The twined basket : a Native American art activity book

Summary: As part of the Native American Art Activity Book series, The Twined Basket teaches children about Northwest Coast Indian traditions through an entertaining story and hands-on-activities. Great Grandmother, Kaya, a revered Skokomish basket maker, is teaching Josephine, 15, and her brother Ralph, 10, how to make baskets twined with the leaves of the cattail plant. Kaya learned when she was very young, just like the others who lived for thousands of years in the Southern Coast Salish region of Western Washington State. Now she passes the knowledge on, showing Josephine and Ralph how to collect and process the cattails, and even where to dig for the dying materials. But Kaya has more in store for them, as they become entwined in the traditional ways of life. Following the story are step-by-step activity pages that include design templates for creating a twined basket and suggestions for designing your own basket. Complete with a teaching guide, background information on the craft of weaving baskets, and bibliography, The Twined Basket, is an entertaining and informative introduction to Native American art and culture.