Crafts are often used as a way to tell a story or record a historical event. Even if they aren't intended to tell stories, they can often tell us things about the people who created them. This lesson presents a variety of activities that challenge students to use their own creative talents to create stories through crafts and interpret stories told in the crafts created by others.

Throughout history crafts have been used to communicate. For example, around the time of the American Civil War, quilts were used to send signals for slaves escaping along the underground railroad.

Objective:

Students will express creativity by interpreting the meaning in crafts created by others and creating original stories through their own crafts

A. Interpretation

Find examples of craft items that appear to tell a story like the ones shown below. Have children write a story that represents what they think the piece is trying to tell.

	This work, by Janet Carjia-Brandt tells a story about how her family came to this country.
	What story does this piece tell? What year might it be taking place? Who are the characters? What is the setting?

B. Creation

Have students interview family members to gain a sense of their family history and interesting stories of facts. Using felt blocks, or other material, have students create a wall hanging. Each student creates one block for the piece that tells a story about each student's family history or students collaborate to tell a story that collectively represents something about their collective history--or their lives in the present day.

Create a "Me-Quilt": Using images from magazines or hand-drawn pictures, have students create a quilt. Each square on the quilt should represent one important aspect of their life. Size of the quilts can vary depending on time and resources.