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Teaching about Families Using a Scavenger Hunt

by

Junilda Farner | Wichita Collegiate School | Wichita, Kansas

This activity demonstrates one way to teach children about family and cultural differences. A list is sent home with each student who then works with their family to find the items. They bring these to class for show-and-tell and talk about their family. This gives students the opportunity to see how their families are alike and different.

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Hello, today I’m going to be showing you one way that I would teach children about family. And, where they are in their family and that, how all families are a little bit different. That not every other, not every child in the classroom would have the same family dynamics. So, the way that I would do that, one of the ways would be included in our family unit, would be to send something home for the children to do with their, their parents at home. So, beforehand you would need to get some paper bags, and this is a little note that was made, that I’ve made up. That just, you can pick your own items to go to but this one just says, Dear family, we would like you to join our family scavenger hunt. Below is a list of categories. Help your child find an inexpensive item for each category, that he or she can find, or can bring to school. Place the items in the bag and we will show the items to the class. Then we will send them back home. Have fun searching. So, the things that I asked them to bring were, a baby item from a family member. A hat from a family member, some junk mail that has their family name on it. A shoe from a family member and a family photo. And then I put a date that I wanted them to return these. The good thing about, and then you can just glue this little note. I ran it off on some colored paper, but you wouldn’t need to. And the good thing about this activity is it gets the family involved with them too. So, you send that home and then they bring back the items. And, during a group time you would do what we call the family scavenger hunt and we would let your children share the items that they brought. So, and talk about them and talk about the fam, how they got the items. So, I brought one of my shoes for my mom. So, this is my mom’s shoe, and you can talk a little bit the kids can talk a little bit about their mom. And, then from the baby item I happen to have a granddaughter, so I brought her little pacifier. But, the children might bring something, sometimes their parents have something from when they were a baby, or they might have something that, they’re young enough that they might still have something of their own. The junk mail just has their address on it. So, that you can talk about where they live and, and who all lives in that house with them. And then, I had a hat, just a hat that I found in my closet. But they would have one that maybe would have some more meaning. And, a family photo, which would show their family as a, picture of their family that they can pass around and talk. This is great because it helps the children see, like I said in the beginning, that there is, that every family is different. Some families have brother, some of the children have brothers and sisters, some of them have grandmas and grandpas living in their house. Every family is unique and different.

 

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