As a child, I was interested in hairstyling. I had different dolls with hair I could braid, dye, and even cut! One of the dolls was a salon doll and she came with plastic scissors and hair that could be attached with Velcro. So she could have long knee length hair and then with the pretend scissors it could be “cut” and then a new shoulder length or bob hairstyle could be added on with Velcro. In real salons they use scissors made of steel that really do cut hair, and hair can’t just be attached in an instant with Velcro. Had I been more familiar with real scissors and how they work, I may have avoided the following incident. My mother turned around and in an instant I had gone from playing with the doll, plastic scissors, and Velcro hair, and instead I had real scissors and my own hair. My locks fell away as a very blunt choppy pixie cut emerged. My mom started screaming, and I didn’t understand until I tried to reattach my hair, the damage I had done. I learned very quickly that real scissors cut hair and hair doesn’t just grow back or get magically reattached. During project work, when students are investigating a topic, it is important that they have access to real artifacts such as tools, living things, and objects. If I had more experiences with real scissors and how once things are cut they can’t just be put back together, I may have avoided all the tears I shed when I realized I had to wear my pixie cut until it grew out.
If students are doing a topic on puppies and just have stuffed animal puppies, they may gain false information. Stuffed animal puppies don’t need food or exercise, so they may not realize that a dog needs to eat or go out. Or they may think that dogs can just eat people food, but certain foods can make dogs very sick. Also, stuffed animal puppies can be put away in a bin or on a shelf when you’re done and they will stay there. Real puppies move and wiggle and run! In order to be able to care for a real puppy, it is important for students to have first-hand experiences with a puppy and the object needed to care for them.
Another example of real artifacts came through a past project in the Early Childhood Connections program. Students were doing a project on firefighters and learned about the weight of firefighters clothes through having clothes as real artifacts. The pretend clothes were light and thin, but when the students felt the weight of the firefighters real clothes they realized how strong firefighters are and how heavy their clothes were. This led students to ask more about the clothes, why were firefighter clothes heavy? Students then began to investigate and learn about how firefighter clothes are fire-resistant and reflective and made of different materials than clothes the students wore.
Children are trying to learn about, understand, and navigate the world around them as they grow and develop into adults. The more real artifacts students have access to the better they can understand how things work. That said, often a question we get is how do I find lots of artifacts?
Artifacts can be any real life objects, tools, living things, or items. For example, in a puppy project in addition to having a puppy visit, real artifacts could be the following:
dog brush
leash
dog bags
dog bed
collar
food bowl
water bowl
dog food
dog harness
dog yard stake
dog house
treats
chew toys
cage
dog boots
dog shampoo
dog toothbrush
dog toothpaste
nail trimmer
cone or e-collar
dog bandages
A topic that is concrete and very hands on will easily lend itself to many artifacts. Experts, colleagues, parents, and other adults can be a great resource when trying to come up with artifacts. Need some help with ideas for artifacts on your topic? Check out more artifact lists in our project examples!
By Amelia Troutman