Silk tais production in East Timor

Year level: Upper primary/ Lower secondary Learning outcome Students will examine the development of new skills designed to promote self-sufficiency in the silk tais project in East Timor. Locate East Timor and Bacau on a map. Read the East Timor Country Profile and write a sentence about what it might be like to live in East Timor. Read Old knowledge, new fibres. Silk production in East Timor. Describe what a tais is and the traditional way of producing a tais in East Timor. (http://www.etimortais.org/index.htm has images of many diverse East Timorese tais and stories about their historical and current social and cultural context.) Explain why preparing yarn and weaving tais might have been considered an essential skill for women. What might have been a corresponding essential skill for men? Describe the aims and processes of the silk tais project started by Father Pat MacAnally. Compare the environmental, economic and social impacts involved in producing a silk tais compared to a traditional cotton one. Discuss: How would the introduction of silk weaving help preserve traditional culture? What ways might people in other countries be able to contribute to the sustainability of the silk project? Assessment task Use a PMI chart to outline the pluses, minuses and interesting aspects about the production of silk tais. Make a statement about whether you think this project will assist people in Bacau to become self-sufficient.