8th Grade Sewing - Following Written INstructions - Using the machine
Objective: Students will be able to create a sewn bookmark using a set of written and/or visual instructions
Materials: Written directions for bookmark, written and visual directions for bookmark, sewing machines, scrap fabric, thread and bobbins, shears, pins, written directions for threading the sewing machine
Time: 2 – 45 minute class periods *Sharing machines results in two day activity
Day One
Introduction: (5 minutes)
As a class, we will be sewing either a pair of pants or shorts using a guide sheet (a set of step-by-step written instructions. Since all students will be using the guide sheet, and some will use a separate sheet for extra projects, knowing how to follow the directions is essential for completing the sewing projects.
Activity: (30 minutes)
Pass out the written instructions for the bookmark. The directions have not title and no description of what exactly the students will be making. With a partner, students are to read through the directions and follow them to the completion of the assignment. Students do not have a visual example of the final product, so they are reliant on the written instructions only for how to complete the task. In addition to the instructions for the bookmark, students will also rely on the directions (and memory) for how to thread the sewing machine.
Monitor the students, if there are some who are having difficulty with the directions, or require more clarification and examples, offer the written and visual instructions.
Check for Understanding: (5 minutes)
*The last five minutes of today’s class will be used for cleaning up and storing supplies for day.
Day Two
Introduction: (5 minutes)
Review yesterday’s progress. Question – What do you think we are making? What leads you to believe that? What went well yesterday and what do you need clarified?
Activity: (30 minutes)
Continue with following the directions and the creation of the bookmarks
Clean up/Assessment (5 minutes)
*The last five minutes of today’s class will be used for cleaning up and turning in the bookmarks.
*Evaluation – examine bookmarks for the accurate completion of each step.
Materials: Written directions for bookmark, written and visual directions for bookmark, sewing machines, scrap fabric, thread and bobbins, shears, pins, written directions for threading the sewing machine
Time: 2 – 45 minute class periods *Sharing machines results in two day activity
Day One
Introduction: (5 minutes)
As a class, we will be sewing either a pair of pants or shorts using a guide sheet (a set of step-by-step written instructions. Since all students will be using the guide sheet, and some will use a separate sheet for extra projects, knowing how to follow the directions is essential for completing the sewing projects.
Activity: (30 minutes)
Pass out the written instructions for the bookmark. The directions have not title and no description of what exactly the students will be making. With a partner, students are to read through the directions and follow them to the completion of the assignment. Students do not have a visual example of the final product, so they are reliant on the written instructions only for how to complete the task. In addition to the instructions for the bookmark, students will also rely on the directions (and memory) for how to thread the sewing machine.
Monitor the students, if there are some who are having difficulty with the directions, or require more clarification and examples, offer the written and visual instructions.
Check for Understanding: (5 minutes)
*The last five minutes of today’s class will be used for cleaning up and storing supplies for day.
Day Two
Introduction: (5 minutes)
Review yesterday’s progress. Question – What do you think we are making? What leads you to believe that? What went well yesterday and what do you need clarified?
Activity: (30 minutes)
Continue with following the directions and the creation of the bookmarks
Clean up/Assessment (5 minutes)
*The last five minutes of today’s class will be used for cleaning up and turning in the bookmarks.
*Evaluation – examine bookmarks for the accurate completion of each step.
Reflection
Curiosity is a grade motivational tool, and middle school students are full of curiosity. By tying that curiosity in with a desire to be creative, this lesson fully engaged my students in cooperative, discovery based learning.
It can be difficult to get students excited about sewing. Since I know most of my male students take FACS in the 8th grade simply because they get to eat, I need to create engaging lessons. I began this lesson with a challenge. “I have some directions that you are going to follow, you are going to be making something, but I am not telling you what it is. Your goal is to make your project similar to the one I have in my pocket.” I was able to draw on the competitive nature of my eight grade students. The students read over the directions and immediately set to work. Students chose fabric, thread and yarn from the supplies provided in class and for two forty-minute class periods, I had 48 students completely engaged in their own discovery based learning. I was able to essentially take a step back and let the students take charge of their own leaning process.
