The Tale Box – Ancestors' Crafts

Reviving Heritage in the Minds of Young Generations

The "Tale Box – Ancestors' Crafts" project is a pioneering interactive educational initiative executed in strategic partnership with local schools. The program is designed to introduce youth to traditional Syrian crafts, deepening their sense of belonging and cultural identity. Ultimately, it seeks to restore respect for heritage professions, positioning them as a source of national pride, creative inspiration, and future sustainability.

Program Overview

• Target Audience: School students between the ages of 10 and 15.
• Methodology: The initiative employs experiential learning by organizing students around interactive exhibition stations, each representing an authentic traditional Syrian profession.

Core Interactive Tracks

The project operates through three integrated tracks to ensure a rich, memorable, and impactful experience:

1. The Knowledge Track: Exploring Heritage Crafts

Students engage with specialized exhibition tables, each dedicated to a specific craft such as glassblowing, pottery making, wood carving, copper craftsmanship, and traditional textile weaving. This track emphasizes the vital role these crafts play in shaping the city's identity, the urgent need to protect them from extinction, and an honest look at the current reality and challenges these professions face today.

2. The Cultural Track: Social Cohesion and Popular Memory

To bring intangible heritage to life, a foundation expert steps into the traditional role of the Hakawati (storyteller), utilizing the Sanduq al-Dunya (the traditional storytelling peep-show box). This session highlights their historical role in fostering community bonding. Alongside this, documentary photographs of historic popular professions are displayed, and a special segment is dedicated to exploring "old-time children's games," effectively bridging the cultural and emotional gap between generations.

3. The Interactive Track: Sensory Experience and Deep Dialogue

Students are invited to tour the various stations, which feature diverse collections of heritage pieces and raw materials, giving them the unique opportunity for direct, hands-on interaction. Their critical thinking is stimulated through investigative questions—such as exploring what raw materials are used in pottery and how to properly preserve these artifacts. A specialized team of experts is present throughout the journey to guide the students, answer their inquiries, and deeply enrich their understanding of their heritage.