"Is the singing bowl from China or Japan and what is it used for?" 

            That was the question posed by Ronda Hassig, library media specialist at Harmony Middle School where students were identifying 51 Asian artifacts from a Culture Trunk. Culture Trunks were purchased by the Blue Valley Educational Foundation as part of a district-wide Social Studies grant.

Turns out the bowl is a Tibetan Buddhist singing bowl used for relaxation. That's what 6^th grader Emily Hickerson found out when she started her research.

            Once an object from the trunk has been identified, students write a brief paragraph about the artifact, take a picture of it and identify three sources where they found their information.

            When all research on the artifacts is completed, the items are packed back in the trunk and it travels to other Blue Valley elementary and middle schools studying China.

            "The best part about this work is that the students start to realize how we are all connected," said Carolyn Demory, 6^th grade Social Studies teacher. "China was not very familiar to most students when we began this unit, but now they have a deeper understanding and appreciation of this important culture," said Demory.

            Additional trunks include artifacts from African, Native American, European and Middle Eastern cultures to support elementary and middle school unit study.