{"id":4704,"date":"2021-07-13T15:42:42","date_gmt":"2021-07-13T20:42:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/locallearningnetwork.org\/?page_id=4704"},"modified":"2024-01-19T15:56:51","modified_gmt":"2024-01-19T21:56:51","slug":"learning-activities-and-lesson-plans","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/locallearningnetwork.org\/resources\/learning-activities-and-lesson-plans\/","title":{"rendered":"Learning Activities and Lesson Plans"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Need Inspiration? Local Learning activities and lesson plans use the inquiry and research process of folklore and education, as well as content that is culturally inclusive. We add new resources often and announce them on\u00a0Facebook.<\/a>\u00a0Follow us there for updates! We invite you to share your favorite Learning Locally activities with us there.<\/p>\n

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Activities and Lesson Plans<\/h2>\n

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Art and Narrative<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
This curriculum guide explores the relationship arts education and teaching with primary sources that come out of ethnographic documentation and often feature folk and traditional arts. <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Artifact Inquiry<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
What is the difference between seeing and thinking? Use this worksheet to go beyond assumptions and look further into the significance of an artifact.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Bread Journal<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Paying attention to a cultural element like bread tells us about ourselves as well as others. Think about bread broadly\u2014from matzo to pancakes, tortillas to crackers! Here are some activities to do on your own or with others to find art in your daily life.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Civil Rights History Project Guide<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
This guide to the Civil Rights History Project of the Library of Congress is written for teachers to introduce the collection and to offer a few points of entry for educators and their students.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Collecting Local Stories<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
This learning guide was developed for the Festival of Iowa Folklife at the Smithsonian, but is full of learning activities that can be adapted for a variety of places. One lesson plan is available as a download, or you may find the full guide online. <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Collecting!<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Kids are natural collectors, piling up treasures like seashells and Pok\u00e9mon cards. Likewise, museum curators deal with many types of collections, from paintings to train engines. Curators organize collections for public exhibits, showcasing what they have learned about objects. By thinking like a curator, how would you organize one of your collections for a home museum?<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Come Rain or Come Shine<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
From song lyrics to predictions, we use weather lore every day. Have you ever worn your pajamas inside out in hope of a snow day? What sayings do you use to predict the weather? Do you have stories about storms or rainbows or really hot days? This activity looks at a variety of ways we are all folk meteorologists.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Cultural Stewardship Conversation Guide<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
When we identify and protect our important ways of life and cherished places that make up our cultural ecosystem, we strengthen vital relationships to each other and the wider world.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: A Beekeeper's Journey<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
By bringing in a guest with an exciting tradition\u2013beekeeping\u2013and allowing students to use English to engage fully with him, this foreign language teacher provided a rich tapestry of experiences and new knowledge that gave students details they would be interested in translating as they wrote a story in Chinese. The teacher prepared students well to listen carefully and to interview the guest. Combining an agricultural tradition, interviewing, and collaboratively writing a story in Chinese offers an ingenious model. <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Afghan Kites<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
\u201cHave you ever flown a kite?\u201d Sometimes, a simple question can be an entry into profound learning. In this residency, students not only learned about the craftsmanship required to create a kite that is visually pleasing and capable of flying, but they also learned about the kite\u2019s cultural significance in Afghanistan. By inviting artist Ahmad Shah Wali into the classroom, students learned firsthand how art and design contribute to quality of life within a culture, including their own.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Analyzing Identity and Culture in Lullabies<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
\u201cMy students had been under the impression that culture was something that other people had but was not applicable to them. I was excited to see students analyze their own lives and consider (some of them for the first time) how their culture shapes their beliefs and values.\u201d - Cathryn Lally, 9th grade English Language Arts teacher, New York<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Beekeeping<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Some of the most creative artist residencies come out of unexpected classroom collaborations. Not only does this set of lesson plans create connections between beekeeping and the art room, it also demonstrates how art can be a pathway to social emotional learning. Art teacher Sarah Edwards and guidance counselor Nina Muto worked with the Southern Tier Beekeepers Association to help students discover how they can work towards unity and community while still embodying their individuality.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Cultural Inquiry Through Interviewing<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Folk artists are often invited into a classroom to demonstrate their art form and sometimes have the opportunity to teach students artistic skills. Less often they are given an opportunity to speak with students about the value of the art form in their personal life and community context. This lesson plan, created for three short artist residencies over the course of a semester, provided the space for student inquiry that allowed them to connect with the artist on a personal level and learn more about their cultural traditions.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Hand Mudra Ceramic Sculpture Interpreting Classical Indian Dance<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
