Schedule an ATHM educational program for your students, and help them discover the many aspects of the history, science, and art of textiles in America. Textiles have influenced our lives from the hand-mades of earliest times up through the mechanized Industrial Revolution, and into the extreme science of the cutting edge present. The American Textile History Museum’s educational programs help students and life-long learners alike connect to America’s diverse textile heritage with engaging interactive experiences, objects, and displays that stimulate creativity, problem solving skills, curiosity, and excitement for this vibrant field.
Threads of Learning is a series of interactive school programs that help tell America’s textile story utilizing the Museum’s extensive collections and expertise. All programs address specific curriculum standards with age-appropriate activities, and are designed to complement and enhance classroom learning. Students will remember the day, the sights and sounds, and the concepts they engage.
Also, we can travel to you with our interactive Traveling Textiles programs, which are generally 1 hour in length (adjustable to your class times and schedules), and include both a hands-on activity and lesson. These programs can also be presented at the Museum if you wish to combine any of them with a tour of our core exhibit for the same price as an at-the-Museum program.
All programs include a Teacher’s Guide with program specific pre- and post-visit lesson plans and additional activities to help teachers get the most out of the main museum or classroom visit. All guides identify program specific connections to the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. Download your teacher’s guide by clicking here.
Grades 3-5
Immerse your students in Colonial Era life in this highly interactive program. Students rotate through hands-on stations featuring fiber arts, crafts, games, and dress-up, as they experience the life of a 1750’s youth. [NOTE: Unlike our other programs, this special program is available for a month each spring and fall only – call for scheduling information].
Grades 2-5
Using our large Lowell area floor map and miniature manipulatives, learn local (and beyond)Native American history and customs, and make a hands-on craft item from Native culture. Meets Native American MCAS requirements.
Grades 3-8
Recreate the Colonial New England process of converting raw wool into cloth using simple tools for picking, carding, spinning, and weaving. Create a poster using samples of wool used in each step of the process.
Grades 3-10
Consider ecological impacts, and learn how recycling is used in the textile industry. Create an ecological poster depicting the steps of the scientific process invented to convert plastic soda bottles into knitted fleece fabric.
Grades 4-8
Discover the characteristics of natural plant and animal fibers including wool, silk, cotton, and flax. Examine each fiber, learn how it is processed into cloth, and collect the samples and fact cards.
Grades 4-10
Discover how the popular cotton cloth known as calico was first printed using wooden blocks, and how the machine process evolved. Design and create a sample book of printed calico fabrics.
Grades 8-12
In a hands-on lab setting, problem-solve how to overcome the technical difficulties experienced by the early US cotton industry, and experience the thrill of inventing textile machinery that transformed the United States during the early years of the Industrial Revolution. A world events timeline provides an international perspective.
