First Grade Social Justice
Final Unit of the Year
One Idea Can Have a Huge Impact on Making the World Better
In our final 7 weeks of school, the first graders will be reading the stories below that are all non-fiction and all connect to a person or group of people who had an idea and then let that idea take flight which ultimately improved the lives of others. We launched the unit with the book: What Do You Do With An Idea by Kobi Yamada. We hope this collection of stories inspires the first graders to consider how their ideas have potential to help make their community and the world a better place!
Ask your child: What did the child do with his idea at first? Why was he reluctant to pay attention to it and share it with others? What did he decide to do with his idea in the end?
Ask your child: How did the gift of a goat improve the life of Beatrice's family in several different ways in Western Uganda? What organization did we learn about - related to Beatrice's Goat - that came up with the idea to provide the gift of animals to families in need? What other kinds of animals are given to families by this organization? In what ways do these different animals enable families to have a better life?
Ask your child: What became a problem when loggerhead turtles were hatching in a resort town in South Carolina? Who discovered this problem? How did they find out about it? How did a class of children come up with an idea that enabled the hatchlings to follow the moon home?
Ask your child: How did young Leo's decision to give away his beloved outgrown bike named Big Red and his desire to make a difference have a huge impact on a community living in Burkina Faso in West Africa? What was the extraordinary story of this "ordinary" bicycle that traveled from the U.S. to Africa?
Ask your child: How did offering music lessons to children living in an impoverished city in Paraguay atop a garbage dump lead to the most amazing idea that literally changed their lives and their future? What did it mean when Ceasar Chavez - their music teacher said: The world sends us garbage. We send back music. What was Ada's story?
Ask your child: How did young Charles Kamkwamba from Malawai put his curiosity and talents for saving and tinkering with spare parts, odds and ends and what some deemed "junk and useless," to ultimately "save" his village and inspire other villages to improve the lives of others?