An art teacher pondered how a classical Indian dancer would fit into her high school sculpture curriculum. As she and the artist talked, the idea of gestures, mudras, as sculptural expressions took hold. Folk arts are inherently interdisciplinary, making traditional art forms, ways of teaching and learning, and artists\u2019 passions easy to integrate into most content areas and engaging for all ages. No matter the genre, learners can answer, Where is something like this in my life?<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Iconography<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
What happens when you bring students out of the classroom and into a working artists\u2019 studio? This residency began in the classroom with a painting workshop led by a professional icon painter. Then, students had the opportunity to see the impact of the artist\u2019s work when they visited the local church where his icons cover the walls and ceilings. Seeing his work in-person inspired students to ask questions about the intention of the icons and their role in communicating narratives to parishioners, leading to deeper inquiry and insights. <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Introduction to Mosaic<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
By studying mosaics across time, students could put a local artist into the context of art history. The lesson also heightened awareness of mosaic art in their community. After a two-part residency (demonstration, interview), the artist and teacher devised an extension to create a large class mosaic. Students made individual leaves for The Collaboration Tree to reflect their own sense of cultural identity. They focused intently and worked hard together and with the artist. Creating a beautiful work as a team allowed them to realize that each of their contributions is important artistically and created a beautiful, meaningful outcome in the mosaic Collaboration Tree. <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Learning from a Luthier<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
We love that this lesson builds on students\u2019 interviewing skills over the course of two artist conversations. Students have a chance to think about follow-up questions based on what they retained from the first visit allowing their initial curiosity to deepen into inquiry. <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Ritual, Dance, Theatre - An Introduction to Sattriya<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
By asking students to dig deeper than they usually might to consider their personal traditions and identities and sharing their responses with the artist, this teacher created a pathway to a deep connection between students and the artist. During their planning conversations, the teacher and the artist found similarities in their passions, drama and dance, and developed a close rapport. The teacher introduced the artist by asking students to read her Artist Statement and closely observe her Artist Portrait, which the artist developed during the summer workshop. This allowed them to inventory their assumptions and prepare questions.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Songwriting about Place with Elementary School Students<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
\"Every story can become a song!\" - Sara Milonovich, songwriter, fiddler, and singer<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Step Dance<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Stepping is a dynamic, vital dance tradition that is widespread among African American fraternities and sororities. Many high schools have step teams. Other students may be unfamiliar with step dance, so learning about it\u2014how to do basic steps\u2014enriches all students.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Culture, Community, and the Classroom: Unlocking Inquiry through Mexican Traditions<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Folk and traditional arts are a natural fit for the social studies classroom. They easily facilitate learning and conversations about diverse communities, both local and global. This residency demonstrates how music and social studies can dovetail. It also models how multiple subject areas\u2013music, English Language Arts, and social studies\u2013 came together in a single artist residency. The tools of folklore\u2013close listening, observation, interviewing\u2013deepened student preparation for the residency and their engagement with the artists.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Documentation as Remembrance<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
This activity uses a primary set source from the Library of Congress to model how documentation of the Covid-19 pandemic can amplify students\u2019 voices. (A Journal of Folklore and Education resource.)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Dress to Express<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Our clothes are important cultural elements. We use them for many reasons. They are practical, fun symbols of our identity. Let\u2019s find some surprises while exploring how we Dress to Express.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Dress to Express: National Heritage Fellows' Portraits Unit<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Access portraits portraying artists who have mastered their art forms through years of study with elders and family members and have received the NEA National Heritage Fellows award to learn more about the relationship between dress and culture. This unit includes classroom-ready exercises, worksheets for students to study their own fashion choices, and ideas for local research that connect learners with their community.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Exploring Dress, Culture, and Identity in American Indian Objects and Dress<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
How would you feel if someone (outside your identity group) used your identity design references in a clothing line? What might change how you feel about this use?<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Exploring Portraits, Dress, and Identity in Asian Art<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
What can art objects from distant times and places express about the identity of the people and the cultures depicted in them?<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Expressing and Reading Identity through Photographs<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Photographs, like identity, hold multiple truths and illusions. Teaching visual literacy creates nuanced readings of meaning for, and about, the photographer, the subject, and the consumer. (A Journal of Folklore and Education resource.)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

