers and students to a basic understanding of traditional culture in Tennessee. It is most useful for students in the 4th through 7th grades. The guide includes five lesson plans: I) Introduction to Traditional Culture; II) Storytelling and Oral History; III) Folk Arts and Crafts; IV) Traditional Music; and V) Foodways. The resource includes a glossary of folklife terms and readings brought together from a wide variety of sources on the topic of Tennessee traditional arts. Materials in the guide can be used in the classroom for teaching Language Arts, Music, Visual Arts, Social Studies, and Math.(179 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Math |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Legends; Tales; Material culture; Tennessee--Social life and customs; Folklore; Oral history; Storytelling; Crafts; Folk art; Folk music; Music; Foodways; Fieldwork (Educational method); Oral tradition; Country music; Indians of North America; Blues (Music); Gospel music; Musical instruments; Dance
Geographic locations: Tennessee |
Sponsoring Organization: Tennessee Arts Commission Folklife Program 401 Charlotte Avenue Nashville TN 37243-0780
(615) 741-1701 http://www.tn.gov/arts/folklife.htm
Other Organizations:
Tennesee Arts Commission
http://www.arts.state.tn.us
Tell Me Your Stories: An Oral History Curriculum
by Living Legacies Historical Foundation http://www.tellmeyourstories.org/
Oral history curriculum for high school and middle school grade levels that links students with their families and communities. The site includes lessons for ten class periods, beginning with a description of what oral history is, and subsequently outlining the steps involved in planning, researching, and carrying out an oral interview. Included on the site are ideas for sample projects applicable to a variety of classroom subjects.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Community life; Oral history; Interviewing; Inquiry-based learning; History; Family--History; Fieldwork (Educational method)
Geographic locations: General |
Sponsoring Organization: Living Legacies Historical Foundation
(818) 786-1974 http://www.tellmeyourstories.org/
Telling My Story Oral History Lesson - Lower Elementary School
by Tenement Museum http://www.tenement.org/documents/lessonplans/web5_lessonplan_OralHistoryElementary.pdf
A lesson with activities for students in grades K-3 to introduce them to oral history as a way to gather information about a person, time period, place, or event. The materials included guide the students in developing a list of questions to ask during an oral history interview and explain the basics of interviewing. Appropriate for use with history, social studies, and language arts curricula.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Inquiry-based learning; Oral history; History; Family--History; Interviewing
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: Lower East Side Tenement Museum 91 Orchard Street New York NY 10002
(212) 431-0233 http://www.tenement.org/
The Texture and Weave of the Traditional Arts
by Jeanne Harrah Johnson, Anne F. Hatch http://nac.nevadaculture.org/dmdocuments/TWEducationPacket.pdf
Teachers' guide for middle and high school students focused on traditional life and folklore. Originally created to accompany a Nevada Arts Council exhibit entitled "The Texture and Weave of Traditional Art," the five lessons in the guide present general folklife concepts that can also be used in a stand-alone capacity, with examples taken from Nevada traditional culture. The guide explores how culture, traditional art forms, local history, and heritage are created by everyone and shared in communities and families. It also seeks to guide students in creating an awareness of cultural diversity in their local communities. Lessons meet the Nevada content standards for Visual Arts. (29 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Family--Folklore; Nevada--Social life and customs; Folk art; Folklore; Community life; Crafts; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: [No specific location]; Nevada |
Sponsoring Organization: Nevada Arts Council - Folklife Program 716 N Carson Street, # A Carson City NV 89701-4079
(775) 687-6680 http://nac.nevadaculture.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1400&Itemid=409
Thanksgiving - Primary Source Set
by Library of Congress http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/thanksgiving/
Study photographs, paintings, letters, and official proclamations to discover historical perspectives on American Thanksgiving holiday traditions, beginning with the pilgrims who came to North America on the Mayflower. The resources in this primary source set are intended for classroom use. Includes a Thanksgiving teacher's guide (6 p. PDF), and photographs and manuscript materials drawn from the Library of Congress' online digital collections, and a link to primary source analysis tools.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources |
Language: English |
Subjects: Massachusetts--Social life and customs; Thanksgiving Day; Holidays; United States--Social life and customs; United States--History--Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775
Geographic locations: United States; Massachusetts |
Sponsoring Organization: Library of Congress 101 Independence Avenue, SE Washington DC 20540-1300
(202) 707-5000 http://www.loc.gov/teachers/
The Ties that Bind
by Colorado Council on the Arts http://www.coloarts.state.co.us/programs/education/folkarts/index.htm
Multi-media resource created in 2006 for K-12 classroom teachers to address Colorado model content standards in History, Geography, and other disciplines. The tool contains the following: Written essays (Sections 1 and II); Lesson plans (Section III); Lists of additional resources (Section IV); plus audio and video resources that can be downloaded from the site. Eleven lesson plans include: "The Art of Interviewing" (14 p. PDF), "Colcha Embroidery" (8 p. PDF), ""Exploring Cowboy Life Through Cowboy Poetry," (30 p. PDF), "Folklore Bingo" (10 p. PDF), "Hmong Cultures" (12 p. PDF), "Introduction to Folklore for Grade 12" (6 p. PDF), "Latino Cultures" (10 p. PDF), "Quilts across Cultures" (12 p. PDF), "St. Patrick's Day and the Irish" (12 p. PDF), "Take a Trip to a Special Place" (6 p. PDF), and "Wheat Weaving" (10 p. PDF).
