Custom+Box+Strategies

Custom Boxes Strategy GRADE LEVELS V' K-2 V' 3-5 V' 6-8 I Culture III People, Places, and Environments IX Global Connections The interactive custom box visually presents information that helps teach a particular social studies concept or skill. The teacher or a student fills a shoe box or slightly larger container with artifacts that represent a specific time, place, or group of people. These artifacts could include newspapers, photos, postcards, dolls, toys, nonperishable food, religious items, or household tools. For the box to be truly interactive, it must be more than just a three-dimensional encyclopedia; children must physically and intellectually work with the information contained in it (Lee & Ashby, 2001). Students review the artifacts to develop concepts and make generalizations about the contents of the box. The teacher can model the process students are to follow before assigning independent work. Students can carry out tasks independently, in pairs, or in small groups; they benefit from an examination of a variety of custom boxes. Younger students might use a custom box to learn about the daily life of a pioneer as they explore artifacts used on an early farm. Older students can use artifacts to determine the different religions practiced in colonial Pennsylvania and then investigate how laws influenced tlle diversity of religious beliefs. PROCEDURAL RECOMMENDATIONS • Select a topic related to your learning objectives. • Obtain a cereal box or shoe box. Boxes should be easy to store and durable enough to withstand substantial handling. Inexpensive plastic boxes can be purchased at discount stores. • Determine what tasks students will carry out with the contents of the box. Be sure these tasks are appropriate to help achieve your instructional objectives. • Display clear, brief, and age-appropriate directions for the students on or in the custom box. Record directions on a cassette tape for primary students who need oral directions. • Think about the presentation of the box. Boxes that have surprises in them engage students. For example, a box about trains might contain a small tape of train sounds; another might contain a paper foldout of the Titanic sliding into an iceberg. • Place small reproduction artifacts in the box for the students to puzzle over and explore. • Graphically present information on controversial issues. Each contending side can be illustrated with opposing flaps, pull tabs, or information wheels. • Put maps, graphs, charts, and illustrations that support the topic in the box. • Place some sort of text in the box that students can read to obtain more information. Teachers, parents, friends of the school, and students themselves can all create boxes for learning about different cultures, customs, and time periods. Within a custom box, there should be artifacts that indicate the attributes or characteristics that make a culture or time period unique. Students can select a topic and then create their own custom box. For example, to illustrate the local economy of Ireland, a custom box might contain a block of peat, which is a locally produced heat source, and some linen, which is a national export produced from locally grown flax. Some items could be included to represent both the tradition and the culture of Ireland such as a replica of the Blarney Stone; a Celtic cross, which is representative of the majority i"~ligion; a tape recording of Celtic folk music; and a tin whistle with music as an example of a folk instrument. A hat badge from an American Civil War army unit called the Irish Brigade reminds students of the historical impact of mass migration to America. Modern Ireland is represented through national and international news from a Dublin newspaper, photographic views ofIreland today, and maps. Students also can add elements of controversy to the custom box to encourage discussion. Questions that may be asked related to a custom box on Ireland include: • To what time period does the box referr • For which side do students feel affinityr Whyr • To what location does the box referr • How does the box represent a group or region? • Does the box perpetuate any stereotypes or myths? • What is the danger of just sampling the culturer • What can the box not tell? • What controversial issue is raised by the content of the box? Custom boxes might be used for simulations of international festivals where students display their work. In class, students share more formally what tasks they carried out to complete the assignment, where they obtained information, and how they arrived at a final product. Teachers might trade boxes with their colleagues in otl1er states or nations and have the students attempt to determine where the box originated. Sample evaluation criteria for this assignment are illustrated in Figure 12.1. "'"v FIGURE 12.1 CUSTOM Box SCORING RUBRIC _ (5 points possible) AestheticsjPresentation- The custom box was visually pleasing, neat, and well organized. Color and 3-D effects, inside and outside the box, attract attention. Multicolored letters or glow-in-the-dark colors were discouraged. 5 (exceptional work) - 3-D effects, attention, pleasing, neat, and well organized 3 (satisfactory work) - Pleasing, neat, and well organized 1(unsatisfactory work) - Multicolored letters or glow-in-the-dark colors _ (5 points possible) Artifacts-The box contained at least two artifacts that related information about the topic selected. 5 - Three or more artifacts 3 - Two artifacts 1 - One artifact _ (5 points possible) Controversial Issue-The box contained at least two artifacts that related information about an issue that caused people to take sides about the specific topic. Points were earned for explaining controversial issues. 5 - Two controversial issues and both sides explained 3 - One controversial issue and both sides explained 1 - One controversial issue and one side explained _ (5 points possible) Map, Graph, or Chart-Two sides of the box featured a map, graph, or chart that relates information about your specific topic. Points were earned for including graphic information that supports the culture or time period selected. 5 - Three or more maps, graphs, or charts 3 - Two maps, graphs, or charts 1 - O~' map, graph, or chart _ (5 points possible) Illustration-Two sides of the box featured at least one illustration. This was a drawing, a photograph, or a photocopy. Points were earned for illustrations that identified, explained, or exemplified the culture or time period selected. 5 - Three or more illustrations 3 - Two illustrations 1 - One illustration _ (5 points possible) Narrative-One side of the box featured accurate information presented in narrative form. 5 - Student-written; three or more sources used 3 - Student-written; one source used 1 - Photocopied _ (30 points possible) Total Points Black, M. S. (1998). Using archaeology to explore cultures of North America through time. Social Studies & the Young Lea1·ner, 11(1), 11-16. Cochran, J. (1999). Archaeology: Digging deeper to learn about the past (A Middle School Unit of Study). Nashville, TN: Incentive Publications.