we are a family
Goal 14: Recognize their own and others' cultural values and practices.
Materials: Photographs of children and adults in the classroom and members of their families, a display board, pen, paper
General Guidelines: Request photographs from each child's family well in advance (about 2 weeks). Assure them that their photos will be returned. Label the pictures with names and relationships of each person. When you have secured the pictures, mount them temporarily on the bulletin board (carefully).
Procedure: Allow each person in the class an opportunity to talk about his or her family. Respond positively to children's comments about any similarities or differences they notice in family structures. Avoid using terms like "only" when describing a child's family. Talk with students about the range of possible family compositions. Encourage students to write or dictate stories about their family, telling what they like to do together, how each person in the family works to help the family, how they celebrate special holidays or occasions, and so on. Tell children to read these stories to the other children. Elicit comments from children about these practices, and reinforce the idea that each family does things that are meaningful to its members. Instruct children to graph independently the various families in the group. These graphs can be compared to one another as children identify which families are composed of many people, which fewer, which include pets and those that do not, which family members look alike and those that do not. Put the pictures in a book called The Families in Our Class. Include stories and other descriptions that students have written or dictated. Make the book available for the students to "read."
To Simplify: Focus on what children can see depicted in the photographs, such as family composition.
To Extend: Delve more deeply into family traditions by asking children to bring in and talk about important family artifacts. Elicit information form families about favorite stories, jokes, and so forth. Write this information out for children to see and compare it with other versions.
Materials: Photographs of children and adults in the classroom and members of their families, a display board, pen, paper
General Guidelines: Request photographs from each child's family well in advance (about 2 weeks). Assure them that their photos will be returned. Label the pictures with names and relationships of each person. When you have secured the pictures, mount them temporarily on the bulletin board (carefully).
Procedure: Allow each person in the class an opportunity to talk about his or her family. Respond positively to children's comments about any similarities or differences they notice in family structures. Avoid using terms like "only" when describing a child's family. Talk with students about the range of possible family compositions. Encourage students to write or dictate stories about their family, telling what they like to do together, how each person in the family works to help the family, how they celebrate special holidays or occasions, and so on. Tell children to read these stories to the other children. Elicit comments from children about these practices, and reinforce the idea that each family does things that are meaningful to its members. Instruct children to graph independently the various families in the group. These graphs can be compared to one another as children identify which families are composed of many people, which fewer, which include pets and those that do not, which family members look alike and those that do not. Put the pictures in a book called The Families in Our Class. Include stories and other descriptions that students have written or dictated. Make the book available for the students to "read."
To Simplify: Focus on what children can see depicted in the photographs, such as family composition.
To Extend: Delve more deeply into family traditions by asking children to bring in and talk about important family artifacts. Elicit information form families about favorite stories, jokes, and so forth. Write this information out for children to see and compare it with other versions.
