Teachers Resources
A RIVER CURRICULUM - School Outreach Program
The Museum has a wealth of material to lend teachers for use in their classrooms to enhance the learning experiences of students. If travel to the Museum is not possible, Museum educators will bring a lesson to the students in school. Teachers may also contact the Museum to borrow images from our photograph collection, selected artifacts and books, or boating-related items.
The following lesson plans are available:
Around the World: Are Boats More Alike or Different? Sampans and junks from China, round boats made from skin from Vietnam, a rope tow ferry from China, dhows from Kenya, outriggers from Bali, water taxis from Thailand, houseboats from India, etc. What do these boats have in common? Where do they differ and for what reason? How do they reflect the cultures that created them?
Document-Based Questions: What Do You See That Makes You Say That? The New York State Curriculum Standards call for students to be able to use a group of related primary source materials to draw conclusions about the subject materials. The Antique Boat Museum has an excellent collection of photographs, catalogues, and other antique boat related documents.
The Golden Age: How Did People Live? Open a chest and discover items that would have been carried by a typical turn of the century tourist. Look at photos of children. Discuss what might have been the interactions between the tourists, summer people, and local residents then and how they get along now. Write postcards pretending you are one of each of these groups of people.
Navigation: Can A Boat Actually Get Lost in The Lost Channel? A model "cruising ground" is laid on the floor. Students are asked to place buoys and landmarks according to a chart. Topics addressed include the use of a compass, plotting courses, interpreting symbols, and calculating navigation routes.
The Skiff As an Icon: Students focus on the St. Lawrence Skiff as they learn that one could take a boat from Clayton, New York and travel anywhere near the sea; and that St. Lawrence skiffs made in Clayton, New York were distributed to places all over the country. Using the Visual Thinking Strategies method to explore photographs and actual boats in the collection, students will see St. Lawrence Skiffs as works of art with exquisite craftsmanship as well as utilitarian craft for fishing, sailing, and rowing.
The Museum has a wealth of material to lend teachers for use in their classrooms to enhance the learning experiences of students. If travel to the Museum is not possible, Museum educators will bring a lesson to the students in school. Teachers may also contact the Museum to borrow images from our photograph collection, selected artifacts and books, or boating-related items.
The following lesson plans are available:
Around the World: Are Boats More Alike or Different? Sampans and junks from China, round boats made from skin from Vietnam, a rope tow ferry from China, dhows from Kenya, outriggers from Bali, water taxis from Thailand, houseboats from India, etc. What do these boats have in common? Where do they differ and for what reason? How do they reflect the cultures that created them?
Document-Based Questions: What Do You See That Makes You Say That? The New York State Curriculum Standards call for students to be able to use a group of related primary source materials to draw conclusions about the subject materials. The Antique Boat Museum has an excellent collection of photographs, catalogues, and other antique boat related documents.
The Golden Age: How Did People Live? Open a chest and discover items that would have been carried by a typical turn of the century tourist. Look at photos of children. Discuss what might have been the interactions between the tourists, summer people, and local residents then and how they get along now. Write postcards pretending you are one of each of these groups of people.
Navigation: Can A Boat Actually Get Lost in The Lost Channel? A model "cruising ground" is laid on the floor. Students are asked to place buoys and landmarks according to a chart. Topics addressed include the use of a compass, plotting courses, interpreting symbols, and calculating navigation routes.
The Skiff As an Icon: Students focus on the St. Lawrence Skiff as they learn that one could take a boat from Clayton, New York and travel anywhere near the sea; and that St. Lawrence skiffs made in Clayton, New York were distributed to places all over the country. Using the Visual Thinking Strategies method to explore photographs and actual boats in the collection, students will see St. Lawrence Skiffs as works of art with exquisite craftsmanship as well as utilitarian craft for fishing, sailing, and rowing.
Email lnadolski@abm.org
