Quilts

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=The Quilts Project= In celebration of the 175th Birthday of Rochester, the Rochester City School District is partnering with Christine Ridarsky, City Historian, and the Rochester Museum and Science Center, to produce a Quilt to commemorate the event. Participating schools or teachers will receive a “square” that will represent a key historical figure in Rochester's history. Students will be engaged in the research process in order to create both a physical quilt and a virtual one which will include a multimedia site telling the story of the notable Rochesterians.

So, what do we want teachers to do with students?

Simply put, we'd like you to engage your students in researching a notable individual from Rochester's past. Since you know your students the best, you can structure this research, as well as the final product, any way you like. Perhaps you'd like your students to construct individual reports, some of you might have students work to create digital storybooks, while others will be creating exhibits at their schools. Any and all of these activities are valuable experiences for your students; we'd just like to document these experiences for our virtual quilt. Ultimately, we'd like to document your students answering these questions: In addition to the research process you engage your students in, we'd also like your students to design the physical square which will be sewn together with the other participants' squares to construct the final quilt. Here are some additional details...
 * What did we find out about this person?
 * How did we learn about him or her?
 * What legacy has this person left behind in Rochester and the larger community?

The Virtual Quilt will be modeled after the physical quilt. Each notable person will have their own page which will be reached by clicking the corresponding square on the quilt. Each person's page will include things like photographs, primary source documents, textual summaries and narratives about the person, and of course, video clips of your students researching and sharing their new knowledge. Click HERE for an example of what the virtual quilt could look like. The students who appear in your video clips must have a completed photo release on file. You can download the form here:
 * The Virtual Quilt**

Every school will receive one square for each person they are researching. Here is some basic information about the logistics of the physical quilt...
 * The Physical Quilt**
 * Each fabric square will have 12 inches of space to work with (the square will actually be 12 ½ inches to allow for sewing).
 * Each square will use one of three colors for the background.
 * Each square will have a 2” sashing. The sashing below each square will have the name of the historic person and the dates the person lived.
 * There will be a 7” border around the entire quilt which will have a silk-screened picture of each person represented on the squares.

When the quilter visits your room, it will probably be difficult for all of your students to participate at the same time. However, all students can have a hand in designing the square beforehand. Students in you class should design the square before you meet with your quilter. You can use this worksheet to get all students to have a part in the creation of the square:

Research Process & Video Shooting: December 2009 through February 2010 Designing Quilt Squares: March 2010 Final Quilt Assembly: April 2010 Culminating Event and Celebration: May 2010
 * Project Timeline**

=Video Sign-Up Calendar= Use this calendar to find a good time to have the video crew film your students. If you have a Google account, you can reserve the spot yourself by creating an event in the calendar, or you can simply e-mail Steve LaMorte. Please include your name, what school you're at, and the time in the day you would like the crew to visit. Due to the large number of participants in the project, please sign up for only one date. media type="custom" key="4945893"

=Quilting Sign-Up Calendar= Use this calendar to find a good time to have a quilter visit your class to work with your students. Be sure to begin the square design process with your students before you would like a quilter to visit. If you have a Google account, you can reserve the spot yourself by creating an event in the calendar, or you can simply e-mail Steve LaMorte. If you do not need a quilter to come to your school (because you yourself are one or you are already working with someone), please just let Steve know. Include your name, what school you work at, and the time of day you would like to work with the quilter. Again, as the number of quilters is limited, please only sign up for one date at this point. media type="custom" key="4945901"

=Contact Information= Peggy Avery, Quilter and all around wonderful person: mavery004@rochester.rr.com Rich DellCosta, Media Teacher, Edison IIT: richard.dellacosta@rcsdk12.org Jennifer Gkourlias, Executive Director of Social Studies: jennifer.gkourlias@rcsdk12.org (585) 262-8470 Jacquie Holmes, Graphic Design Teacher, Edison IIT: jacquie.holmes@rcsdk12.org Stephen LaMorte, Lead Teacher, Secondary Social Studies: stephen.lamorte@rcsdk12.org (585) 262-8169 Larry Naukam, Head of Local History & Genealogy: lnaukam@libraryweb.org (585) 428-8368 Christine Ridarsky, City Historian: christine.ridarsky@libraryweb.org (585) 428-8095

=Questions?= If you have any questions about the project, please feel free to contact us using the information above, or by using the discussion boards. You can post a message by clicking "Discussion" at the top left of this page. (You must register with wikispaces for free to post your message.)