Topic outline
- General
- Module 3. Local craft and handwork
Module 3. Local craft and handwork
Story Framework
In this submodule, we follow the adventures of Piotr, a young entrepreneur who starts a new business in Wrocław. In his new shop, he wants to sell traditional craft and manufactures from all over Poland. Accompany Piotr as he travels around Poland and meets various people producing traditional Polish products, trying to collect merchandise for the shop.
Read the entry from Piotr’s journal, in which Piotr describes his dream to own a shop. Some sentences have been removed from the text. Choose from the sentences below to complete the text.
In this groupwork-based visualisation task you will design your own store smiliar to Piotr's. Many exciting decisions await you!
- So what is this whole crocheting about?
So what is this whole crocheting about?
Among numerous handworks, crocheting and embroidering were the ones that have always fascinated Piotr the most. Perhaps it was because his Grandma – the one he had never had a chance to know – was a famous needlewoman in a family and even when she passed away, her works have always been present at both Grandpa's home and shop. What is more, numerous examples of local embroidery or crocheting are among the national candidates for UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage. Therefore, when Piotr decided to keep the shop open and to fill it in with local manufacturing and craft, the first person he hired was Ela, an elderly lady specialising in crocheting, embroidering, and knitting…
Listen to Ela describing her journey with handwork. Then answer the questions choosing in each case the ending of the sentence that fits best. If you have problems with listening, the script is provided for you in this part of the Module as well.
Read these five short extracts in which Ela describes different handworks she made during her life. Match the descriptions with the pictures of her work.
- Honey, let's go honey hunting
Honey, let's go honey hunting
Piotr wanted to have various products in his shop, including numerous delicacies. At the beginning, he was thinking about traditional Polish dishes, such as pierogi, different soups, or bigos. However, he figured that there are already plenty of restaurants around Old Market with delicious food, including those mentioned. Moreover, storing such short-term food could prove itself problematic and costly. In the end, he decided that the perfect food product for his shop will be... honey. But not just any honey - only the honey from wild beehives...
Read the article on the history and development of wild beehives in Poland and perform the attached exercises.
Discuss these questions with your partner. Below you will find a box for your notes.
- The hunting season
The hunting season
Furniture can be made of various materials and Piotr finds out that bone is one of them. Discover the secrets of this peculiar craft in this section!Follow Piotr to the manufacture that uses deer antler to produce fine furniture.
- A thing of beauty
A thing of beauty
Source: MEDIA WNET, Under the license Creative Commons 2.0Piotr's journey takes him to Bolesławiec. His friend, Kuba, tells him how the most recogniseable Polish pottery is made.
Listen to this episode of Piotr's story and answer a few questions related to it!
Browse the stores in the search for the perfect ceramics in this short writing task.
- All's Well That Ends Well
All's Well That Ends Well
It's time for Piotr to choose which products will appear in his store. Help him decide which of the four crafts will provide him with best profits!
- The End
The End
Piotr has opened his shop. Every day he wakes up happy and goes to the work he loves. The shop is designed in order to cherish the memory of Piotr's grandpa as well as Polish customs and traditions. And it is (un)surprisingly popular! Hundreds of tourists visit Piotr's shop every day and he always tries to spend at least a couple of minutes to talk with each one of them and to learn about their country as well. If you ever happen to visit Wrocław, look around carefully and maybe you'll find Piotr's shop on one of the cobbled streets of the city. And if you are able to answer the questions in the game below - you will surely get a discount!
Do not check the glossary if you don't want to spoil yourself the game of Hangman!