Another strategy I used with this lesson was novelty. For most of the sewing activities at Simmons, we use the very basic stitches on the class projects, straight lines and zigzags. However, the machines in the classroom can sew over two hundred different stitches. For this activity, students were able to choose any stitching style they wished, including lettering. The novelty of being able to explore the machines and really test out what they can do fostered a creative ownership of the project and allowed the students to create something that was uniquely their own.
Making accommodations for students is a daily necessity in classes. Sometimes the simple addition of working with a partner can alleviate much of the confusion and difficulties a student faces. In other cases, a different set of directions needs to be employed. For those students who struggle with purely written instructions, I created a secondary set of instructions which featured visual cues for the written steps. Other accommodations included a cutting template in place of the measuring, physical help with the machine threading, and one-on-one explanation of the directions.
Each student created a bookmark that not only reflected their personality and interests, but demonstrated their ability to follow a set of written instructions and their knowledge retention of sewing concepts. By beginning my sewing unit with this activity, I can quickly, informally assess which of my students might potentially need extra help regarding our more complicated project later. I was also able to identify those students who excelled with the concepts and would benefit from some higher enrichment activities.
I believe that my students enjoyed this particular activity. They were allowed to explore the sewing machine in a monitored environment with the understanding that mistakes will be made and can be corrected. Since the upcoming graded project is a complicated one, this activity helps bring the students back into a mindset of the expectations for conduct in the sewing room, and the reasoning behind following the directions. I thoroughly enjoyed watching and working with the students during this discovery time. Since the fabric was scrap and the thread was leftover, there was no financial burden regarding this activity. I would like to utilize this activity style again in the future, potentially with cooking and following recipe directions. One thing that will need to be explored and carefully planned is the potential expense of the food supplies. Since there is a finite amount of budget for lab, I will need to be careful about the recipe selected for this activity.
It can be difficult to get students excited about sewing. Since I know most of my male students take FACS in the 8th grade simply because they get to eat, I need to create engaging lessons. I began this lesson with a challenge. “I have some directions that you are going to follow, you are going to be making something, but I am not telling you what it is. Your goal is to make your project similar to the one I have in my pocket.” I was able to draw on the competitive nature of my eight grade students. The students read over the directions and immediately set to work. Students chose fabric, thread and yarn from the supplies provided in class and for two forty-minute class periods, I had 48 students completely engaged in their own discovery based learning. I was able to essentially take a step back and let the students take charge of their own leaning process.
Another strategy I used with this lesson was novelty. For most of the sewing activities at Simmons, we use the very basic stitches on the class projects, straight lines and zigzags. However, the machines in the classroom can sew over two hundred different stitches. For this activity, students were able to choose any stitching style they wished, including lettering. The novelty of being able to explore the machines and really test out what they can do fostered a creative ownership of the project and allowed the students to create something that was uniquely their own.
Making accommodations for students is a daily necessity in classes. Sometimes the simple addition of working with a partner can alleviate much of the confusion and difficulties a student faces. In other cases, a different set of directions needs to be employed. For those students who struggle with purely written instructions, I created a secondary set of instructions which featured visual cues for the written steps. Other accommodations included a cutting template in place of the measuring, physical help with the machine threading, and one-on-one explanation of the directions.
Each student created a bookmark that not only reflected their personality and interests, but demonstrated their ability to follow a set of written instructions and their knowledge retention of sewing concepts. By beginning my sewing unit with this activity, I can quickly, informally assess which of my students might potentially need extra help regarding our more complicated project later. I was also able to identify those students who excelled with the concepts and would benefit from some higher enrichment activities.
I believe that my students enjoyed this particular activity. They were allowed to explore the sewing machine in a monitored environment with the understanding that mistakes will be made and can be corrected. Since the upcoming graded project is a complicated one, this activity helps bring the students back into a mindset of the expectations for conduct in the sewing room, and the reasoning behind following the directions. I thoroughly enjoyed watching and working with the students during this discovery time. Since the fabric was scrap and the thread was leftover, there was no financial burden regarding this activity. I would like to utilize this activity style again in the future, potentially with cooking and following recipe directions. One thing that will need to be explored and carefully planned is the potential expense of the food supplies. Since there is a finite amount of budget for lab, I will need to be careful about the recipe selected for this activity.