Museum Project Research Resources
Comprehensive Final - Gov/Econ
"A Day at the Museum"
Role:
You will act as museum curators, seeking out answers to the question, “what are countries really like?” Working in your assigned region groups, you will develop a museum exhibit that demonstrates each country’s authentic cultural components.
Audience:
You will present your exhibits to the class and to your teacher as a summative assessment, as part of your “final” (10%).
Situation:
Prior to this unit of study, you investigated the physical geography, political systems, economic systems, and challenges surrounding each of your assigned countries. In other words, by now, you should be an expert in terms of knowing information about your regions. However… you have failed to tell your teacher what it really means to be a citizen in your assigned countries. In this unit, you will be exploring the authentic cultural geography of your region and putting together a creative exhibit with which to teach your classmates. This should be FUN!
Evaluation will follow a similar model from the previous unit, with attention to both individual participation and group collaboration. Each group will be responsible for developing a comprehensive museum exhibit for your region. As curators, each of you will have an equal role in guiding classmates through your exhibit. In all, your museum is expected to be “open” between 35-45 minutes. You have a lot of free reign during this project; therefore, the expectation is that you will be very creative!
A short word about museum exhibits (and think back to the last time you went to a museum): a good museum exhibit is engaging and interactive. Things we might expect to see could include the following: a curator dressed in traditional costume, the manufacturing of a certain good (traditional basket weaving by a Latin American curator), pieces of famous art containing plaques with descriptions, a demonstration of a traditional dance, a short video clip from a famous film, the playing of a famous song, etc. All in all, you may have use of the entire classroom in which to set up your displays (ensure you have multiple, in fact, lots of displays). Additionally, you will be allotted up to five minutes with which to set up your exhibits and prepare for your grand opening. Food/drink tasting must take place at the end of your museum exhibit, as part of your grand finale. You may bring your items to your teacher’s classroom the morning of your assigned presentation day or you may even store them there prior.
Process:
- Begin your research. Use your “research checklist” to guide you during this project.
After completing your research, you will organize your museum. Your museum should:
· Be open 35-45 minutes
· Include visual, audio, and other miscellaneous aids (lots and a variety to
portray each topic!)
· Include every group member as a curator
Research Requirements:
**These are the minimum requirements, feel free to include other information**
Your museum should have a very brief grand opening speech by all of the curators welcoming the audience.
Your museum should contain cultural exhibits that include information accompanied with various aids about the following (one exhibit per topic): (In other words, you are portraying the things that make a person’s life what it is; if we were living in Cuba, most likely, what kind of clothes would we wear, religion would we practice, food would we eat, education would we get, etc.?)
Clothing (extra credit if worn), Religion Food (for all to taste), Education,
Music, Language, Family Life, Employment, Holidays, Art, Film, Shopping,
Advertisements, Cars, Homes, and Customs
Resources: Consult this page as well as print collections in the library
Museum Exhibits Rubric – Cultural Geography
CONTENT (50 points possible)
46-50 (A)
The content covered during the presentation is accurate, with attention to detail. Information included in the exhibits goes beyond expectations. Attention is given to the cultural components in the assigned region, based on research findings.
PRESENTATION (50 points possible)
46-50 (A)
Presentation fully engages the audience. The group’s exhibits of the region’s cultural components include creative elements that add to the overall understanding of the region. Exhibits for each item on the research checklist are included.
PARTICIPATION (50 points possible)
46-50 (A)
All group members contribute to the presentation; the region group engages the class in critical thinking via interactive exhibits. Strong understanding of the individual countries and region is evident.
Total Points Possible = 150 (summative)
Research Resources
Below you will find a list of resources you may use (in addition to the great selection of print sources in the school's or public library). Consult your "purple sheet" for usernames and passwords.
OCHS Electronic Databases:
http://www.oldham.kyschools.us/OCHS (click library links)
KYVL (EBSCOhost, Grolier)
(Collections of reference material about world history. Search culture and your country. Be sure to click the "full text box under "search options" to get only full text articles)
Country Reports
(Comprehensive information about each country. *Hint: there is a section dedicated strictly to customs and culture*)
Human Development Reports
http://hdr.undp.org/en/humandev/
(Country reports focused on human development as prepared by the UNDP)
InfoPlease
http://www.infoplease.com/countries/html
(Basic information about all countries)
Country Studies
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cshome.html
(Comprehensive online books covering over 100 countries prepared by the Library of Congress)
Country Fact Sheets
(Comprehensive information about various nations published by the U.S. Department of State)
The World Fact Book
http://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html
(Collection of country facts and statistics published by the Central Intelligence Agency)
NationMaster
http://nationmaster.com/index.php
(Massive source of centralized international statistics)
Other Sites That May Be Helpful
The official tourism sites
Embassy sites
Independent travel sites
Good luck and remember, be creative!