Macramé Madness

This is the lesson that I taught with Ms. Sturlaugson. We titled it Macramé  Madness and taught the sixth grade class a brief history and the technique of macramé knotting. This type of knotting was started in the 13th Century and comes from the Arabic word meaning "fringe". People began the trade by using extra string from their looms to make knots. The craft was utilized by sailors at sea to pass time during long voyages, which was the inspiration for our display. Macramé became popular in the United States in the 1960's and is still used today to make jewelry, clothing, and household items such as plant hangers.  

Ms. Sturlaugson and I hung everone's bracelets/keychains in a display case by feeding a string through the end of each student's project. Name tags were placed over each one.  

Ms. Sturlaugson and I placed this on the bottom left of our display to explain to viewers what the main idea and theme of the display was.

This is the example I constructed for the class.

The requirements for this project were that students had to make their bracelet/keychain at least three inches long and incorporate at least three beads into the knots. They also had to show the proper technique of spiral knots and craftsmanship/neatness with their projects.

An extension activity for this project could be in a U.S. History class. Students would be asked to report about different styles and trends during different decades in the United States. They could discuss culture, jewelry/clothing, music, ect. that was popular during their assigned decade.