Summary Twine wool and/or grass. Plait pipe cleaners to make a mesh to model separation of clams and sand. Look at images of twined rope, clam baskets and hats. Science content Biology: Indigenous People's sustainable use of Living Things (K, 2, 3) Chemistry: Indigenous People’s Materials/Separation methods (1, 6) Chemistry: Physical Changes, Solutions, Mixtures and Separating (2, 4, 5, 6) Activities in this lesson Clam basket weaving model Twining Procedure Do twining with dyed wool, or grass, to make a bracelet. Model how the weaving of a clam basket catches clams, but not the sand. Look at images of Indigenous twined materials, including clam baskets. The Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations, who’s land we are on, use a woven basket for collecting and cleaning clams that are collected from beaches. They make a basket that has just the right sized holes to keep clams in the basket but let sand and gravel through. The clams are gathered and washed in the basket. Show a pic of clam basket. This clam basket is made with a twining method, but we’ll try another kind of weaving to try and catch pretend clams. You’ll make a model of a clam basket by using another kind of weaving called plaiting. Refine your weaving to catch more clams. Clam baskets are often actually made by twining. Twining is a traditional weaving method, used by the Coast Salish. Other Indigenous groups have the same Traditional weaving method, though its name may differ. Twining can made twisted handles of a clam basket. The sturdy meshed basketry of the basket is made by twining around uprights. Students twine with grass and/or coloured wool. Grades taught Gr 2 Gr 3 Gr 4 Gr 5 Gr 6
