Antique Mall

So I went to an antique mall this morning with a friend and we saw an amazing variety of furniture, jewelry, clothes, china and wall art. It was after I saw the second oriental apothocary drawer set that I decided this would be a great place to take children to learn about their world and their country's history.

Mom's who home school, listen up. Here is my field trip lesson idea:

Age group: 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th graders (no more than three students per adult)

Subject: American History, Nineteenth and Twentieth Century

Lesson Objective: The student will be able to explain how technologies have changed American lifestyles over the last one hundred and fifty years.

Materials: notepad and pencil for each student. Internet pictures

Motivation: Show students pictures of people using household objects in each decade from 1850 to the present. "Ask what are these people doing and what are they using?""What technologies today have made that item obsolete?"

Teaching procedures: The teacher will explain that being able to identify items from different time periods based on what technologies they use will give the student a better understanding of how new technologies can change our daily lives. Having an understanding of how new technologies change will prepare students for changes in their future. The teacher will show the students different items in the shop that represent different time periods. For example, old sea chests, cooking ware, old coins, grandfather clocks and letter desks, crank operated sewing machines. She will explain how the materials used and ornamentation can indicate the time period it was made. She will mention what materials became more readily available to families in different time periods (tin, aluminum, wood, plastic) . She will explain what technology is utilized and what replaced that item later in history.

Background knowledge: Discuss what technologies we use today and when they were discovered. Talk about old movies the students have seen and what the furniture and kitchen items looked like.

Demonstration: The teacher will chose a piece of furniture at the shop, read the tag, discuss what time period it was probably used in, what technology is uses and what technology replaced it. She will write the information in her journal. She will look it over for clues about when it was made such as if it is made from plastic, wood, metal and if it has artistic features that are not currently popular.

Questions for understanding: What kind of furniture would we use today to replace that item? What would it be made from?

Guided practice:The student explores the antique shop and writes down the name of fifteen objects that represent different time periods in American history from the last one hundred and fifty years. The student writes what those objects were used for and who used them in their journal.

Closure: Review the technologies and furniture items that were discussed. Be sure to recap which technology came before another. Ask "How can a new technology change our daily lives?" "Give an example of one household item that has been replaced or affected by new technologies." "How will knowledge of change help you to deal with change in the future?"

Extension: When the students finish the trip, they must look up each item name online and record what years they were used and order their item list chronologically.

Modification for Special Education students: For students who can't write, have them explain verbally what they think the item is used for and who used it. Ask them how other people adapted to change and how they might adapt to change.