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Geography; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Irish Americans; Straw work; Folk art; Place-based education; Saint Patrick's Day; Quilts; Quilting; Hispanic Americans; Folklore; Hmong Americans; Cowboys--Poetry; Colorado--Social life and customs; Fieldwork (Educational method); Folklore--Fieldwork; Interviewing; Oral history; Embroidery; Weaving; Crafts; Holidays; Needlework
Geographic locations: General; Colorado |
Sponsoring Organization: Colorado Council on the Arts 1625 Broadway, Suite 2700 Denver CO 80202
(303) 892-3802 http://www.coloarts.state.co.us/
To Honor and Comfort: Native Quilting Traditions
by National Museum of the American Indian http://www.nmai.si.edu/education/files/quilts.pdf
Study guide developed by the National Museum of the American Indian to accompany a 1997 exhibition of the same name. It can also be used as an independent resource for educators. Includes four lesson plans that correspond to the exhibition sections: Origins, Honoring, Design, and Community. Curriculum focuses on quilters from eight Native American communities and has accompanying study questions, handouts, and activities. (36 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Indian women; Hawaiians; Tlingit Indians; Wasco Indians; Mohawk Indians; Osage Indians; Cherokee Indians; Textile fabrics; Maryland--Social life and customs; Hawaii--Social life and customs; New York (State)--Social life and customs; Oklahoma--Social life and customs; Indians of North America; Quilting; Alaska--Social life and customs; Oregon--Social life and customs; South Dakota--Social life and customs; Canada--Social life and customs; Veterans; Anishinabe Indians; Oglala Indians; Quiltmakers; Yupik Eskimos; Needlework
Geographic locations: South Dakota; Oregon; Oklahoma; New York (State); Maryland; Hawaii; Canada; Alaska |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu
Tradition: Tennessee Lives and Legacies Teacher's Guide
by Dana Everts-Boehm http://www.arts.state.tn.us/resources/tradition_teachers_guide.pdf
Teacher’s guide designed for grades 3-12 which enhances the understanding of Tennessee’s folklife heritage. Originally developed to prepare students for visiting an exhibition of the same name, the guide can stand on its own as an educational resource. The materials include profiles of Tennessee folk artists from a variety of regional and ethnic backgrounds, representing Cumberland Plateau old-time fiddling, Middle Tennessee buck dancing, African American blues, Choctaw beadwork, the making of Mennonite sorghum, and Mexican needlework. The guide also introduces students to the basic concepts of folklife, tradition, folk group, family folklife, tradition bearer, folk artist, and fieldwork. Accompanying forms and guidelines on interviewing family members and presenting findings in the classroom are included. The materials conform to Tennessee State Curriculum Standards for Art, Social Studies, Modern History, and Science. (24 pp. PDF) For a DVD of photographs of Tennessee traditional artists, including those in the teacher's guide, contact: dana.everts-boehm@tn.gov
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Science |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Family--Folklore; Inquiry-based learning; Mennonites; Beadwork; Needlework; Folk music; Interviewing; Dance; Music; Folklore; Tennessee--Social life and customs; Artisans; Fiddlers; Folk artists; Musicians; Foodways; African Americans; Mexican Americans; Choctaw Indians; Basket making; Fieldwork (Educational method)
Geographic locations: Tennessee |
Sponsoring Organization: Tennessee Arts Commission Folklife Program 401 Charlotte Avenue Nashville TN 37243-0780
(615) 741-1701 http://www.tn.gov/arts/folklife.htm
Other Organizations:
Tennesee Arts Commission
http://www.arts.state.tn.us/
Traditional Arts and Culture in the Cambodian Community in Philadelphia
by School District of Philadelphia http://www.phila.k12.pa.us/offices/curriculum/supports/philavoices/cambo_grade6.pdf
A grade 6 module developed for use in the School District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, aligned with the District's Core Curriculum on the folk arts of the Cambodian community in Philadelphia, with emphasis on Cambodian classical dance. The module includes background information on the country of Cambodia. (31 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Cambodian Americans; Dance; Cambodia--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Southeast Asia; Pennsylvania; Cambodia |
Sponsoring Organization: School District of Philadelphia 440 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia PA 19130
(215) 400-4000 http://www.phila.k12.pa.us/
Other Organizations:
Philadelphia Folklore Project 735 South 50th Street Philadelphia PA 19143
(215) 726-1106 http://www.folkloreproject.org/
Turtle and Pretty Crane - Teacher's Guide
by Susan Eleutario http://www.ndstudies.org/media/prairie_artists_keith_bear_turtle_and_pretty_crane
