First graders wear hats that designate their heritage during
their multicultural feast.
(RIVERHEAD, New York, APRIL 3, 2006) Multicultural
Studies at Aquebogue
- The dual concepts of family and community are used in the
social studies curriculum in the elementary grades. First
graders explore diversity and the multicultural context of
American society.
First graders conducted interviews, created personal and family
timelines, and, through the discovery of their own family
heritage, studied the cultures and geography of other countries
and how families work together to create neighborhoods and
communities.
The Riverhead Schools have a rich diversity of family backgrounds
in their classrooms and throughout the month of March all
of the first graders at the Aquebogue Elementary School celebrated
that ethnic diversity and held cultural feast days as a culminating
event of their studies.
The hallways were decorated with heritage dolls wearing clothing
representative of each child’s cultural background.
Family histories, essays and study booklets were posted and
a large map connecting each doll to its land of origin gave
testimony to some of the research that the students had conducted.
Inside the classroom, students tasted dishes that their parents
or grandparents had brought reflecting their various countries
of origin. A spicy German sausage, German potato salad, a
Polish noodle dish, Irish soda bread, corned beef, Guatemalan
pollo comperos, Ecuadoran rice and beans, and beautiful desserts
from a variety of countries helped the children experience
first-hand the melting pot that is America. |
|
