Many young people today think they are just going to go out there and have their “dream” apartment (like they see on TV), complete with top of the line furnishings, etc. Realistically, most will find they will be grateful for any free or hand-me-down furnishings (although they don’t realize that now). I wanted students to create a “dream” living room where money was no object. Their furnishings were based on their personal style, using the web-based technology Polyvore Home and they had to keep a list of expenses. Then, they had to replicate the room on a reduced budget as closely as possible using online department stores, again keeping track of their expenses. Finally, students created a visual using PREZI to compare the two rooms and answer a few questions in reflection about their selections. Not only did this project end up being an eye-opener for them in terms of cost, but they learned they could have a similar look, spending much less money. Oh, and did I mention, they also had a lot of fun “decorating and shopping” for a period or two!
- Begin by showing students some tv show apartments via this slide show. There are several eras included so you might want to pick and choose the ones you show. Most students think a lot these apartments are really cool and think they’d love to furnish their future apartments in a stylish way.
- projector & screen
- Introduce students to Polyvore and demonstrate how to create a board under the Home tab. Students then create their own accounts and proceed in the first part of the project, keeping track of what they are buying, where it comes from and the cost. I only copy the front page so students aren’t influenced by what they will have to do in part two.
- After they have completed part one, assign part two and give them time to recreate their room on a budget, with knock-off items. Again, they must keep track of what they are buying, where it comes from and the cost.
- Once their shopping is complete, students will complete part three and create a PREZI showing both versions as well as costs and stores.
- To conclude the project, students are to answer some questions summarizing their experience.
- Here is a sample of a PREZI illustrating the project.