For children aged 10-12

Duration: 2 hours

Location: Folklife and Ethnological Museum of Macedonia-Thrace

Purpose: acquainting the children with aspects and values of our traditional culture and making them more aware of their cultural heritage

Objectives: Presenting the traditional costume phenomenon, through the acquaintance of children with a basic garment, the shirt, and bringing into sight its practical and symbolic functions. 
 
The programme is linked to the exhibition 'Macedonia-Thrace: Traditional Costumes, 1860-1960'.

A few words about the programme: A costume or dress refers to a set of garments, jewellery and accessories, covering the human body. Traditional costumes clothed and ornamented the body, protected it from visible and invisible hazards and constituted a sort of code, identifying the sex, age, occupation, ethnicity, native region, social position, family status and emotional situation. At the number of parameters mentioned above for the comprehension of the traditional costume phenomenon, we add the raw materials, the couture and adornment techniques, the depended relations between villages and cities, cities and abroad (Central and Western Europe).

After a brief conducted tour at the exhibition 'Macedonia-Thrace: Traditional Costumes, 1860-1960', the children are dressed with three characteristic traditional costumes of Macedonia and Thrace (perfect costumes copies) and with costumes of ancient Greece. Via competition of riddles related directly or indirectly to cloth, tools and raw materials of weaving, through cutting, putting together and decorating (painting) a male and a female traditional shirt made of paper, according to 10 presented models, via weaving at small looms, constructed specially for this programme and finally through singing and dancing traditional songs with percussion instruments referring to garments, the children become acquainted with the shirt and its function. Consequently, through shirt, they stay in touch with traditional costumes as well.

Implementation: Nelli Melidou-Kefala, Viki Xatziparadisi, Sapfo Mortaki

Planning: Nelli Melidou-Kefala