 Topics and Competencies
Awareness of Social Identities
Grade Level
High School, College/Adult
Subject Area Integration
None |
Author(s)
Christy M. Byrd
Source
Christy M. Byrd
Date Created/Most Recently Revised
May 2021 |
Time
45 minutes
Setting
Appropriate for most settings |
Type and Level of Engagement
Group Work, Low Engagement
Accessibility
The cultural tools slides will require adaption for students with visual impairments |
Learning Objectives
- Recognize how culture is embedded in everyday life
- Identify the values behind cultural tools
Materials
Instructions
- When class begins, put students into groups of 2-4. Have each group generate a definition for culture Then have them answer these questions about each cultural tool:
- What is this?
- What is it used for?
- Why do people in this culture consider it valuable or important?
- Mention that they may be unfamiliar with some of the tools, but to make their best guesses. After 10-15 minutes, have the groups share some answers. Discuss:
- How would you define culture now?
- What surprised you about this activity?
- What has not changed in your thinking?
- What questions do you have?
- They will almost certainly have questions about who the Nacirema are. Show the video “Body Rituals of the Nacirema”. In this YouTube video, a woman reads excerpt from the Miner (1956) article while showing the real objects. The video makes it clear that the Nacirema (which is “America” spelled backwards) are ordinary Americans.
- Then ask again:
- How would you define culture now?
- What surprised you about this activity?
- What has not changed in your thinking?
- What questions do you have?
- Explain that culture has many features, and have the students give examples of those features.
- Invisible
- Nested
- Overlapping
- Change over time
- Provide us with histories and traditions
- Provide us with practices, values, and assumptions
- Describe how cultures mediate development and have students give specific examples:
- Social enhancement: tools that are used because they are available in the immediate environment
- Imitation: children learn to use cultural resources by observing others
- Explicit instruction: intentionally teaching the use of cultural tools
Variations
- Replace the slides with tools relevant to your local context
Extensions
Assessments
Evidence of Effectiveness
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Related Activities
Ratings and Reviews
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