I AM ME & I AM PART OF US
Arts-based project with 2nd Graders to connect knowledge of human rights with social emotional learning and positive engagement with the greater community.
PROJECT CURRICULUM OUTLINE
The World As It Could Be Human Rights Education Program (TWAICB) In Collaboration With Natalia Anciso’s 2nd grade class at Cesar Chavez Elementary School, San Francisco, CA, September 2022 – March 2023
Natalia Anciso has been introducing information about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) to her 2nd grade classes since 2014 using elements of TWAICB curriculum as age-appropriate. For example, at the beginning of each school year, after introducing the UDHR, Ms. Anciso has her students develop their “Classroom Rights and Responsibilities,” helping the students apply UDHR concepts to how they will utilize school resources and interact with each other in a caring and respectful way.
With this project, Ms. Anciso carried out activities in conjunction with her Social Emotional Learning and Social Studies teaching objectives to deepen the connection of how knowing about UDHR principles helps build competencies of being responsible, respectful, empathetic and caring people who positively engage with others in their immediate and extended communities. The students carried out creative arts writing and visual arts activities that helped them grasp the significance of their own personal stories that illustrate who they are as wonderful human beings, valuing their family history and personal identity, as well as who they are as part of their community of other students, their school and the greater world around them. The students also created a collective class poem to reflect each of their roles as part of the greater community.
In conjunction with Ms. Anciso’s class work, Sandy Sohcot came in each week to read stories that sparked creative thinking as well as ideas about community connections. Most of the stories were bi-lingual, and a classroom assistant read the Spanish language stories.
The writings and visual illustrations of the students’ ideas were captured and published in a printed book. The students, with the guidance of Ms. Anciso, created a beautiful mural to reflect symbols of their ancestry, nationalities and community. An 11×17 poster of the class mural was printed. The students were celebrated for their learnings and accomplishments in their full culminating presentation that took place on March 24, 2023, and they received the book and poster as part of the celebration.
PROJECT OBJECTIVES:
- Provide 2nd grade students the following learning experiences:
- Activities to help students embody human rights concepts, such as what it feels like, looks like and sounds like to treat others with respect and dignity;
- Creative arts activities that encourage reflection of each student’s personal story, including their country of origin, their family members and their unique qualities;
- Gain social emotional learning competencies, especially about being respectful and empathetic toward others, such as when personal stories are shared with each other;
- Gain a positive sense of themselves to then support their abilities to constructively interact with others;
- Have a Rite-of-Passage opportunity to put together both a beautiful book of their creative expressions, that they will then have as a remembrance, as well as a culminating presentation for their school community, where they will be celebrated for what they have learned and accomplished.
TWAICB PROJECT OBJECTIVES:
- Demonstrate how to effectively utilize TWAICB curriculum at the elementary school level, so that young students can gain long term benefits from the knowledge of human rights principles;
- Help convey how knowledge of the UDHR can provide meaningful context for gaining social emotion learning competencies and motivation to engage positively with others and the greater community;
- Help convey what Human Rights Education is about;
- Continue to demonstrate the importance of the creative arts in deepening both learning of complex concepts and inspiring others about the importance of these concepts;
- Continue to provide youth the opportunity to experience their positive sense of self, their importance as part of a greater community, and their agency to use their voices and creative expressions to inspire others.
NATALIA ANCISO/TEACHER PROMPTS FOR INDIVIDUAL POEMS AND VISUAL ART ACTIVITIES:
(Listed in the order presented to the students between September 2022 and February 2023)
- What are three things that you love?
- Describe a character from the story just read.
- Use three different words to describe yourself to finish the sentence that starts, “I am…”
- Use adjectives to add to each word. For example, “I am very funny.” Or, “I am a happy big brother.”
- What are good food smalls that remind you of home?
- What are traditional foods from our countries?
- What are your favorite family foods?
- Write about them by completing the sentence, “I am…” For example, “I am tacos.”
- Draw pictures of your favorite foods.
- What are the colors of your country?
- Write about these colors by completing the sentence, “I am…” For example, “I am red, white and blue.”