Teacher's guide for "Turtle and Pretty Crane," a documentary featuring Mandan and Hidatsa storyteller and flute player Keith Bear from the Forth Berthold Indian Reservation of northwestern North Dakota. The story told in the video is described by Keith Bear as an American Indian version of “Romeo and Juliet.” The video and lesson plans provide an opportunity for students to explore issues relating to music and culture, the analysis of legends, and the artistry of a Native American performer. The video is approximately 9 minutes long and is available on the website. Lesson plans in the teacher's guide (17 p. PDF) have benchmarks and standards for grades 9-12 for Language Arts, Social Studies, and Music.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Legends; Storytellers; Indians of North America; Music; Oral tradition; Storytelling; North Dakota--Social life and customs; Hidatsa Indians; Mandan Indians; Tales
Geographic locations: North Dakota |
Sponsoring Organization: North Dakota Council on the Arts 1600 E. Century Avenue, #6 Bismarck ND 58503-0649
(701) 328-7590 http://www.nd.gov/arts/
Unbroken Tradition – Teacher’s Guide
by Erin Kellen, Joey Brackner http://www.folkstreams.net/context,10
Teacher’s guide for grades 3-6 to accompany the film “Unbroken Tradition,” created by Joey Brackner, Erin Kellen, and Herb Smith in 1986. The 29-minute film, available as streaming video on folkstreams.net, is a portrait of Jerry Brown, a ninth generation potter from Hamilton, Alabama, whose forebears first set up a potter’s wheel in Georgia around 1800. The film takes the viewer through the steps of making a churn from digging the clay and preparing it for the potter’s wheel, to actual turning and firing of the piece in the kiln. It also includes Jerry’s explanation of how he came to the potter’s trade relatively late in life. The teacher’s guide and film explore issues relating to the continuation of this family tradition over generations, the making of stoneware pottery, and the importance of pottery in daily life in the past in the American South.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Science; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Family--Folklore; Potters; Pottery; Alabama--Social life and customs; Oral history; Georgia--Social life and customs; Family-owned business enterprises; History; Educational films; Ethnographic films; Artisans
Geographic locations: Georgia; Alabama |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Other Organizations:
Alabama State Council on the Arts 201 Monroe Street Montgomery AL 36130-1800
(334) 242-4076 http://www.arts.state.al.us/
Other Organizations:
Appalshop Whitesburg KY 41858 http://appalshop.org/
Veterans' Stories: Struggles for Participation - Primary Source Set
by Veterans History Project http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/veterans/struggles.html
Primary source materials from the Veterans History Project Collection at the Library of Congress that support teaching about U.S. history and social studies. Women and people of color have often had to overcome obstacles in order to participate fully in the U.S. armed forces. In these materials, veterans tell their stories of discrimination and
struggles for recognition in the U.S. armed forces through interviews, memoirs, and photographs. Materials on the site include an accompanying Teacher Guide (8 p. PDF), and audio and video recordings. For the Veterans' History Project, go to: http://www.loc.gov/vets
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Audio recordings; Activities; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Storytelling; Hispanic American soldiers; African American soldiers; Veterans; Women soldiers; War; Oral history; World War, 1939-1945; Korean War, 1950-1953; Persian Gulf War, 1991; Vietnam War, 1961-1975; United States--Social life and customs; Social history; Asian American soldiers; United States--History
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Veterans History Project Library of Congress Washington DC 20540-4615
(202) 707-4916 http://www.loc.gov/vets
Veterans' Stories: The Veterans History Project - Primary Source Set
by Veterans History Project http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/veterans/
Primary source materials from the Veterans History Project Collection at the Library of Congress that support teaching about 20th-century U.S. history, social studies, and oral history. Materials on the site include a Veterans History Project teacher guide (8 p. PDF), photographs, drawings, letters, memoirs, and video interviews of American veterans. The primary source set links to "Primary Source Analysis Tools" and "Especially for Educators and Students," a guide on how to conduct interviews with veterans and submit them to the Library of Congress for inclusion in the Veterans History Project Collection. For the Veterans' History Project, go to: http://www.loc.gov/vets/