FACTS School-Wide Folk Arts Residency Spiral Curriculum<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
This folk arts residency curriculum has several unique features. First, it is a residency that occurs with the same visual artist every year. Second, the residency is structured to involve the whole school (more than 500 students) in interactions with the artist within classroom-sized groups of students. Third, the curriculum is designed as a nine-week unit of study, but it is delivered for only one week each year over a nine year period.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Family Mapmaking<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Mapmaking is a wonderful way to engage family members in looking closely at how each experiences where they live. Family members may discover that each sees their neighborhood differently, that one includes a place that the others never noticed, or that certain neighborhood spaces, such as a vacant lot, are valued by one and considered an eyesore by others.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Folk Song Remix<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
This activity offers a creative way to interact with favorite folk songs. Follow these directions to tap into familiar folk songs and give them your own, unique spin by remixing them!<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Folk Sources and New Narratives in Oklahoma<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
This Curriculum Guide represents one part of a three-year study engaging the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre through primary sources. Included in these lesson plans and units of study are discoveries, tools for teaching, activity prompts, and deep pedagogical engagement from oral historians, cultural geographers, artists, historians, veteran teachers, and folklorists. <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Foodways Icebreaker<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Use this activity to introduce a group of people to each other and to foodways as a form of folklore.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Foodways Traditions of Northwest Ohio<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
These lesson plans include timelines, local information, activities, and even recipes.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Games and Play<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Games are fun to play at any age and tell us a lot about our families, friends, and communities. There are many cool ways to think about and study games.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Good for What Ails You<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Our beliefs about health and wellness are part of our personal and family folklore. Collecting cures, home remedies, and health sayings reveals how much a part of daily life our folklore about health is.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Heritage Fellow Eva Castellanoz Virtual Residency<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Local Learning\u2019s virtual residencies with National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellows take us into the communities and lives of master folk artists.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Heritage Fellow John Cephas Virtual Residency<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Local Learning\u2019s virtual residencies with National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellows take us into the communities and lives of master folk artists.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Heritage Fellow Mary Louise Defender Wilson Virtual Residency<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Local Learning\u2019s virtual residencies with National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellows take us into the communities and lives of master folk artists.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Heritage Fellow Michael Doucet Virtual Residency<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Local Learning\u2019s virtual residencies with National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellows take us into the communities and lives of master folk artists.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Heritage Fellow Rosa Elena Egipciaco Virtual Residency<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Local Learning\u2019s virtual residencies with National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellows take us into the communities and lives of master folk artists.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

How We Celebrate<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Face to face or distant, celebrations feature cultural elements that we find very meaningful, such as special foods, music, gifts, jokes, clothes. This activity invites you to relish the fun of celebrations by analyzing them and consider how celebrations during the pandemic are the same and different from how they usually occur.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Insider and Outsider Reflection<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
What lenses are you bringing to encounters with new cultural experiences? <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Interviewing Virtual Unit<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
By interviewing family and community members to document their stories, songs, crafts, and skills, we encounter deep local learning, which we can record and share in many ways. Visit our Inquiry Resources to go more in-depth!<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Learning with Cemetery Secrets<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Cemeteries may seem unlikely fieldtrip destinations, yet they offer intriguing clues about history and local culture and opportunities to conduct primary research and practice documentation skills such as note taking, sketching, and photography.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Liberian Storytelling<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
A Sixth Grade Folk Arts Integrated Unit with Gbahtuo Comgbaye, Liberian Storyteller.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Mexican Puppetry<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
A Cross-Curricular Folk Arts Integrated Unit for Middle School English Language Learners With Veronica Ponce de Leon, Mexican Folk Artist.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Museum Activities and Resource Guide<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Museums offer multiple paths for learning. From decoding the museum itself to the artifacts in the exhibitions, this Local Learning Resource Guide provides educators practical tools and useful frameworks for engaging learning in museum spaces.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Museum Observation Field Journal<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
Consider a museum an important text that deserves careful reading. Before visiting a museum, inventory your assumptions about what you expect, even if you are familiar with the institution. Think about where it is, how it sits on the landscape, its relationship to the natural and built environments.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Music Around the Year<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
So much music surrounds us, we may not always be aware of it. This activity invites you to find and celebrate the music that you hear all around you\u2014all around the year.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

On the Job<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
There is mystery in every job, even those of students, whose jobs are to study and contribute to school, family, and community life. How do we learn the secrets of doing a good job at our work? Folklife! Occupational culture is one of the dynamic areas of Folklore Studies. By closely observing work spaces and interviewing people about their work culture, we make fascinating discoveries.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n