Working with Children is Never Linear!

An Albania Doll

Making a Vietnamese Doll

When we work with the children, our experiences are never linear. We are seldom finished an area of interest before a new one creeps us on us.  The children in this JK/SK class were wrapping up their work on the the storybook, The Mitten by Jan Brett, when one of the children commented that she had a grandmother too. Her's was not called Baba like the one in The Mitten.

"She is called Nonna and that's Italian!" 

Several other children chimed in offering the titles they used to address their grandmothers.

"Grandmothers have lots of names! But they all mean the same thing!"

This led to a class project on nationality. 

What country does your family come from?

What does it mean to be Italian, Russian, Ukrainian...?

What do you eat? What types of homes do your countrymen live in? What are your customs?

"This little girl is from India!"

Each child designed his/her own doll wearing traditional garb.

Since the children needed a new number line for their classroom, a suggestion was made to use the dolls.