Cultural "Artifakes" and Artifacts

Cultural “Artifake”

In Social Studies, my 3rd graders are learning about primary and secondary sources and cultures of the past and present. To begin our unit we learned about artifacts or any object made by a human being, typically an item of cultural or historical interest. Tools, jewelry, pottery, clothing, toys…all of these are example of artifacts.

To make this lesson meaningful for the students we asked them to share a cultural “artifake” or a fake artifact from their culture. A cultural artifact is anything created by humans that gives information about a culture. Some students created their “artifake” while others used a objects found in their homes. 

                  

We asked the parents to talk to their child about their “artifake” and how it represents their culture. In the classroom we placed all the items in our cultural museum, the student's labeled their "artifake" and included details about where the "artifake" originated.

After learning more about different cultures around the world, the student's interviewed each other about their personal cultures. At this time, they were able to share their "artifakes" with each other. The students were able to make new connections to their culture and the culture of their peers through this activity and the passages in the text.

Vietnam, A Cultural Handbook

As an educator it is important we become aware of the wide diversity within various cultural groups. Teachers must utilize cultural information without depending upon stereotypes and preconceived ideas concerning cultural characteristics to instruct students. I had the opportunity to work with a group of my peers to study one of the fastest growing populations in Central Florida, the Vietnamese culture. This Cultural Handbook is written for educators about the Vietnamese culture.

Whoever You Are by Mem Fox: A Storytelling Prezi

Whoever You Are on Prezi
(for classroom use only)

A Storytelling Prezi:

I used Prezi to retell the beautiful story, Whoever You Are, written by Mem Fox. The images are mostly from Children of the World: How We Live, Learn, and Play in Poems, Drawings, and Photographs, which was created by Anthony Asael and Stephanie Rabemiafara (Art in All of Us). Both are books that I believe every teacher of every grade should own and use in their classrooms.

This storytelling would be a great introduction to a lesson about cultural similarities and differences. Students can explore their own cultural identity through artistic and poetic responses. Then they can compile those responses in a class book just like in the Children of the World: How We Live, Learn, and Play in Poems, Drawings, and Photographs.