Folklife Resources for Educators

Materials Related to [No specific location]

There are 15 items in this list.

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.

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.

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)

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

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.

Sponsoring Organization:
Lower East Side Tenement Museum
91 Orchard Street
New York NY 10002
(212) 431-0233
http://www.tenement.org

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.

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/

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.

Sponsoring Organization:
Lower East Side Tenement Museum
91 Orchard Street
New York NY 10002
(212) 431-0233
http://www.tenement.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.

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/

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)

Sponsoring Organization:
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
222 Fifth Avenue, South
Nashville TN 37203
(615) 416-2088
http://countrymusichalloffame.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)

Sponsoring Organization:
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)

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/

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)

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/

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)

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: 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)

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/

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)

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/

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)

Sponsoring Organization:
Colorado 4-H Sportfishing Program
Colorado State University Extension
Ft. Collins CO 80523
(719) 846-7403
http://www.4hfishing.org/