Personal Artifacts

In this activity, students bring in artifacts that they feel represent them. They will show these items to the class or small group of peers and explain why they chose these items. This can be tailored to allow students to discuss their individual cultural differences and gain an appreciation for others’ backgrounds. This activity can be done at any point in the semester but would be more effective in the first half of the semester.

In person classes:

  1. Prior to the class in which you would like to complete this activity, explain to students that they should bring artifacts that represent them to this class session. Specify the number of artifacts you would like students to bring in (three is a good number for this task). These artifacts can include physical items, pictures of things/places, and/or drawings.
  2. During class, set students up in groups of 3-4 members. Explain your expectations for how you would like this activity to run.
  3. Tell students that each member should be given the floor to show their artifact and explain its significance without interruption. After that student has finished, students can then ask follow-up questions to learn more about their classmates.
  4. Students will continue until all members have completed this task. Walk around the room as students share to gain some insights about your students and ask follow-up questions of your own.
  5. At the end of this task, give students a moment to reflect on what they learned about their classmates. They should think of something they learned about at least one of their classmates that could be shared out. Students should ask that person for permission to share that information with the rest of the class.
  • This portion of the task can be a written reflection instead.

Online classes: Online classes will function much in the same way as in person classes. The main challenge is replicating this in a digital space. The instructions above will remain the same, but students should be placed in breakout rooms instead of in physical groups. Mixed mode classes: Instructions for mixed mode classes will be a combination of the instructions for both online and in person classes above. It is recommended that students in person are groups with others in person and online students are grouped with other online students. This mode also lends itself to a written reflection better than a full class discussion.

At a Glance

Personal Artifact

timerClass Time Requirements: < 10 Minutes

timerPreparation Time: Low

Bloom’s Levels:

Create info Putting materials together to form a unique product.
Evaluate info Making judgments based on checking against given criteria.
Analyze info Breaking materials into parts to determine structures and relationships.
Apply info Using procedures to carry out a task.
Understand info Constructing meaning from information.
Remember info Using memory to recall facts and definitions.

Learn more about Bloom’s Taxonomy.

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