Tradition/Innovation : For Educators

For Educators - Teach Baskets - Media Based Activities

Invite a local or regional basket maker to visit your class, demonstrate basket making and/or lead a basket making activity. If you do not know a basket maker, consult the website of your state arts agency to find one. You may be able to write a grant to have an artist residency. (See General Arts Education Resources)
Divide class into four groups. Each group will explore a different weaving technique and prepare a presentation (power point or other format) with a description and examples of the technique. To get started, connect to artists’ pages: Yvonne Grovner, Jerome Dixon, Clay Burnette and Bessie Johnson for coiling; Leona Waddell, Mary Jane Prater, Carol Welch and Billie Ruth Sudduth for weaving.

Introductory Section Contents:

Resources for teaching - Baskets

Lead a guided discussion comparing and contrasting Clay Burnette’s basket and one of Bessie Johnson’s baskets using the technique presented in the Clay Gallery PowerPoint™ Presentation.
After comparing and contrasting Burnette’s and Johnson’s baskets, engage students in making a simple, coiled pine needle basket. Step by step instructions can be found at: http://www.knowitall.org. Students can decide to make a traditionally shaped basket or to follow a more individualized approach. A gallery of contemporary baskets that might provide inspiration can be found at http://www.nationalbasketry.org
Compare and contrast the baskets of Leona Waddell and Billie Ruth Sudduth in terms of purpose, using the techniques presented in the Basketmaking PowerPoint™ Presentation.
Both Carol Welch and Billie Ruth Sudduth dye their own basket making materials. Visit their web pages and then lead a lesson on dyeing with plant materials, found at http://www.museum.state.il.us (PDF file)
Have your students create a coil basket using the instructions at
http://www.princetonol.com
Many companies sell basketmaking kits with instructions. If you purchase a classroom set of kits, students can still give their own creative touch to their baskets. You might have them dye some of the reeds (maybe linking this to activity # 7) or use a variety of embellishments. They can vary their weaving pattern, the form of the basket and the way they finish the rim.