Writing+with+Material+Culture

Summary:
In this article, Brewer and Fritzer advocate for the use of artifacts or, material culture, as prompts for instruction and writing. They believe that by looking at past (or present) peoples’ “stuff” students can think critically to infer what it was used for or meant to that particular culture. They propose different project that use artifacts in different ways: pairing artifacts with novels about archaeology, smashing up artifacts to encourage students to participate in their own digs, and having students “curate” items from their own homes.

Reflection & Application:
This is “based upon the obvious premise that the existence of a man-made object is concrete evidence of the presence of a human mind operating at the time of fabrication.” Most items are clearly made for a purpose or have deep meaning to the creator. To observe the artifact is to look into that person’s worldview or daily life. Some of the activities proposed are suited for a much younger crowd, but can certainly be spiraled up, especially with a critical writing assignment.

This sort of instruction will certainly find its way into my classrooms – any tangible connection that students can make to the past is worth pursuing. By touching, seeing, hefting, and using the tools of peoples past, students are brought closer to those events and cultures that seem so abstract in a textbook. Students will need to keep audience in mind for each project suggested: are they writing for a museum visitor? Archaeological journal? Letter to a friend about a dig? They might even try to take the perspective of the person who made the artifact, and explain the invention to a friend.

Brewer, Ernest Andrew and Fritzer, Penelope. "Teaching Students to Infer Meaning Through Material Culture." //The Clearing House// 84 (2011): 43-46.

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