Social Justice for Little Learners

Grade Level: Kindergarten

Topic: Personal Identity

Book Title: “You Matter”

Author: Christian Robinson

Link to Purchase: https://a.co/d/3WgtIA7

Link for Online Read-Aloud : https://youtu.be/IHG1xUasQMk?si=OKorKKg9jan6sdjk

Discussion Prompts/Questions:

• Before Reading
  • What does it mean to “matter?”
  • Who is someone that matters to you?
  • Who do you matter to?
• During/after reading
  • This story reminds us that everyone matters…the first and the last, the big and the small, the young and the old. What are some things about you that can remind you that you matter? (prompt children to describe, likes/dislikes, things they are good at, people who love them, people they love, etc)

Follow-Up Activity:

• Have students use loose parts (art supplies such as pipe cleaners and feather, buttons or rocks, etc) to create a display that tells why  they matter. Encourage students to include details that describe things that make them unique, their likes, their hobbies, etc. Take a picture of each child with their portrait, for sharing to parents and/or for a display.
• Have students participate in a gallery walk, taking turns sharing about their displays and about what makes them unique. Encourage them to discover ways that they are the same as classmates and ways that they are different.

BC Core Competency Connections:

Personal and Social

• Personal Awareness & Responsibility
  • I can show a sense of accomplishment and joy, and express some wants, needs, and preferences. I can sometimes recognize my emotions.
• Positive Personal and Cultural Identity
  • I am aware of myself as different from others.
• Social Awareness and Responsibility
  • I am aware that other people can be different from me.
  • I can help and be kind.

Thinking

• Creative Thinking
  • I get ideas when I play.
• Critical Thinking
  • I can explore materials and actions.

Communication

• Communicating
  • In a safe and supported environment, I respond meaningfully to communication from peers and adults.
  • I can understand and share basic information about topics that are important to me.
• Collaborating
  • In familiar situations, I can participate with others.

BC Curricular Connections:

• Understand (Big Ideas):
  • Everyone has a unique story to share. (ELA K)
  • Curiosity and wonder lead us to new discoveries about ourselves and the world around us. (ELA K)
  • Our communities are diverse and made of individuals who have a lot in common. (SS K)
  • Stories and traditions about ourselves and our families reflect who we are and where we are from. (SS K)
  • Confidence develops through the process of self-discovery. (Career Education K)
  • Learning about ourselves and others helps us develop a positive attitude and caring behaviours, which helps us build healthy relationships. (Physical and Health Education K)
  • People create art to express who they are as individuals and community. (Arts Education K)
  • Engagement in the arts creates opportunities for inquiry through purposeful play. (Arts Education K)

• Know (Content):
  • Ways in which individuals and families differ and are the same. (SS K)
  • Rights, roles, and responsibilities of individuals and groups. (SS K)
  • Cultural and social awareness, achieved by exploring self-identity, acknowledging cultural differences, honouring indigenous traditions. (Career Education K)
  • Caring behaviours in groups and families. (Physical and Health Education K)
  • Personal and collective responsibility associated with creating, experiencing, or sharing in a safe learning environment. (Arts Education K)
  • Processes, materials, movements, technologies, tools, and techniques to support arts activities. (Arts Education K)

• Do (Curricular Competency):
  • Comprehend and connect (reading, listening, viewing)
    • Engage actively as listeners, viewers, and readers, as appropriate, to develop understanding of self, identity, and community. (ELA K)
    • Recognize the importance of story in personal, family, and community identity. (ELA K)
  • Create and communicate (writing, speaking, representing)
    • Use language to identify, create, and share ideas, feelings, opinions, and preferences. (ELA K)
  • Acknowledge different perspectives on people, places, issues, or events in their lives. (SS K)
  • Identify fair and unfair aspects of events, decisions, or actions in their lives and consider appropriate courses of action. (SS K)
  • Identify and appreciate their personal attributes, skills, interests, and accomplishments. (Career Education K)
  • Share ideas, information, personal feelings, and knowledge with others. (Career Education K)
  • Identify personal skills, interests, and preferences. (Physical and Health Education K)
  • Develop and demonstrate respectful behaviours when participating in activities with others. (Physical and Health Education K)
  • Create artistic works collaboratively and as an individual, using ideas inspired by imagination, inquiry, experimentation, and purposeful play. (Arts Education K)
  • Explore artistic expressions of themselves and community through creative processes. (Arts Education K)

FPPL Link:

• Learning ultimately supports the well-being of the self, the family, the community, the land, the spirits, and the ancestors.
• Learning is holistic, reflexive, reflective, experiential, and relational (focused on connectedness, on reciprocal relationships, and a sense of place).
• Learning involves patience and time.
• Learning requires exploration of one’s identity.
• Learning is embedded in memory, history, and story.

BC ELF Link:

• Children are strong, capable in their uniqueness, and full of potential.
• Early years spaces are inclusive.
• Play is integral to well-being and learning.
• Relationships are the context for well-being and learning.

TFT Through-line Link:

• Community Building