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Primary sources; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: United States--Social life and customs; Korean War, 1950-1953; World War, 1939-1945; World War, 1914-1918; Military history; Storytelling; Interviewing; Oral history; Veterans; History; War; Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Soldiers; United States--History
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Veterans History Project Library of Congress Washington DC 20540-4615
(202) 707-4916 http://www.loc.gov/vets/
A Village of Painters: Narrative Scrolls from West Bengal
by Museum of International Folk Art http://www.moifa.org/eventsedu/education/painterslessonplan.pdf
Lesson plan with activities for grades K-12 created in conjunction with an exhibition of the same name held at the Museum of International Folk Art in 2006-2007. The focus of the curriculum materials is the artistry of the West Bengal, India community of patuas, who wander from village to village singing their own compositions while displaying painted scrolls that include religious songs, social commentary, and personal experience narratives. The curriculum materials correlate with the New Mexico State Content Standards for the Visual Arts. (11 p. PDF)
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Folk artists; Folk art; Painting; Scrolls; India--Social life and customs; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: South Asia; India |
Sponsoring Organization: Museum of International Folk Art PO Box 2087 Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200 http://www.moifa.org/
W is for Woods: Traditional Adirondack Music & Music Making
by TAUNY-Traditional Arts in Upstate New York http://woods.tauny.org/index.php
Educational resource for the study and history of traditional Adirondack music in New York State. Includes lesson plans for middle and high school music, history, and language arts curricula. The resource focuses on dance music, ballads, fiddle tunes, folk singers, collectors of folk music, and indigenous and ethnic traditional music found in the Adirondack region. The site has accompanying audio and video recordings, musical transcriptions, and background resources for the study of Adirondack traditional music. The educational content correlates to New York State Learning Standards.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Irish Americans; Mohawk Indians; Musicians; Fiddle tunes; Ballads; New York (State)--Social life and customs; Adirondack Mountains Region (N.Y.)--Social life and customs; Dance music; Folk music; Folk music--Collectors and collecting; Folk songs; French-Canadians
Geographic locations: New York (State); Adirondack Mountains Region (N.Y.) |
Sponsoring Organization: TAUNY- Traditional Arts in Upstate New York 53 Main Street Canton NY 13617
(315) 386-4289 http://tauny.org/
Waiting for a Train: Trains in Country Music and American Life
by Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum http://countrymusichalloffame.org/teacher-s-resources/
Teacher resource guide with lesson plan for K-12 classes on the topic of trains and other forms of transportation and their intersections with American life and with country music. Lesson has curriculum connections to Language Arts, Music, and Social Studies.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Language Arts; Music |
Resource Type: Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Railroads; Travel; Transportation; United States--Social life and customs; Song lyrics; Music; Country music; United States--History
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum 222 Fifth Avenue, South Nashville TN 37203
(615) 416-2088 http://countrymusichalloffame.org/
Walking on Solid Ground: Understanding the Chinese-American Experience in Philadelphia
by Deborah Wei http://www.phila.k12.pa.us/offices/curriculum/supports/philavoices/chineese-americanGrade7.pdf
Educational module for 7th grade on the traditional arts, culture, and history of the Chinese American community in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Includes lesson plans and activities for creating neighborhood maps, studying what makes a community, learning how to read and understand census reports and immigration patterns, and working with the concept of "ghetto," using Philadelphia's Chinatown as a model. (19 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 6-8 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Maps in education; Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social life and customs; Inquiry-based learning; Community life; Immigrants; Chinese Americans; Pennsylvania--Social life and customs; Ethnic neighborhoods; Inner cities; Asian Americans; Ethnicity
Geographic locations: Pennsylvania |
Sponsoring Organization: Philadelphia Folklore Project 735 South 50th Street Philadelphia PA 19143
(215) 726-1106 http://www.folkloreproject.org/
Ways to the Heart: Food and Foodways in Hawai'i
by Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations http://www.echospace.org/articles/171/sections/401
