Do artifacts really define you??

Yesterday in one of my classes we were asked to bring in 5 artifacts that would define us as a person. I had my first three items picked out within a couple of minutes, but then I really had to think about what "defined me." The 5 items I picked were farm animals, a horse, my hunting hat, candy:), and a shopping bag. Some may think, "Do these items really define you?" My answer to that would be yes! Each and every item has a story behind it, and in order to find out that story you need to ask questions. One activity we did was go around the room and look at every ones artifacts. We were to choose one artifact and write about it. We had to describe the item in detail, ask questions, guess which time period it was from, and then we had to write about the story it told. This was a wonderful activity because we were able to learn more about one another, and it brought our community closer together. We are a tight knit community, but there were items that people brought in and I never would have paired that item with the person. Having a learning community is so important. A teacher can build a learning community by asking questions about one another, or pairing students up, but a teacher can also build a learning community by teaching Social Studies. It is becoming more and more clear to me that Social Studies can be integrated with any subject, or any subject can be integrated with social studies.

The items that you see above are some of my classmates, as well as mine. The horse laying on its side was from my dad. I got the horse when I was in the second grade after having a surgery that ended up bad. A doctor hit my voice box while taking out my tonsils, and he damaged it. Imagine an 8 year old not being able to talk! It was awful, let me tell you! While I was in the ICU, my dad brought this horse up, and told me that if I tried my hardest to get better, and I did everything the doctors and nurses wanted me to do no matter how bad it hurt he would get me a real horse when I got home. I pushed through months of voice therapy, and tubes being shoved down my throat, but I got my real horse!:) If anyone knows me, they know I am a candy FANATIC!! I would much rather eat candy instead of eating a meal. Chocolate is good, but the sweet/sour stuff is my favorite. The hunting hat was the hat I wore when I shot my first deer, so that will always be remembered! The shopping bag represents that I love to shop, and I am an even better bargain shopper! Lastly the farm animals. For those of you that also know me, you know that my family raises rodeo bulls. I have a deeper love for animals than you could ever imagine. They provide wonderful companionship, and I couldn't imagine my life without animals.

Below is a link to another blog about artifacts in the classroom.

Artifacts...do they define us?

Here is a picture of my first dog. He passed away in June from cancer and I was left with a huge void in my heart. He will never be forgotten. I needed that companion in my life again, so here is a picture of my new little guy:)

A Look Into the Past!

Last semester we did multiple group activities involving social studies. One activity that my group did was to research and see how different countries played Hopscotch. One may think, "Hopscotch, that's not a hard game to play," but in fact, it is harder to play in some countires. We learned how to play Hopscotch in Aruba, Boliva, France, and the United States. One country that interested my group was France. The name of their Hopscotch game is called "Escargot." You may be thinking that is some sort of snail that you can eat, but it is much more than that! The people in France take chalk and draw the shape of a snail on pavement, and that is essentially their Hopscotch mat! In order to win this game the person has to choose one foot to begin hopping on, and then they have to continue to use that same foot for the rest of the game. They have to hop from square 1 to 17 without stepping on any lines or resting. You may think it is easy when reading about it, but hopping on one foot without stepping on any lines or without losing your balance is more difficult than it sounds! :D This was a wonderful activity because we got to learn all of the different ways to play Hopscotch, and it made us want to research other popular games around the world and compare and contrast with how they are played in the United states. Here is a picture of my group when we were researching the different Hopscotch games. I provided a link for you to use for the main website that our group used, just click on "How to Play Hopscotch, and it will take you to the website!

How to Play Hopscotch!

Below is another link to a blog. This blog is from a student that played a game from a different country. Enjoy!

Games around the world!