Social Justice for Little Learners

Grade Level: Grades One and Two

Topic: Diverse Abilities

Book Title: “Just Ask!”

Author: Sonia Sotomeyer

Link to Purchase: https://a.co/d/bZoj1hy

Link for Online Read-Aloud : https://youtu.be/q4sGcaA6bFk?si=kHFYGKMZ1xJ-b8Uu

• Before Reading
  • “Wouldn’t it be boring if we were all exactly the same?”
  • “Being different from other people is what makes you special. We all have things that are different and the same. Have you ever felt too different, like you don’t fit in?”
• During/After Reading
  • “The children in this book all have something about them that makes them a little bit different. Let’s learn more about their differences, and also about how much the same we all are.”
  • “How can we notice people who are feeling left out, and invite them to be part of our groups?”
  • “How can you be a cheerleader for people who are trying new things, things that may be difficult for them?”
  • “Some children have extra needs for their bodies or their brains. How can we make sure that they feel safe and happy in our classroom?”
  • “How can we make our classroom and our class community be a place that helps everyone to fit in?”

Follow-Up Activity:

• Go outside to a nature space or the playground. Explore how many different ways students can move around in the space. If possible, include trikes/bikes, wagons, and adaptive equipment. Encourage students to be cheerleaders for each other, celebrating successes, mistakes, and trying again. Discuss ways that people who cannot move the same way as an able-bodied person have to adapt to places such as playgrounds and schools, and ways that adaptations can be made to make the spaces more inclusive.
• Have students take turns being the leader who guides someone who can’t see and the person who is blindfolded. Discuss ways that people who cannot see have to adapt to places such as playgrounds and schools, and ways that adaptations can be made to make the spaces more inclusive.

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 different aspects of myself. I can describe my family, home, and/or community (people and/or place).
• Social Awareness and Responsibility
  • I am aware that other people can be different from me.
  • In familiar settings, I can interact with others and my surroundings respectfully.

Thinking

• Creative Thinking
  • I get ideas when I use my senses to explore.
• Critical Thinking
  • I can explore with a purpose in mind and use what I learn.

Communication

• Communicating
  • I can understand and share basic information about topics that are important to me.
• Collaborating
  • I contribute during group activities, cooperate with others, and listen respectfully to their ideas.

BC Curricular Connections:

• Understand (Big Ideas):
  • Stories and other texts help us learn about ourselves and our families. (ELA 1)
  • Everyone has a unique story to share. (ELA 1)
  • Curiosity and wonder lead us to new discoveries about ourselves and the world around us. (ELA 1)
  • Healthy communities recognize and respect the diversity of individuals and care for the local environment. (SS 1)
  • Confidence develops through the process of self-discovery. (Career Education 1)
  • Learning about ourselves and others helps us develop a positive attitude and caring behaviours, which helps us build healthy relationships. (Physical and Health Education 1)
  • Stories and other texts help us learn about ourselves and our families. (ELA 2)
  • Everyone has a unique story to share. (ELA 2)
  • Curiosity and wonder lead us to new discoveries about ourselves and the world around us. (ELA 2)
  • Confidence develops through the process of self-discovery. (Career Education 2)

• Know (Content):
  • Diverse cultures, backgrounds, and perspectives within the local and other communities. (SS 1)
  • Cultural and social awareness, achieved by exploring self-identity, acknowledging cultural differences, honouring indigenous traditions. (Career Education 1)
  • Cultural and social awareness, achieved by exploring self-identity, acknowledging cultural differences, honouring indigenous traditions. (Career Education 2)
  • Factors that influence self-identity (could include self-esteem, self-efficacy, cultural heritage, body image) (Personal and Health Education 2)

• 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 1)
    • Recognize the importance of story in personal, family, and community identity. (ELA 1)
  • Create and communicate (writing, speaking, representing)
    • Exchange ideas and perspectives to build shared understanding. (ELA 1)
    • Create stories and other texts to deepen awareness of self, family, and community. (ELA 1)
  • Identify and appreciate their personal attributes, skills, interests, and accomplishments. (Career Education 1)
  • Share ideas, information, personal feelings, and knowledge with others. (Career Education 1)
  • Identify personal skills, interests, and preferences. (Physical and Health Education 1)
  • Comprehend and connect (reading, listening, viewing)
    • Engage actively as listeners, viewers, and readers, as appropriate, to develop understanding of self, identity, and community. (ELA 2)
    • Demonstrate awareness of the role that story plays in personal, family, and community identity. (ELA 2)
  • Create and communicate (writing, speaking, representing)
    • Exchange ideas and perspectives to build shared understanding. (ELA 2)
    • Create stories and other texts to deepen awareness of self, family, and community. (ELA 2)
  • Identify and appreciate their personal attributes, skills, interests, and accomplishments. (Career Education 2)
  • Share ideas, information, personal feelings, and knowledge with others. (Career Education 2)
  • Identify personal skills, interests, and preferences, and describe how they influence self-identity (Physical and Health Education 2)

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
• Servant Working