Dec. 11, 2018 -- First graders at Canterbury launched their “How We Express Ourselves” IB unit of inquiry by studying the one thing that they know best: their families. Students in Kate Duhanich, Patrick Dooner and Abby Raiz’s classes recently created “family bags” to share their family history, characteristics and traditions.

Each student was given a paper bag to fill at home with the help of their parents, grandparents or siblings. They could include three objects, photographs or drawings that represented where their family came from, how they celebrate birthdays and holidays, favorite memories like family trips and so on. Each student then had the opportunity to share the contents of their bag with their classmates during a special Show and Tell session, thus practicing the all-important skills of speaking and listening. 

“It was an exciting and interesting activity that allowed all of us to learn new things about each other,” said Ms. Duhanich, adding that the children all eagerly anticipated the chance to share. The upcoming holiday season reminded children of some of their family traditions, such as Lyriq who brought in a tiara to show how special New Year’s Eve celebrations are to her family. Nash brought in a ceramic campfire figurine because his family goes on an annual camping trip. And Simone was able to share his unique culture, coming from a family that speaks multiple languages with both South Korean and Italian backgrounds. All in all, students learned about each other while learning about themselves.