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Bags, Boxes, Bowls, and Beyond: Containers from Around the World Table of Contents
Nested boxes
Pueblo bowl
Swigler
Tin cup
Leather bag
Perfume flask
Metal box
Ladle (Mbattu)
Stone vase
The Pot that Juan Built by Nancy Andrews-Goebel I, Doko: The Tale of a Basket by Ed Young Chachajis Cup by Uma Krishnaswami Raw materials samples (metal, wool, leather, stone, wood, gourd, clay) Magnifying lenses Template for basketweaving activity BAGS, BOXES, BOWLS, AND BEYOND 1
An Introduction to Containers
Curriculum through containers
Take a look around you as you walk down the street, and you will see that containers are all around us. From water bottles to trashcans, mailboxes, and shopping bags, we use containers to hold, sort, and manage the everyday things that make up our world. Perhaps because they are both so common and so necessary, containers can also convey powerful metaphors for our everyday experiences. At times we may think somethings in the bag, only to find it has gone to pot. People may caution us not to let the cat out of the bag or open a Pandoras box. Our ambitions may cause us to push the envelope or leave us feeling boxed in. Sayings like these are common in many languages, and express humankinds fascination with containers and their (often unknown) contents. Because of their range of practical applications and imaginative possibilities, containers make a good starting place or addition to curricular activities in several areas, such as English language arts, social studies, geography, arts, math and ecology (especially recycling). The objects in this Portable Collections case were selected to demonstrate some of the great variety of containers around the world, from their basic types, to the materials used to make them, to the time periods, geographic regions, and cultures they came from. The activities in this guide are designed to meet New York State Learning Standards (see page 15 for more details). The activities are also meant to encourage your students to think about how they use containers in their own lives and what their containers have to say about them and their cultures. But our suggestions are just a starting point. We hope you will use the objects and the resources in this case as a springboard for inquiries that grow from your students interest in containers. Read on for more information about the role, uses, environmental relationships and forms of containers.
Words in boldface have been included in the Vocabulary Words section on page 15.
LADLE (MBATTU) (OBJECT NO. 72.76.10) KOREAN COCA-COLA CAN (OBJECT NO. 2000.3.1)
As an American icon that has been exported around the world, this Coca-Cola can from Korea is familiar to us but different from the cans we might see on the shelves in our neighborhoods. It is a bit narrower than an American can, and the name and ingredients on the side are written in Korean characters. Originally sold in glass bottles, soda was first packaged in aluminum cans in 1957 (which was just a few years after Coca-Cola was first sold in Korea). Made from a melon-like fruit called a gourd (or calabash), this ladle is known as a mbattu. The Wolof people of Senegal make a mbattu by drying a long-necked gourd in the sun, cutting it in half, scooping out the fruit inside, and decorating the outer surface with pyro-engraved (lightly burned) designs. The curved stem serves as the handle. People all of the world have used gourds to make many different containers and everyday objects, but this fruit is most popular and common in Africa.
ACTIVITY 1
All Grades Related Objects: All
This activity can be done before you receive the case (or before you share its contents with the class) in order to introduce the idea of containers and their uses.
Materials:
Objects from around the classroom
Discussion Questions:
Ask the students to name some containers they use. Ask the students to name some reasons why people use containers, such as: to store things to organize things to conceal or hide things to transport or carry things to keep things safe to show that something is special or valuable to decorate their homes
What To Do:
1 Start by talking with your students about what they think a container is. Brainstorm different types of containers (boxes, baskets, bags, and so on) and write some examples on the blackboard. 2 Have your students look around the classroom for examples of containers, such as lunch boxes, shopping bags, backpacks, beverage bottles, and so on. 3 Use these examples to demonstrate to your students that containers come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Have them describe the containers physical appearance, such as shape, size, color, texture, and so on.
See page 15 for details on how this activity meets New York State Learning Standards.
ACTIVITY 2
Grades 25 Related Objects: All
Your students can learn a lot about the objects in the case by looking at them carefully. After the students examine the objects, you can share more about them using information from this guide, the resources listed at the back, or your own knowledge.
Discussion Questions:
We may not always know how a container was used, who made it, or where it came from. Even so, sometimes it is possible to make an educated guess based on what the container looks like or how it was made. For example, a metal box with a lock on it probably holds something valuable or important to its owner. A finely woven basket might hold grains or even liquids, while a loosely woven one would be meant for larger objects like pieces of fruit or firewood. Encourage your students to think about how a containers physical characteristics may reflect its intended use. Have them ask questions about it: How big is the container? What might fit inside it? What do you know could not fit inside it? Is there anything special or unusual about it? (For example, does it have a strap or a handle?) What can you figure out from these observations?
