Thank you for agreeing to collect items for our Culture Kits!
Carolina Navigators’ Culture Kits are sent free of charge to teachers in North Carolina for classroom use. The
goal of each kit is to give K-12 students a glimpse of daily life of similar-aged children around the world.
Our Culture Kits feature authentic items that a K-12 student might encounter in a typical day. We seek to
portray the world’s countries as the vibrant, complex, multi-faceted places we know they are. We hope that
these kits help students in North Carolina see similarities to their own lives, while examining differences in an
informed way.
Carolina Navigators’ Culture Kits paint a picture for K-12 students of life in a place many of them will never go.
With this in mind, here are some guidelines to follow as you collect materials:
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Try to avoid objects that are mainly meant for tourists. When shopping for toys, art, clothing, music,
etc., ask yourself, would I find this in the home of an average person here?
Items will be handled by many children of varying ages. Please chose items that are fairly durable and
safe to handle.
Because our Culture Kits are shipped all over North Carolina, we request that you select items that
are not overly heavy and can fit into a relatively small box.
Once you’ve collected your items, please write a brief paragraph about each one (see template below). Write
the descriptions with teachers in mind. If you can include links to related web resources, please do. When you
are finished, please email me a soft copy. Here are some guiding questions for these descriptions:
What is the item called? Who uses the item? Who doesn’t use the item? How would people who use
the item describe it? Are there different varieties of this item? Is there an equivalent item in the US?
What makes this item important or unique? What does the item say about the culture? Does the item
have ties to a specific region or group of people? Is the item traditional or used in everyday culture?
When you return to UNC, please contact me so we can schedule a time for you to drop off your Culture Kit
items and descriptions. I will then email you the reimbursement form (we can reimburse you up to $100 for the
items you purchase). Please save your receipts !
Thanks again for collecting items for Carolina Navigators’ Culture Kits. Please contact me if you have any
questions. Enjoy your time abroad!
Sincerely,
Cate Brubaker, PhD
Carolina Navigators Program Manager
Center for Global Initiatives
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
301 Pittsboro St Ste 3015 | Campus Box 5145
FedEx Global Education Center | Chapel Hill NC 27599-5145
tel: +1 919 843 6860 | fax: +1 919 962 5375
Top 10 Culture Kit Items to Collect for Carolina Navigators
1. Clothing, Hats, Scarves, Shoes, Jewelry
2. School-Related Items
3. Food/Drink Labels and Packages/Restaurant
4. Books and Other Print Materials
5. Toys/Games
6. Music
7. Religious Items
8. Artistic/Musical Items
9. Holidays or Festivals
10.
Kids love to try on clothes. Please include both
modern and traditional items.
menus/”Happy Meal” boxes
A cup from Starbucks, spice packets, plastic soda
bottle, empty cereal or frozen dinner box, etc.
Choose items from both familiar (e.g.,
McDonald’s) and unfamiliar/country-specific
restaurants.
Popular toys and games, country-specific cartoon
characters or heartthrobs, toys that represent
aspects of everyday culture (e.g., a small model
of a bus).
Common religious decorations, prayer books and
religious texts, examples of religious dress, other
devotional objects.
Special decorations from religious or civic events,
examples of holiday dress, gifts that might be
exchanged, special song books or plays/rituals
that might be performed or enacted, recordings
or photos of any/all of these thing.
Uniforms, school supplies, textbooks, samples of
student work, school flyers, lunch menu, photos
of schools, classrooms, playgrounds, students.
Favorite children’s books by local authors (if a
book is in the local language, please choose one
with lots of pictures), a cookbook with lots of
pictures, newspaper/magazine, TV schedule,
advertisements, supermarket inserts, etc.
CD of music that’s popular with children and
teens, traditional music, holiday/event-specific
music.
Small sample of weaving, paintings, origami,
woodwork, fabric, sculptures, instruments.
Include both modern and traditional.
Small Items from Daily Life
Bus or train tickets, grocery store receipts, movie
tickets, McDonald’s tray liners (clean, of course!),
postage stamps, currency, street maps, patriotic
or commemorative items, samples of the local
language(s), etc.
A couple other ideas:
 Take photos of your daily life – where you live, transportation you use, food you eat, etc.
 Take photos relating to a specific theme – traditional architecture in your host city, schools, a
holiday/event.
 Film 2-5 minute video interviews with people you meet.
 Record audio clips of daily life – transportation, restaurants, music, animals, etc.
{Name of Country}
Culture Kit Description List
Created By:
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{Add more rows if needed}
Culture Kit Creator’s Biography:
{Description}
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