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Folklife Resources for EducatorsMaterials Related to Community lifeThere are 31 titles in this list.
Barn Again ! Celebrating an American Icon - Teacher's Guide 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)
Sponsoring Organization: The Catskills: A 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Dane County Cultural Tour 2002 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Other Organizations: Discovering the 9th Street Market: A Treasure Hunt for Clues to the Past 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)
Sponsoring Organization: Double Exposure Lesson Plan: Eye on Your Community 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: Other Organizations: Explore Your Community: A Community Heritage Poster for the Classroom 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Other Organizations: Exploring Community History and Cultural Influence 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Folk Arts in Education - A Resource Handbook II 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Other Organizations: 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.
Sponsoring Organization: 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Harvesting the River Lesson Plan: Taking an Oral History 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: Hmong Cultural Tour 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Other Organizations: Immigrants in Coal Country: Anthracite Mining in Pennsylvania 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Indivisible Educator's Guide 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: Other Organizations: Iowa Folklife: Our People, Communities, and Traditions 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Other Organizations: The Kwakwaka'wakw: A Study of a North Pacific Coast People and the Potlatch 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)
Sponsoring Organization: Lakota Winter Counts - The Teachers' Guide 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)
Sponsoring Organization: Latino Philadelphia 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Mapping Our Neighborhood History 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)
Sponsoring Organization: The Men Who Dance the Giglio - Teaching Guide 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.
Sponsoring Organization: The Music District - Teaching Guide 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Philaplace: Sharing Stories from the City of Neighborhoods 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Place as a Mirror of 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Rivers of Steel 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."
Sponsoring Organization: Rural Roads, City Streets: Italians in Pennsylvania 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Show-Me Traditions: An Educators Guide to Teaching Folk Arts and Folklife in Missouri Schools 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)
Sponsoring Organization: South Philly Kaleidoscope: The 9th Street Market Mural 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)
Sponsoring Organization: Sweet is the Day: A Sacred Harp Family Portrait - Teacher's Guide 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.
Sponsoring Organization: Tell Me Your Stories: An Oral History Curriculum 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.
Sponsoring Organization: The Texture and Weave of the Traditional Arts 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: Walking on Solid Ground: Understanding the Chinese-American Experience in Philadelphia 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)
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