Materials:
Objects from the case A copy of the What Can Objects Tell Me? chart for each student (OR a transparency of it for a whole class exercise) A large piece of chart paper for recording group observations.
What To Do:
Depending on the age and interests of your students and the amount of time you would like to spend, you can do this activity using a handful of objects or every object in the case. 1 Prior to the presentation of the lesson, set the classroom up into stations (make sure there are enough stations that you have only 34 students working at each one). Place one or more objects and a magnifying lens on the table at each station. 2 Distribute the What Can Objects Tell Me? chart and go over it with the students. 3 Divide the children into groups and have each group explore their object and fill in the boxes of the chart. After a few minutes, have the groups rotate to a new station. Repeat this step as many times as you like.
See page 15 for details on how this activity meets New York State Learning Standards.
Create a vocabulary chart by defining words that describe different properties a container might have. Present the objects and ask the children to categorize them according to any of the following properties: texture (smooth, rough; bumpy, flat) material (animal, plant, metal, shell) size (small, medium, large) color (dark, light; dull, bright) shape (round, rectangular, square) use (to carry, to store, to hide, to keep safe, to show special status or value, to decorate, etc.)
Look at each object closely. What kinds of things can we learn about an object just by examining it closely? What do objects tell us about the people who made them? Use this chart to record everything you discover.
What kind of decoration What do you think does it have? it was used for?
ACTIVITY 3
Grades K2 Related Objects: Raw materials samples and selected objects (see key below)
This activity encourages the students to examine each object closely in order to determine what material(s) it is made from and what purpose the object serves.
Materials:
Objects from the case Raw material samples from the case Magnifying glasses Old magazines and catalogs Scissors Index cards
What To Do:
1 Present one of the raw materials samples from the case. Ask the children if they know what it is and where it comes from. Repeat this with all the raw materials. 2 Present one of the objects from the case that has a corresponding raw material sample (see key below) and allow the children to examine it closely (they may wish to use a magnifying glass). See if the children can match the material(s) in the object to the raw material sample(s). Repeat this step with as many of the objects as you like. 3 Place the raw materials samples on a table or desk. 4 Have the children cut pictures of containers out of old magazines and catalogs. They should try to identify what they think each container is made from and why. (They will be guessing in some cases, but that is all right.) 5 Have the children place their pictures of containers on the table next to the matching raw material. If they encounter containers made from a raw material not included in the case (such as plastic), write the name of that material on an index card and have the children put those pictures on the table next to the card instead.
Discussion Questions:
Containers come in many shapes and sizes, and are made from a variety of materials. Why is there so much diversity? Encourage your students to think about the link between materials and the environment. For older children: Instead of making containers that will last (like those in the case), in the United States today we have come to rely on paper, plastics, and other materials that do not stand up to constant use. What are the pros and cons of disposable containers? How do they affect our environment? What modern containers may we see in museums in the future?
See page 15 for details on how this activity meets New York State Learning Standards.
ACTIVITY 4
Materials:
The Pot that Juan Built by Nancy Andrews-Goebel Drawing paper and pencils Commercial play-dough or clay (or make your own using the recipe at the bottom of the page) Markers or paint
What to do:
1 Share the images and poem from The Pot that Juan Built with your students. 2 Have the children draw a design for their own pot or bowl. 3 They should decide what they want the function of their container to be (for example, to store, to carry, to hide, to organize, to decorate, or to show value) and what the best shape for it would be. 4 Demonstrate the coil or pinch-pot techniques for building pottery (see illustrations): Coil method: Make a round base for the pot (or other vessel) and then build up the sides with rolls of clay. Shape these walls until they are smooth. Pinch-pot method 5 When the clay or play-dough has dried, students may decorate it using markers or paint.
Discussion Questions:
Look at your clay and look at the clay bowl. Do you think the Pueblo peoples use or make clay in the same way that you did? Where does their clay come from? Why do you think they make bowls from clay instead of some other material? What do you think the bowl was used for? What kinds of containers would you use for the same purpose? Are there other containers in the case from other places that might serve the same purpose?
Play-Dough Recipe:
1 cup each of salt and flour Food coloring 1 tablespoon vegetable oil Water Mix the dry ingredients together, and then stir in the oil. Add a few drops of food coloring to the water. Slowly add the water to the other ingredients until you reach the desired consistency (moldable, not sticky).
Coil method
See page 15 for details on how this activity meets New York State Learning Standards.
LITERACY EXTENSION
Older children may write a paragraph about how they chose to design and decorate their container.
