During our second Unit of Inquiry, Grade 1 explored the concept of "Who We Are" which led the children to understand the significance of various relationships, from those within families and communities to forming new connections with others.

We began through the engaging story "Our Class is a Family," where we not only learned about unity as individual classes but also as a year group. The children identified the relationships within the classroom and consolidated this through a ‘kindness jar’ which we routinely add to each week, sharing and celebrating others for their positive actions which strengthen our relationships.

The children then expressed their understanding further by creating special friendship bracelets that symbolise the strong bonds we share. They were randomly assigned a classmate and carefully designed a personalised bracelet with colours that reflected the ‘star qualities’ within our character education.

Taking action with what they had learned and what came to be a truly memorable highlight of our journey was our focus on our FCG family culminating our unit of learning with a heartwarming ‘Teddy Bear Tea Party’ for the Ayi.

Drawing on a global perspective, we compared this event to the tradition of Thanksgiving, emphasising gratitude and togetherness. The children identified the Ayi as prominent members of our school family and planned a tea party as an opportunity to come together and thank them. They created and hand delivered invitations to the event and designed colourful cards with messages to express their gratitude for all they do to support our learning environment.

On Thursday, Grade 1 hosted their ‘Teddy Bear Tea Party’ and enjoyed spending time with the Ayi, each other and their teachers. We are grateful for the kind donations from the parents which made this event possible, and children were excited to share the snacks they had brought along. They handed out their cards and said words of thanks to the Ayi, expressing how vitally important they are in our school community. An enjoyable time was had by all on a sunny afternoon!

In this unit, the children went beyond simply learning about relationships but embraced the importance of unity, respect, and appreciation, moulding us into compassionate individuals who value those around us in a personal and global perspective. By participating in these activities, the children not only discovered the beauty of forming connections but also practiced kindness, teamwork, and gratitude. It has allowed Grade 1 to see these connections and relationships around them which fosters a sense of community in and outside of school, creating a better understanding of who we are and the strength of our bonds with others in our lives.