Lesson Plans

Creating a Geographical Fabric Collage

Lesson Author: Adrienne Yorinks, author of Quilt of States: Piecing Together America

Subject: Social Studies; Geography; Art

Grade Level: 3,4,5,6,7,8 (may be modified for younger students)

Rationale: Creating a geographical fabric collage for your state will be a fun project to complete with your students. Using the process I created to illustrate Quilt of States, I have taught many workshops in schools and libraries—with great results.

Fabric collage is a wonderful way for kids to explore geography through art. It utilizes elements of design, color, the exploration of background and foreground, and basic mathematical principles, while honing in on the geography and history of their state.

The tactile quality of fabric along with actually cutting out a template of their state enhances the students' memories about the shape and contours of their state through a hands-on experience. In addition to being fun, creating a geographical fabric collage map of your state can be a valuable educational tool for your classroom.

Note: I have adapted the way I worked on Quilt of States to make it easier to use in the classroom. Each student will be creating a fabric collage on a foundation fabric. It will not require any sewing. (Although each fabric collage I created for the book is a true quilt consisting of three quilted layers, the process I have outlined here will be easier to use in the classroom.) This lesson can be used with kids of all ages. It does not require sewing machines nor the help of adults to sew the quilt sandwich together. It is also much more feasible to use in the classroom due to time constraints. If some of your students know how to sew and want to embellish their fabric collage with needle and thread, encourage them to do so. However, it is not necessary to accomplish the goals of this lesson.

Objective: In this process, each student will create a geographical fabric collage with a template from their state using various fabrics and a fabric glue stick.

Materials:

Supplies for each fabric collage:

cotton duck or muslin cut to 9”h x 18”w
template of your state on paper
scissors
straight pins
fabric glue
fabric pens
conversational prints—several to choose from that relate to your state: (cows, chickens, tomatoes, grapes. Cut into fat quarters or ¼ yard pieces).
solid light colored fabric for block to write on (approximately 4” x 4”) and bright darker colored fabric for template of state
the book Quilt of States: Piecing Together America by Adrienne Yorniks and 50 Librarians from Across the Nation

Optional: needle and thread for students to embellish background and add reinforcement to collage.

Procedure:

Using the book Quilt of States, show the students your state and talk about what elements of the collage appeal to them. Talk about color, design, foreground and background—what keeps the template of the state as the main focus.

Discuss what they want their fabric collage to look like. As you talk about what elements I used in the book, ask the students what elements they would choose.

Talk about what they want to write about your state in the box. Remind them to leave enough room to include their name, school, city, and state at the bottom of the box (like the librarians did in Quilt of States).

With your cotton duck or muslin foundation in front of you, start by choosing the color for the template of your state. Place the template on the "right" side or top of your fabric and pin down in about five places so you can cut through both the fabric and paper slowly and carefully. (The "back" or wrong side of the fabric will be on the back if you turn over your pinned template to fabric.)
Next, you want to choose a light colored block for your design. Since the template and fabric block are the two most important elements of your design, make sure you are happy with the way the colors look together.
Choose the conversational prints that illustrate your state from the fabric pile. You can use some conversational fabric for borders like I did. You may even want to cut out some objects in their entirety, like a cow for example, and place it in an interesting spot. Cut out the motifs you want from your fabric choices while being aware of the sizes and shapes that you are creating. If you are having fun, this is a good sign!
Now that you have all of your design elements together, think about where you want to place them on the foundation. The design of your fabric collage is the most important part of this process. Try placing the objects in several places until you are happy with your work of art.
Place your state on the foundation fabric using fabric glue stick. Just as you would use a glue stick to adhere paper to paper, use the fabric glue stick to adhere the fabric to fabric.
Place the light colored text block on the foundation using fabric glue stick.
Place all the other fabric motifs on your collage using the fabric glue stick.
Now you are ready to write with a fabric pen or pens on your text block. Ask students, "What do you want to say about your state?" Remind them to sign their names as well as include your school and hometown on the text block. (You may want to have the students test out what they will write on a piece of scrap paper the same size as the text block first).

Optional: Using a needle and thread, stitch around the fabric motifs, template and text block. This will help hold the fabric pieces together and create another design element.

Editor's Note: You may read a review of the book here.

If your school library does not own a copy of Quilt of States, you may purchase a copy from your local bookstore or online from Amazon.

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