Folklife Resources for Educators
Materials Related to Folk artistsThere are 14 titles in this list.
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/
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
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/
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/
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/
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/
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/
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/
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/
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/
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/
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/
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