Classroom Project

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Given our rural setting, students have limited access to people from other cultures. They often have misinformation about people that do not fit their idea of "normal." This limits their ability to explore new ideas and often keeps students from reaching their potential.

Our school is an extremely low income area of our state, so parents have little funds to take students to cities were they can explore museums and meet people from other cultures. As the world continues to grow smaller in terms of daily interaction, students must be able to appreciate others with different backgrounds.

The globe in my classroom is very old and some of the countries no longer exist or have changed names. Furthermore, the writing has worn off on several areas. I do a project each year with the students where they research the origin of their surname and learn what that country has contributed to their daily life and family traditions. Students use the Internet, family interviews, and books to help them with their research. We end the project with an English tea party using antique tea cups that were passed to me from my grandmother. Students are invited to bring a food item from their country to share with the class. I have several copies of the "Look What Came From.." series, but need to add to the class library to provide opportunity for all students to have access to books at their reading level. Often students have the same family origin, so I invite them to choose a different country that has not been taken by another student. This individualized approach has made a difference for the students at this grade level because it focuses directly on their lives.

You will make it possible for my students to gain appreciation of all cultures and develop a respect for other people.

My students need a globe and 4 individual copies each of 5 books in the "Look What Came From..." series.