Introduction
I conducted a learning scenario that encouraged students to explore changes in the art of hat-
making throughout the last century, investigating the popularity and importance of hats and
searching for inspirational content on the Europeana platform. They also delved into the history of
hats through photos collected from family and friends. They learned all about Creative Commons
licenses and the legal use of images in their presentations. They pondered the future of hat fashion,
crafted their own eco-friendly hats, and finally, we organized a zero-waste fashion show dedicated
to hats to showcase their work and newfound knowledge. The participants were students from three
eighth-grade classes, aged 14 to 15 years old, with class sizes ranging from 17 to 25 students.
LINK TO OUR EXBIBITION:
//padlet.com/smarijanovic/hat-design-exibition-wf5jpp60o673toiq
1.The narrative
- Exploring Identity and Popular Culture:
I did this teaching content in an art class lasting 4 school hours, the topic from the curriculum is
Identity and popular culture: the student questions the influence of popular culture on the
formation of his own attitudes and ways of expressing his own identity and forms a critical attitude
towards the visual environment (visual communications, design and applied art, photography). The
students started the first lesson with a game in which they guessed a key word related to the topic. I
used Kahoot.it to participate and they watched a PowToon and a YouTube video for tips. After
guessing the word, the students were grouped according to the color of the slip of paper they had
chosen, which also contained smiley faces according to the rules outlined in the original script. They then read Europeana blogs and answered questions in MS Forms, in order to better understand hat culture. Finally, students presented their findings, peer-reviewed their group work, and researched Creative Commons licenses before creating hat presentations using Europeana resources. Two school hours of 45 minutes each were sufficient for all these research activities. Students were happy to participate in all activities and research.
- Embracing Zero Waste through Creative Expression:
After that, the next time we had two lessons of fine arts, and then the students made and presented
hats. We remembered everything we had talked about for the last two hours and started talking
about hat fashion, and I announced to them that today they had the task of making a new hat from
recycled materials. I emphasize the concept of “zero waste” and encourage thinking about using old things for new purposes. They watched an educational video to get inspiration and discussed the possibilities of using the material for their project. After they brought photos of hats from home, I divided them into pairs and told them to sketch their own design of a modern hat. We talked about
future trends in hat fashion. When they made their hats, for which they had to use recycled
materials, we had a photo shoot of the hat models.
- Showcasing and Evaluating Sustainable Fashion:
At the end, we organized a “Zero Waste Fashion Show: Modern Hats of the 21st Century”, they
evaluated their own work and the work of their classmates using the assessment rubrics from the
given scenario.
- Outcomes
Outcomes for students:
Analysis of the influence of popular culture on shaping one’s own attitudes and ways of expressing
identity: Students will review the influence of popular culture, specifically hat fashion, on shaping
one’s own attitudes and ways of expressing one’s identity.Developing a critical attitude towards the visual environment: Students will develop a critical
attitude towards the visual environment, especially towards hat design, and will be able to analyze
different aspects of hat culture.Developing creativity and skills in working with materials: Students will develop creativity and skills
in working with different materials, especially recycled materials, to make their own modern hats.
Understanding the concept of “zero waste” and the importance of sustainable use of resources:
Students will understand the concept of “zero waste” and be aware of the importance of sustainable use of resources and recycling in the hat making process.
Collaboration and teamwork: Students will collaborate and work in pairs to design and make hats
together, and will participate in organizing a fashion show as a team, judging their own work and
that of their colleagues.Applying Digital Skills: Students will apply digital skills when watching educational videos,
researching online resources, and recording and presenting their work through photos and videos.
Developing independence and responsibility: Students will show independence and responsibility in
making their own hats using recycled materials and in organizing a fashion show.
BENEFITS FOR TEACHERS:
Europeana gave me access to a large digital collection of cultural and historical artefacts from
various European countries, including art, photographs, documents related to the said topic on the
design and use of hats throughout history.
The materials available on Europeana cover various aspects of the mentioned topic and access to
numerous contents related to the mentioned topic.
The materials on Europeana served as inspiration for this lesson and I had access to a large amount
of different ways of learning and assessment. Access to the materials is very simple and it is easy to
search the contents. I have already dealt with this kind of teaching topic, but now I have expanded
that context and the students and I as a teacher have profited by using these teaching contents.
Access to the cultural and historical heritage from all over Europe via Europeana enables students to
broaden their horizons and develop a global perspective.
Link to the learning scenario implemented: Zero-waste Fashion Show: All About Hats (EN-CUR-761) – Teaching With Europeana (eun.org)
Do you want to discover more stories of implementation? Click here.
PDM 1.0: the featured image used to illustrate this article has been found on Europeana and has been provided by the Girona City Council.
