August 19, 2013
Dear Parents,
In our first Social Studies project, we are studying culture. Culture is defined as learned behavior of people, which includes their belief systems and languages, their social relationships and customs, their institutions and organizations, and their material. The standard we are working on is G6.3.3 - Identify ways people express culture.
Please help your student select no more than two items to represent the cultures in their ancestry. They can choose two items from one culture, or one item from two different cultures. We are hoping each student will have a country or two (not including the Unites States) that represents where their ancestors came from. Then find an item to represent one part of the culture of that country. Some ideas are native clothing, an item from a cultural tradition or holiday celebration, a religious or spiritual object, something showing native language, a food item that is eaten in this culture, (enough to share with the class if you choose this one), money, a craft, such as baskets, paintings or other handiwork, an item representing a sport or game, or any other item that shows a part of the culture of your child’s ancestry.
Please have your child bring this into the classroom for a graded assignment on Thursday, August 22. On Thursday, your student will write about where this item is from, how this item would be used, and how it expresses one aspect of the culture. Your child should also be able to locate the country or region on a world map or globe.
We will go over this in detail in the classroom, along with examples to help your child have a clear understanding of what is expected. We hope this will be a great way for the students to build community and learn about ways people express culture.
