Pass It On: Cultural Traditions of the Lower Eastern Shore

A K-12 Curriculum and Activity Guide

The Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art seeks to deepen and extend its educational offerings to the Lower Eastern Shore and the state of Maryland by developing a K-12 curriculum and activities guide. The children of the Lower Eastern Shore are growing up in a rich and unique cultural landscape, with history and tradition embedded in their daily lives. The potential educational opportunities of this heritage-centered curriculum will prepare students for life as citizens who understand the importance of this place and its people as part of the larger world.

The curriculum program links the resources of the Maryland Heritage Authority, the Lower Eastern Shore Heritage Area (LESHA), Maryland Traditions, the Ward Museum, public and private schools, and other cultural agencies to enrich student learning experiences with traditional arts and cultural heritage themes into K-12 classrooms. The Lower Shore Traditions Curriculum and Activity Guide will give schools and teachers the tools to initiate quality cultural heritage programming in their classrooms.

Proofs of the four units are available below.  The graphic design element of Unit 4 is still in progress, but the proof contains the full text and activities.

Unit 1: Following the Water

Unit 2: Living off the Land

Unit 3: Sporting and Playing

Unit 4: Folklore and Folklife

The Ward Museum is creating this curriculum as a free resource to teachers and students, and we would like to solicit feedback from educators (including public and private school teachers, administrators, and homeschoolers) as each unit is finished. We would like teachers to examine the text and activities and consider how they might use this resource in their classrooms. If possible, we ask that teachers test and evaluate an activity from each unit and provide feedback for each one through the Lower Shore Traditions Teacher Survey. Even if you cannot test an activity, a survey response based on your reading is still much appreciated.

The curriculum is in the process of being synchronized with Maryland state content standards for social studies. The final printed version will be available in fall 2010.  The museum will offer teacher training sessions in the fall, which will facilitate the incorporation of the curriculum into classrooms. We will provide a training honorarium for each teacher who participates.  For more information on the Ward Museum’s Lower Shore Traditions program, visit Research Projects.