ACTIVITY 5
Weave a Basket
Materials:
Optional: You may want to prepare for this activity in advance by asking your students to bring a small object from home that is special to them so that they may incorporate it into their charm. I, Doko: The Tale of a Basket by Ed Young Laminated cardboard basket template from the case Posterboard (one 12 x 12 square per student) Yarn, raffia fibers, straws, or pipe cleaners Scissors Glue, tape, or staples
5 When they reach the top, they should attach the ends of the yarn, etc. to the inside of the basket using glue, tape, or staples.
Discussion Questions:
What material do you think the Tutsi basket is made from? Where do you think the Tutsi people find this material? How does the basket reflect the place where the Tutsi people live? What sorts of things do you think the Tutsi people might use a basket like this for today? What do you use baskets for? What are your baskets made from? What other things are made by weaving?
What to do:
1 Have each student trace the laminated basket template onto a piece of posterboard and cut out that shape. The central circle becomes the base of the basket. 2 Instruct students to bend the rays of posterboard upward to create the sides of the basket. 3 Students should secure the ends of their yarn, raffia, straws, or pipe cleaners to the circle of posterboard at the bottom using glue, tape, or staples. 4 Then students may weave their yarn, etc. in and out among the posterboard rays to form the sides of the container. Depending on how tightly they pull the fiber, they can create a shallow bowl or a taller basket.
See page 15 for details on how this activity meets New York State Learning Standards.
LITERACY EXTENSION
Read the story I, Doko aloud to your students. Have students write a fictional story about what sort of life their baskets might have.
ACTIVITY 6
See page 15 for details on how these activities meet New York State Learning Standards.
Vocabulary Words
bunghole:
a hole for filling or emptying a swigler or barrel.
pinch-pot method:
to make a pot (or other vessel) from a ball of clay by pressing a thumb into it to create the center of the vessel, and then pinching the sides to shape them into smooth, thin walls.
coil method:
to make a pot (or other vessel) by building up the sides with rolls of clay.
container:
an object (such as a box or a jar) made to hold other objects.
pyro-engrave:
to lightly carve and then burn a design into the surface of an object.
fire:
to bake clay until all the moisture is gone, leaving the clay hard and durable.
shaman:
a priest or religious leader.
stave:
a narrow strip of wood used to form the sides or ends of a barrel.
gourd:
a type of fruit that comes from the same family as a squash or a melon, but has a much harder rind; also known as a calabash. There are many different varieties of gourds, most of which are inedible.
stimulant:
something (such as a drug or a shock) that causes a persons body to function more quickly or efficiently. Coffee is an example of a stimulant.
ladle:
a spoon with a deep bowl and a long handle, usually used for dipping up liquids.
vessel:
a hollow and often cylindrical container (such as a bottle, cup, or bowl), usually made to hold liquids.
motif:
a design or decorative theme.
oxidize:
to blacken metal by exposing it to oxygen via a chemical process (somewhat similar to rusting or tarnishing).
For more vocabulary ideas, see the Word play extension activity on page 13.
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Arts
Visual Arts
Arts
Visual Arts
Arts
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Visual Arts
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ELA
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Speaking & Writing Speaking & Writing Speaking & Writing Speaking & Writing Speaking & Writing
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Mauriello, Barbara. Making Memory Boxes: Box Projects to Make, Give, and Keep.
Gloucester, MA: Rockport Publishers, 2000.
Sentence, Bryan. Art of the Basket: Traditional Basketry from Around the World.
London: Thames & Hudson Ltd., 2001.
Brooklyn Museum
200 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn (718) 638-5000 www.brooklynmuseum.org
National Museum of the American Indian: The Language of Native American Baskets: From the Weavers View.
www.nmai.si.edu/exhibitions/baskets/
The Brooklyn Childrens Museum also offers programs on a variety of cross-cultural topics. For a listing of programs currently available, please see our website at www.brooklynkids.org, or contact the Scheduling Assistant at 718-735-4400, extension 118.
Acknowledgments
Beth Alberty Niobe Ngozi Chrisy Ledakis Tim Hayduk Nobue Hirabayashi Whitney Thompson
Special Thanks
The Teachers of the New York City Department of Education
Funding
This revision of Brooklyn Childrens Museums Portable Collections Program is made possible by a Learning Opportunities Grant from the Institute for Museum and Library Services.
2006 Brooklyn Childrens Museum 145 Brooklyn Avenue Brooklyn, New York 11213 718-735-4400 ext. 170 www.brooklynkids.org
For information about renting this or other Portable Collections Program cases, please contact the Scheduling Assistant at 718-735-4400 ext. 118.