- In conjunction with this exercise, as part of Social Studies learning objectives, students were gaining an understanding of where their ancestors came from.
- One art project was to create an ancestry doll.
- Students studied flags from their countries and what each color represented.
- Around the Day of the Dead, students learned about monarch butterflies representing their ancestors.
- What do you see looking out your window, both at school and home?
- What do you see, picturing your window from your home country?
- Write about this by completing the sentences, “I see….”
- What do you hear as you look out your window, both at school and home?
- Create a soundscape, defined, in a write-up by National Geographic, as students discussing the natural and human-made sounds that help to define a sense of place.
- Describe what is heard by completing the sentence, “I hear…”
- Choose your favorite thing to look at and hear.
- Describe these by completing the sentence, “I am…” For example, “I am a loud house full of love.”
To get illustrations for the book of individual poems, students selected their favorite art project.
PROMPTS FOR THE COLLECTIVE CLASS POEM:
The students spent time outside, seeing nearby streets. They also read the book “Me On the Map.”
The students also used the worksheet made up of concentric circles, shown here, to fill in themselves at the center, then labeling the next degree of community at each of the next circles, such as classroom, then neighborhood, then city, then state, then country, then other countries in the world.
- The students were then asked to write sentences that completed:
- What do you see, hear and smell?
- On the worksheet of concentric circles, the students wrote out sentences to describe,
- “This is my class.” “This is my school.”
- They then wrote sentences that described themselves as part of the different circles, completing the sentence, “We are…” For example, “We are Cesar Chavez.” “We are the Mission.” We are San Francisco”
PROCESS FOR CREATING THE CLASS MURAL:
Students looked at different pictures of the Mission neighborhood and selected the ones they wanted to use for the mural. A collage of the different pictures for added to the mural paper.
The butterflies on the mural represented migration and the ancestors of the students.
The central butterfly contained the colors of the flags of the students’ countries, as well as patterns and colors from the ancestry dolls the students had created to represent their ancestors.
What Do You Do With An Idea?
By Kobi Yamada
A young person describes his experience of having an idea and ultimately realizing the good that can come from having one.
Related Activities
- Discuss what it means to have an idea and where ideas come from, including what ‘imagination’ means.
- Have teams of students come up with different things you can do with a small paper bag or other type of commonly used item, such as a hanger.
- Have the students share their creations
Learning Objectives
- Spur thinking about being creative.
- Promote creativity.
- Encourage collaboration.
My Head Is Full of Colors
By Catherine Friend
Note: The book is out of print but can be found on-line
Over several days, young Maria looks in the mirror and finds her hair changes to rainbow colors, then books, then animals, and then people, and learns about her own strengths and spirit.
Related Activities
- Discuss what Maria learned from her experience.
- Art assignment to have the students draw themselves with their own heads filled with whatever their imagination dictates.
- The students then share their illustrations.
Learning Objectives
- Spur imagination.
- Promote creativity.
- Encourage empathy.
- Encourage enthusiasm for learning and connecting with others.
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
By William Steig
A young donkey finds a magical red pebble and makes wishes that come true. To avoid being seen by a lion, Sylvester wishes to become a rock, which causes many problems. He is ultimately reunited with his family, and realizes all he is thankful for.
We read this before Thanksgiving.
- We debriefed on the different feelings experienced by Sylvester, his mother & father.
- We talked about what it means to be thankful. We drew a large circle on a flip chart sheet, and within it lines that looked like a peace sign, so that there were 3 sections. In the first, we asked what words describe what Thankful sounds like, then, in the next section, what words describe what Thankful looks like, and in the last section, what words describe what Thankful feels like.
- Students were asked to write out and draw pictures of what they are thankful for and then share what they wrote and drew.
Learning Objectives
- Enjoy storytelling.
- Encourage empathy.
- Spur thinking about the concept of being thankful.
- Encourage thinking about and expressing gratitude.
- Experience the concept of being thankful in different ways.
The Rainbow Goblins
By Ul de Rico
Beautifully illustrated story of how a rainbow was saved from goblins.
Related Activities
- The students created their own rainbows and their ideas for saving the rainbow.