Classroom activities, lesson plans, and background information for the study of Hawaiian foodways, food resources, and the cultural importance of food. Curriculum ideas cover the topics of how food serves as a means for survival, builds community, marks cultural identity, and provides comfort. Materials include links to other web-based resources on the topic. Curriculum suggestions can be used in the teaching of geography, cultural anthropology, and history.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Geography; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Plants; Hawaii--Social life and customs; Celebration; Foodways; Food; Culture
Geographic locations: Hawaii |
Sponsoring Organization: Echo: Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations
http://www.echospace.org/
We Have a Story to Tell: Native Peoples of the Chesapeake Region
by National Museum of the American Indian http://americanindian.si.edu/education/files/chesapeake.pdf
Teacher guide for use with students in grades 9-12 that provides information and primary resource materials related to key periods and events in the history of the Algonquian communities of the Chesapeake Bay Region, especially the Powhatan, Nanticoke, and Piscataway peoples. Curriculum materials cover the period from the 1600s to the present and focus on how colonial settlement and the establishment of the United States have affected Chesapeake Bay Native Americans. With lesson plans, small group projects, and activities, the guide also introduces contemporary issues that are critical for these communities' survival, such as civil rights and the importance of legal recognition. Meets national curriculum standards for U.S. History and Social Studies. (28 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Geography |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Geography; History; Indians of North America; Colonialism; Algonquian Indians; Piscataway Indians; Civil rights; Nanticoke Indians; Chesapeake Bay Region (Md. and Va.)--Social life and customs; Powhatan Indians; United States--History--Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775; Eastern Shore (Md. and Va.)--Social life and customs
Geographic locations: Chesapeake Bay Region (Md. and Va.); Eastern Shore (Md. and Va.); Virginia; Maryland |
Sponsoring Organization: National Museum of the American Indian Fourth Street & Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20560
(202) 633-6996 http://www.nmai.si.edu/
Weaving with Seed Beads on a Bead Loom
by Illinois State Museum http://www.museum.state.il.us/ismdepts/anthro/beads/loom_weaving_lesson.html
Activity geared to grades 5-7 to demonstrate how Native Americans and others wove beads on a loom to create long, narrow bands for hair and bracelets in order to produce a patterned beaded bands using geometric patterns. Includes discussion of how color, shape, and value in Native American beading has changed over the years due partially to the influence of other cultures. Addresses the Illinois State Board of Education Goals and Standards for the Visual Arts and Social Science.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Weaving; Indians of North America; Crafts; Beadwork; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Illinois State Museum 502 South Spring Street Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386 http://www.museum.state.il.us/
Wisconsin Folks
by Wisconsin Arts Board http://arts.state.wi.us/static/folkdir/index.htm
Website for students, educators, and the general public featuring traditional artists, art forms, and cultures of Wisconsin. Includes background on regional and ethnic traditional crafts, foodways, music, and dance. Information on the site has content for 4th, 8th, and 12th grade themes in Social Studies, the Visual Arts, Music, Dance, English, Information and Technology Literacy, and Business, correlated to Wisconsin Model Academic Standards and Benchmarks. Also includes contact information for engaging Wisconsin traditional artists and performers for public and classroom presentations.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Crafts; Foodways; Music; Dance; Wisconsin--Social life and customs; Ethnic folklore; Ethnic arts; Folk art; Geography; Material culture; Folk artists; Decorative arts
Geographic locations: Wisconsin |
Sponsoring Organization: Wisconsin Arts Board 101 E. Wilson Street Madison WI 53702
(608) 266-0190 http://artsboard.wisconsin.gov/static/
Wisconsin Weather Stories
by Wisconsin Arts Board http://weatherstories.ssec.wisc.edu/
Interdisciplinary curriculum featuring the science and stories of weather. It offers units, lesson plans, and activities for the K-12 classroom on weather narratives such as severe weather stories and predictive sayings, and explores the occupational folklore of meteorologists. Developed in 2003, these resources include examples from Wisconsin weather and guidelines on collecting weather stories with an introduction to doing folklore fieldwork.
