These are fun for students to create, but are best done in small groups as making the whistles "work" is tricky. Be sure to create one yourself before trying it with the group.

(abbreviated and extended lessons)

In this Web Quest students discover lost North American civilizations through Internet Scavenger Hunts, brainstorming, discussion, observation of artifacts and creative speculation. In the extended lesson, student create pottery, plan and participate in other activities.

Mimbres-Inspired Coil Bowls

The bowls that students create in this project are inspired by the North American Civilizations web quest. Stylized animals decorate the inside of these beautiful ceramic coil bowls.

The coils on these pots become their decoration. They are inspired by ancient pots created by the Mississippians, Native Americans who lived along the Mississippi River a thousand years ago.

(abbreviated and extended lessons)

Students explore and gather relevant facts from a website about Minoan pottery, then divide into groups and complete worksheets on different sections of the site. Students then present their information to the rest of the group in different ways: PowerPoint, handouts, timeline.

Students create the desired shape of the coil pot using a template. Pots are decorated with slips before firing and glazed afterwards. This pot requires a little more advanced skills that the others.

Students get a lot of bang for the buck from this lesson. The boxes are decorated with sprigs made with clay and cookie cutters. Underglazes give the pots bright colors. The boxes are fun to make and always turn out well. The lesson is fairly simple. For more advanced students, plaster molds can be carved or made for creating sprigs for the boxes.

This short web adventure helps to explain what led up to the start of the Arts and Crafts Movement. Students are encouraged to speculate on what they might have done during this time period. The lesson can be extended with the optional research projects suggested.

Students enjoy carving when they understand the principles involved. These boxes are inspired by nature like the art of the Arts and Crafts Movement.

Students learn a way of creating more uniform ceramic items by using common plastic or glass bowls. Saucers can even be made using drape-molding. Depending on the skill level of the student, handles can be made from coils, a slab or pulled.

How about a sugar bowl to go with the cups? Simple press-molded bowl with a lid is a nice addition to the cup and saucer.

If you've got time to keep this project going, have your students create a cream pitcher to go with the cups and sugar bowl. The handle can be tricky and should probably be pulled. The lip and spout of the pitcher takes a bit of practice for beginning students, but can be done.

Unavailable at this time, this new website will be a semester or year-long class in itself. So much can be created by handbuilding in class that it is impossible for one person to come up with all of the ideas available. The purpose will be to give the student a little boost by providing the basics of ceramics and get the student using his or her creative imagination.