- Each student shared their illustration and rescue idea.
Learning Objectives
- Enjoyment of a great story with vibrant illustrations.
- Spark creative thinking about how to save a rainbow.
Superheroes Are Everywhere
By Kamala Harris
Senator Harris describes the many ways people can be superheroes and gives examples from her own life.
Related Activities
- We asked what the words “hero” and “superhero” mean.
- We brainstormed about people they know as superheroes.
- We gave the students paper, pencils and crayons and asked them to first list the people they know who are their superheroes, and then to draw a picture of one or more of the people listed.
- We asked the students to share what they wrote and drew.
Learning Objectives
- Gain understanding of the different ways people can make a positive difference in the lives of others
- Have the opportunity to identify people the students consider their superheroes
- Enjoy expressing their ideas in writing and through visual art
I’ll Wait, Mr. Panda
Yo voy a esperar, Sr. Panda
By Steve Antony
Young animal friends want to know what Mr. Panda is baking, and must wait patiently to enjoy the results.
Related Activities
- Before reading the story, we asked what it means to be “patient” and how it feels to have to wait for something wanted.
- After reading the story, we gave the students paper and markers, and asked them to draw something they really like.
Learning Objectives
- Inspire thinking about what it means to wait for something you really want.
- Inspire self-awareness about how it feels to be patient and why being patient can be good.
- Encourage creativity.
- Promote fun.
The Library’s Secret
El Secreto de la Biblioteca
By A. Galán
A fanciful story about a young boy’s adventure in a library.
Related Activities
- Before reading the story, we asked about what imagination means.
- After reading the story, we asked the students what they thought the young boy experienced, and whether this was real or a dream.
- We asked the students to share the name of their favorite book and why they liked it. We also asked what happened in their imagination as they read stories.
Learning Objectives
- Spark imaginative thinking.
- Inspire students to value what happens when they read stories.
Is Your Mama a Llama?
Tu mamá es una llama?
By Deborah Guarino
Lyrical story of a young llama asking animal friends about the family they belong to.
Presented both the English and Spanish versions of this story.
Related Activities
- We asked the students to guess which animals are being described just before reading the answer.
- After reading the story, we had the students draw pictures of their favorite animal with their “parent” animal.
Learning Objectives
- Encourage careful listening to be able to guess the described animals.
- Encourage creativity.
The Bossy Gallito
El Gãllo de Bodas
A traditional Cuban folktale retold by Lucía M. González
A story about a bossy rooster on his way to the wedding of his uncle the parrot.
Related Activities
- Before reading the story, we asked the students what the word “bossy” means.
- After reading the story, we discussed what happened to the rooster along his way to the wedding, asking why the different animals he met didn’t want to help.
- We asked what the rooster did that made the difference in his getting help.
- We shared information about the writer’s family story that led to this book.
Learning Objectives
- Inspire thinking about what it means to treat others with care and kindness, rather than being “bossy.”
Luna’s Yum Yum Dim Sum
Lunda y su riquísimo dim sum
By Natasha Yim
A story about Luna celebrating her birthday with her family at a favorite Dim Sum restaurant and what happens when one dumpling falls on the floor, causing a problem in how to equally share what is left.
Related Activities
- Before reading the story, we asked the students if they know what Dim Sum food is, and if they have ever been to a Dim Sum restaurant.
- After reading the story, we asked the students how the problem of sharing only 2 dumplings among 3 people was solved.
- We asked the students to describe what they think being “fair” means.
- We had the students draw pictures of their favorite family foods, and then share out their stories.
Learning Objectives
- Encourage thinking about other ethnic cultures and traditions of those cultures.
- Encourage thinking about the concepts of fairness and problem solving to achieve fairness.
- Inspire thinking about mathematical fractions.
- Encourage creativity.
My Town / Mi Pueblo
By Nicholas Solis
A story about cousins who live in different countries across the river from each other, and how they get to visit with each other and their families.
Related Activities
- After reading the story, we discussed what the cousins must feel like when they get together, and when they go back to being apart, across the river.
