Folklife Resources for Educators

Materials Related to Europe

There are 3 items in this list.

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)

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/

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)

Sponsoring Organization:
Illinois State Museum
502 South Spring Street
Springfield IL 62706-5000
(217) 782-7386
http://www.museum.state.il.us/

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.

Sponsoring Organization:
Museum of International Folk Art
PO Box 2087
Santa Fe NM 87504-2087
(505) 476-1200
http://www.moifa.org/