This course examines how people learn, practice, and evaluate traditional and contemporary craft techniques. Social science theories of design, embodiment, apprenticeship learning, skill, labor, expertise, and tacit knowledge are used to explore distinctions and connections among art, craft, and science. We will also discuss the commoditization of craft into market goods, collectible art, and tourism industries. Ethnographic and historical case studies include textiles, glassblowing, quilting, cheese making, industrial design, home cooking, factory and laboratory work, CAD-CAM. In-class demonstrations and hands-on craft projects will be included.

Grab your flashlight and join museum educator Ann Caspari as she demonstrates how to make sun and star shaped shadow puppets

Join us for a demonstration of two science crafts to explore moving air and wind.

Museum Educator Ann Caspari demonstrates how to make an astronaut helmet costume from a paper bag

A museum educator demonstrates fun crafts to do at home to explore air and space themes with young children

In this lesson, students will read and analyze "The Interlopers" by Saki (H. H. Munro). Lesson 1 from the Author's Craft unit focuses primarily on character. Students will examine how the motivations of Georg and Ulrich drive the plot, develop the theme, and enhance the irony. The lesson requires student to collect evidence, discuss, and complete a writing assignment. It also offers additional stories to extend the lesson. Image source: "Forest" by flo222 on Pixabay.com.

In this activity students will make a “growing” bracelet and learn about the basic elements plants need to grow and thrive. Includes activity instructions, extension activities, songs, and additional reading list.

NGSS: K-LS1-1, 1-LS1-1, K-ESS2-2 (extension activity)

CCSS: L.K.5, SL.K.1, SL.K.5, SL.1.4

Social Sciences: Partially meets 3.13

Time: 30 minutes

Materials: "One Bean" book, chenille stems/pipe cleaners, and pony beads (yellow, brown, blue, clear, green, and red.

Video Tutorials to learn the basic hand stitches. Using the tutorials, the children can learn the basic hand stitches on their own as well as make beginning and finishing knots for their sewing projects. Contains 6 worksheets.

Students make their own design decisions about controlling the LEDs in a light-up, e-textile circuit, plush toy project that they make using LilyPad ProtoSnap components and conductive thread. They follow step-by-step instructions to assemble a product while applying their own creativity to customize it. They first learn about the switches—an on/off switch and a button—exploring these two ways of controlling the flow of electric current to LEDs and showing them the difference between closed and open circuits. Then they craft their creative light-up plush pals made from sewn and stuffed felt pieces (template provided) that include sewn electric circuits. Through this sewable electronics project, students gain a familiarity with microcontrollers, circuits, switches and LEDs—everyday items in today’s world and the components used in so many engineered devices.

Students learn how to set up pre-programmed microcontroller units like the Arduino LilyPad and use them to enhance a product’s functionality and personality. They do this by making plush toys in monster shapes (template provided) with microcontrollers and LEDs sewn into the felt fabric with conductive thread to make circuits. At activity end, each student will have created his or her own plush toy, complete with LEDs that illuminate in a specified sequence: random twinkle, blink, heartbeat and/or breathing.

Roger Abrahamson demonstrates his craft to youth. Abrahamson is a traditional bowl turner who uses the medieval technology of a spring pole lathe and hand-forged tools to create Norwegian ale vessels.

A lesson plan for grades 5-12 is included as a gallery asset and in the support materials.

More About This Resource
Postcards is an award-winning series showcasing the arts, history, and cultural heritage of western Minnesota and beyond. Funding for Postcards comes from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. To watch more Postcards, visit the show page or video portal.

Karen Jenson reflects on her life and lengthy career as a renowned Norwegian and Swedish rosemåler. Take a tour of her awe-inspiring house full of her work.

A lesson plan for grades 8-12 is included as a gallery asset and in the support materials.

More About This Resource
Postcards is an award-winning series showcasing the arts, history, and cultural heritage of western Minnesota and beyond. Funding for Postcards comes from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. To watch more Postcards, visit the show page or video portal.

This course explores how social theories of urban life can be related to the city’s architecture and spaces. It is grounded in classic or foundational writings about the city addressing such topics as the public realm and public space, impersonality, crowds and density, surveillance and civility, imprinting time on space, spatial justice, and the segregation of difference. The aim of the course is to generate new ideas about the city by connecting the social and the physical, using Boston as a visual laboratory. Students are required to present a term paper mediating what is read with what has been observed.