- We asked the students to share their own stories about having families who live in different countries, away from them.
- We had the students draw pictures of their families in different homes.
Learning Objectives
- Inspire thinking about being part of a family, as well as being part of bigger community.
- Inspire empathy about what it feels like to be in separate countries, yet share family ties.
- Encourage creativity.
Plátanos Go with Everything
Los Plátanos van con todo
By Lissette Norman
A story narrated by daughter Yesenia about how having plátanos brings joy to her and her family, reminding them of their first home in the Dominican Republic.
Related Activities
- After reading the story, we discussed with the students what made plátanos so special to Yesenia and her family.
- Other discussion questions for the students included:
- What countries do your families come from?
- What are your favorite family foods?
- Who usually cooks these foods?
- Where do you get the ingredients?
- We had the students draw pictures of their favorite family food and a scene for eating this food.
Learning Objectives
- Spur thinking about family history and stories
- Inspire empathy to consider how people feel when they have left their countries of origin
- Inspire thinking about the communities students are part of, from their families to their neighborhood elements
- Encourage creativity
Paletero Man
Qué Paletero Tan Cool!
By Lucky Diaz
The story of a young boy going through his neighborhood to find José, the Paletero/Ice Cream man, and seeing all the great vendors along the way, as well as learning about kind acts of others.
Related Activities
- After reading the story, we asked the students to name all the different types of food stands the young boy saw on his way to finding the Paletero Man, and the types of food stands they enjoy in their neighborhood.
- We asked the students what they thought about the young boy’s friends who helped him find his money.
- We asked the students to describe different ways they could be kind to others – their friends and people they connect with in their neighborhood.
- We had the students write about, then draw a picture of their favorite ice cream, and then share out their story.
Learning Objectives
- Encourage thinking about the greater community the students are part of.
- Inspire thinking about what kindness means and how to carry out acts of kindness.
- Encourage creativity.
The Day You Begin
By Jacqueline Woodson
Telling of the challenges of being a new member of a class, feeling different from the others and fearful of speaking up, only to find that upon telling one’s own story, friendly connections are made.
Spanish version is available.
Related Activities
- After reading the story, we asked students for examples of when they may have felt left out, and what these experiences felt like.
- We asked students for examples of when they have helped others feel more accepted into the class, and what these experiences felt like.
Learning Objectives
- Inspire empathy about what others might feel like when they are new to a situation.
- Encourage ways to offer kindness and welcoming to others who are new to a situation.
Verdito
By Barbara Rosenthal
This is a fable about a frog that was very happy with his life in the water with friends until he saw a boat. He wanted this boat so badly, he became sad and lonely. Ultimately, he learns how to appreciate all the good of his life in the water with his friends.
Related Activities
- After reading the story, we talked with the students about what they learned from the frog’s experience.
- We discussed what can happen when you don’t appreciate what you already have, and what it means to be grateful.
- We had the students draw pictures of one or more things in their life they are grateful for.
Learning Objectives
- Inspire thinking about feelings one can have when they want something they don’t already have, and what can happen if this is all they think about.
- Inspire thinking about gratitude and how to value what is around you.
- Encourage creativity.
The Year We Learned to Fly
El Año En Que Aprendimos A Volar
By Jacqueline Woodson
A story about a brother and sister who learn from their grandmother about what it means to dream of what’s possible and make it happen.
Related Activities
- After reading the story, we talked with the students with the following as guide questions:
- What are examples of when they have felt upset about something?
- What are ways they can use their imagination and being creative to make a situation better?
- We had the students write about a situation that has made them upset and how they did or could change it for the better, and draw a picture to help reflect the story.
Learning Objectives
- Help students acknowledge times they have felt upset or lonely or angry, that they can help themselves to make a positive change, and that people have come before them with different types of hardships.
- Inspire a sense of hope that can come from imagining what is possible, as well as the actions that can be taken to go toward these possibilities.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCE FOR START OF ANY READING SESSION:
Mindful Kids, by Whitney Stewart and Mina Braun – a package of 50 Mindfulness Activities for Kindness, Focus and Calm, for ages 4 to 104.