Grade Level: K-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Weather; Wisconsin--Social life and customs; Weather--Folklore; Folklore--Fieldwork; Interviewing; Meteorology
Geographic locations: Wisconsin |
Sponsoring Organization: Wisconsin Arts Board 101 E. Wilson Street Madison WI 53702
(608) 266-0190 http://artsboard.wisconsin.gov/static/
The Woman Who Turned Herself to Stone - Teacher's Guide
by Susan Eleutario http://www.ndstudies.org/media/prairie_artists_mary_louise_defender_wilson_the_woman_who_turned_herself_to
Teacher's guide for "The Woman Who Turned Herself to Stone," a documentary featuring Dakotah and Hidatsa storyteller Mary Louise Defender Wilson from the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in south-central North Dakota. The story told in the video describes a young girl who loved nature so much that she found a way to remain in the midst of it forever. Materials in the guide offer an opportunity for students to explore issues such as the significance of language in culture and storytelling, the cultural expectations of adolescence, and the interactions between the physical environment and human activity. The video is approximately 6 minutes long and is available on the website. Lesson plans in the teacher's guide (22 p. PDF) have benchmarks and standards for grades 4-8 for Language Arts and Social Studies.
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture; Geography |
Resource Type: Video recordings; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Environmental protection; Geography; Indians of North America--Languages; Storytelling; Storytellers; North Dakota--Social life and customs; Hidatsa Indians; Dakota Indians; Indians of North America; Legends; Tales; Ecology
Geographic locations: North Dakota |
Sponsoring Organization: North Dakota Council on the Arts 1600 E. Century Avenue, #6 Bismarck ND 58503-0649
(701) 328-7590 http://www.nd.gov/arts/
Woodsmen and River Drivers – Teaching Guide
by Paddy Bowman http://www.folkstreams.net/context,273
Teaching guide for grades 10-12 to accompany the film “Woodsmen and River Drivers,” created by filmmakers Michael Chalufour, Karan Sheldon, and David Weiss in 1989. The 28-minute film, available as streaming video on folkstreams.net, features men and women who worked for a lumber company in Maine before 1930 and who share their recollections of the logging industry. Documentary footage illustrates the dangerous and exhausting work of cutting trees by hand, hauling logs to the river with horses, and floating them down to the mill. By encountering firsthand accounts of arduous physical labor and the seasonal round of old-time logging in the film and teaching guide, students gain perspective on work and occupations in their own lives and communities, including how occupational folklife contributes to a sense of place.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; History and Social Studies; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Lesson plans; Primary sources; Activities; Video recordings |
Language: English |
Subjects: Hazardous occupations; Labor history; Log driving; Ethnographic films; Loggers; Oral history; Occupations--Folklore; Maine--Social life and customs; Educational films; Industrialization; Place-based education; Logging; Lumbermen; Seasons
Geographic locations: Maine |
Sponsoring Organization: Folkstreams
http://www.folkstreams.net/
Words & Music Teacher's Guide
by Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum http://countrymusichalloffame.org/assets/Uploads/Files/WM-TeacherGuide.pdf
Teacher resource guide with fifteen lesson plans for grade levels 3-12 to assist teachers in guiding their students through the basics of writing song lyrics. Materials are intended for pre- and post-visit lessons for classes coming to the County Music Hall of Fame, but can be used equally well in a stand-alone capacity. Each lesson includes Tennessee state standards and national standards and cover curriculum connections to Language Arts and Music. (29 p. PDF)
Grade Level: 3-5; 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Art and Culture; Music; Language Arts |
Resource Type: Activities; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Songwriting; Songs; Song lyrics; Music; Country music; Popular music
Geographic locations: [No specific location] |
Sponsoring Organization: Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum 222 Fifth Avenue, South Nashville TN 37203
(615) 416-2088 http://countrymusichalloffame.org/
Work and Travel on the Rails
by Historical Society of Pennsylvania http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=850
Educational unit with lesson plans and activities designed to introduce students to the role and experiences of immigrant labor on the railroads in American history and the evolution of railroad travel from the perspective of the traveler. The materials in this guide are geared to the middle and high school classroom for use in the curriculum areas of history, geography, reading, writing, and the arts. The unit has two major areas of focus—Working on the Rails; and Public Space on the Rails. Background materials include a glossary, resources for teachers and students, and links to primary source materials, such as railroad ballads, travel accounts, and railroad reports, drawn from the collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and other materials. The lesson plan is correlated to the Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards for Reading and Writing, History, and Geography.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Performing Arts; Music; Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: United States--History; United States--Social life and customs; Railroad construction workers; Railroads; Labor history; Industrialization; Immigrants; Irish Americans; Italian Americans; Immigrant labor; Music; Ballads; Travel; Geography
