AAM Mountain Traditions Project

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This unit is designed for 4th graders studying North Carolina history. Students will explore aspects of mountain life around the turn of the century as well as aspects of mountain life today and assess changes to crafts and traditions over time. Students will be active participants in quilting, carving, cooking, blacksmithing, singing, dancing, soap-making, and other craft activities. Students will determine criteria for evaluating artifacts and apply that knowledge in categorizing various materials found in both the indoor and outdoor classroom. Students will interview someone who practices a mountain craft or tradition and will then complete a PowerPoint presentation using the information obtained in the interview. Students will also participate in a working field trip to the Mountain Farm Museum in which they dress in period costumes and reenact life on a turn of the century mountain farm. Upon their return to school, students will then take part in a debate about the proper use of the Farmstead and reflect on the changes to mountain traditions over time. This unit is an on-going study encompassing the entire year, so the lesson plan base can be added to as necessary when further connections are made to the curriculum.

*Site Map* Lesson Plans Image Table Photo Table for the Mountain Farmstead Slideshow Resources and Links This unit is designed for 4th graders studying North Carolina history. Students will explore aspects of mountain life around the turn of the century as well as aspects of mountain life today and assess changes to crafts and traditions over time. Students will be active participants in quilting, carving, cooking, blacksmithing, singing, dancing, soap-making, and other craft activities. Students will determine criteria for evaluating artifacts and apply that knowledge in categorizing various materials found in both the indoor and outdoor classroom. Students will interview someone who practices a mountain craft or tradition and will then complete a PowerPoint presentation using the information obtained in the interview. Students will also participate in a working field trip to the Mountain Farm Museum in which they dress in period costumes and reenact life on a turn of the century mountain farm. Upon their return to school, students will then take part in a debate about the proper use of the Farmstead and reflect on the changes to mountain traditions over time. This unit is an on-going study encompassing the entire year, so the lesson plan base can be added to as necessary when further connections are made to the curriculum.	Mountain Crafts and Traditions and Their Changes Over Time by Patricia Dunford Pat_Dunford@hotmail.com Swain County West Elementary WCU's AAM Mrs. Dunford's 4th grade class at the Mountain Farm Museum, April 25, 2002. *Photos property of Pat Dunford*

*Author's Note:* I extend my apprecitation to all of the people who assisted with this project. Please see the Resources link to view the sources for this project. Most of the information came from my experiences in the mountains and the years of research and hands-on learning I received at the hands of my parents, aunts, and grandparents. My Great Grandmother Deanie Mills was the source of my interest in the subject and helped inspire my subsequent passion for learning about and sharing the beauty and functionality of mountain crafts and traditions. My parents, Fred and Brenda Cable, gave me many opportunities to create memories about mountain life. Through gardening, canning, quilting, slaughtering and smoking pigs, and general homesteading chores they taught me the value of hard work and the rewards reaped from that labor. Pork tenderloin with gravy and eggs and biscuits smothered in blackberry jelly on a cold winter morning made every sacrifice worth it. Most of the time what should have been work was actually fun, and in retrospect those were the happiest days of my life.
*Page Author: Patrica Dunford* Date Created: June 24, 2002 Last Modified: February 27, 2003