Activity 3: A Hero's Clothing

Student Handout
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Objective:
Students will be able to use evidence from the costumes of heroes or heroines to form hypotheses about the culture that the hero or heroine represents.

1. Organize students into groups, or assign a character to each student.

2. Supply each student with a printed version (no text) of the character about which he or she will be writing.

3. Distribute the clue-finder sheet. Discuss how students might form a connection between the culture and the details for a hero/heroine's attire. Example: Hypothesis: The Egyptian people believed the sun was a source of leadership and power. Evidence: Isis and Ra, Egyptian gods, wear sun disks.

4. As a next step, have students use books or on-line resources to attempt to confirm or disprove their hypotheses. Emphasize that scientists never accept hypotheses as fact without proof, but the hypothesis can remain in place until disproven.

Tip: If your class hasn't discussed the concept of hypotheses, you may wish to teach a mini-lesson on this topic.