Geographic locations: United States |
Sponsoring Organization: Historical Society of Pennsylvania 1300 Locust Street Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 732-6200 http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=1
The World at the Fair: Experiences of the 1893 Columbian Exposition
by University of California, Los Angeles History and Information Studies Departments http://uclawce.ats.ucla.edu/for-teachers
Curriculum materials with lesson plans and activities that introduce secondary school students to a variety of historical and anthropological issues related to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The site includes primary source materials such as maps, photos, posters and articles from the late 19th century that allow students to analyze questions related to the event, including how different cultural groups and nations were exhibited and displayed on the fairgrounds and how this affected American attitudes towards immigration at the time. It also has three lesson plan modules for students: 1) Globalization Lesson Plan - China at the Fair; 2) Technology Lesson Plan - Electricity at the Fair; and 3) Anthropology Lesson Plan - Anthropological Exhibits at the Fair and the Midway. The curriculum materials address national standards for History and Educational Technology.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Science; History and Social Studies; Geography; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Maps in education; Culture; Immigrants; Emigration and immigration; Exhibitions; Indians of South America; Festivals; Ethnic groups; Ethnic arts; United States--Social life and customs; China--Social life and customs; Indians of North America; Electricity; Anthropology; History; Museums--Curatorship
Geographic locations: United States; South America; China |
Sponsoring Organization: UCLA History Department Box 951473 Los Angeles CA 90095-1473
(310) 825-4601 http://www.history.ucla.edu/
Youth Portraits
by Sound Portraits Productions http://youthportraits.org/resources.php#study_guide
The Youth Portraits project was established to teach young people recently released from New York City's Rikers Island correctional facility how to use audio to tell stories about their lives. With the help of Sound Portraits producers, the young people crafted short audio documentaries by conducting interviews, cutting their own tape, adding music, and using computers to create finished pieces that were aired on public radio in January 2002. The Youth Portraits web site features their photos, streamed audio pieces with transcripts, and curriculum materials. The educational resources include a study guide (62 p. PDF) plus a recording and interviewing tutorial. These materials can be used in the classroom or as part of a life skills curriculum with youth.
Grade Level: 6-8; 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans; Audio recordings; Activities |
Language: English |
Subjects: Juvenile corrections; Interviewing; Fieldwork (Educational method); Social justice; Identity (Psychology); African Americans; Radio; Oral history
Geographic locations: New York (N.Y.); General |
Sponsoring Organization: Sound Portraits Productions 80 Hanson Place, 2nd Floor Brooklyn NY 11217
(646) 723-7020 http://soundportraits.org/
Zora Neale Hurston, the WPA in Florida, and the Cross City Turpentine Camp
by State Library and Archives of Florida http://www.floridamemory.com/OnlineClassroom/zora_hurston/
Lesson plans, photographs, and writings related to Zora Neale Hurston's work for the Florida division of the Work Projects Administration (WPA) when she
went on a recording expedition in 1939 to the turpentine camps in Cross City, Florida. Correlated to Florida State Standards, the lesson plans were created for grades 9-12 for a Language Arts and Social Studies curriculum. The primary source materials in this educational unit belong to the State Library and Archives of Florida's Florida Folklife Collection, available on the Florida Memory Web site.
Grade Level: 9-12 |
Curriculum: Language Arts; History and Social Studies; Art and Culture |
Resource Type: Primary sources; Lesson plans |
Language: English |
Subjects: Florida--Social life and customs; Folklore--Fieldwork; Labor history; Fieldwork (Educational method); African Americans; New Deal, 1933-1939; Occupations--Folklore; Authors
Geographic locations: Florida |
Sponsoring Organization: State Library and Archives of Florida 500 S. Bronough Street Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://dlis.dos.state.fl.us/index.cfm
Other Organizations:
Florida Memory Project State Library and Archives of Florida Tallahassee FL 32399-0250
(850) 245-6700 http://www.floridamemory.com/ |