Landscape Paintings by Peter and Catharine Whyte

Activity 7: At Home in the Mountains Level · All Purpose · To identify reasons why people choose to live in the mountains and the particular considerations a life in the mountains requires. · To acquaint students and teachers with Peter and Catharine on a personal level. Materials · Works in the exhibition or slides · Excerpts from letters (provided) · Pencils and paper or drawing materials Procedure · Creative Writing and / or Drawing 1. Find examples of dwellings in the paintings. Discuss the different types of dwellings found, who might live there, and what it might be like inside. 2. As a group or using copies for small group or individual work, use the excerpts from letters written by Catharine provided to find passages about the Whyte's home, their visitors (human and animal) and their feeling about living in Banff. 3. Discuss with the class what they think the Whyte's home might look like inside. (It is full of art by them and their friends. It has interesting things everywhere given to them by friends and collected on their travels and on the trails. It's full of books. It has a warm feeling.) 4. If you were to live in the mountains, what sort of home would you want? a) Would you want to live in the town or in a remote area? b) What would you do to protect against the cold? The animals? The isolation? 5. Write a journal entry or a letter to a friend or family member describing your mountain home. OR Draw your mountain home as you would want it to be. Evaluation · Thoughtfulness as demonstrated by detail · Individualized treatment of subject Curriculum Connections · Visual Art, Social Studies, Language Learning

Whyte Museum/Familiar Sky