Suggested Activity For Grades 2–3:
Time required: 30–40 minutes
Theme: Change over time
Materials: drawing paper, markers, pencils, paint, etc.
Procedures:
- Ask children to predict what changes they will see in their community that will make it a better place when they are their parents’ age. (Brainstorm. Make a list on the board.)
- Create a picture of what the community will look like.
- Children should then write a caption or paragraph to explain their picture.
Suggested Activity For Grade 4-5:
Time required: 40-60 minutes
Theme: Change over time
Materials/Web Resources: Display Asher B. Durand’s painting Catskill Mountains (1987.20.2) and the print Newark Lime and Cement Company’s Works (u1977.146). A graphic organizer (example organizer: www.eduplace.com/graphicorganizer/).
Procedures:
- Examine and discuss these two pieces from the museum’s collection.
- Using the graphic organizer, compare and contrast these two works of art.
- Once the organizer is complete, use the information to write an essay explaining how people change their physical environment as communities grew.