1.3 Asia/Global education

What are they learning:

This week in our year one class we are beginning a unit on Asia education. We are learning about the way the world is represented in geographic divisions, and where Australia is located in relation to these divisions. This unit will begin to shape your children into global citizens.

To be a global citizen is not just having the awareness of things that happen outside of Australia; it is also having the knowledge of the things that occur inside of Australia and how this can influence their lives.

  

Why are they learning:

Asia education is becoming an increasingly more important part of the Australian Curriculum. The relationship between Australia and Asia is predicted to strengthen in upcoming years, so Asia literacy is becoming a requirement of your child’s education to ensure they are active and informed citizens in a diverse and multi-cultural society.

By creating a classroom environment that allows your children to develop their intercultural understanding, they begin to understand how different cultures originate, including their own. They will be educated to identify not only the differences between two cultures, but also the similarities; they will develop a respect for diversity, and create new pathways into gaining insight into what makes up their identity.

How are they learning:

Whilst we are exploring this unit, your child will be participating in a wide range of activities that are designed to extend their knowledge. One of these activities is:

-          Brainstorming holidays they know of, that is specific to a particular culture. We will watch a Hoopla Doopla episode that introduces the Chinese holiday: the Lantern Festival. Afterwards, we will discuss the Hoopla Doopla village, and they will brainstorm where they think the characters are from. After a few minutes, we will discuss that some characters are from Australia and some are from China.

-          Using an interactive world map, I will introduce to them the concept of continents, highlighting Australia and Asia, and explain that continents are made of smaller countries. In groups, the children will research the culture of each continent, and at the end of the lesson, each group will present their continent to the other.

All of the activities are integrated in various learning areas across the curriculum, such as History and Social Sciences, and are completed using an inquiry-based approach. I have used this approach because it encourages children to ask questions, and seek their own answers. Doing this encourages them to challenge, engage in, and extend their learning.

How you can support their learning:

To support your child’s learning for this unit, ask them how their day was. Expose them to multi-cultural resources; an excellent resource is the book Zen Shorts by John Muth. This extended exposure will enable your child to further identify similarities and differences between different cultures. These simple ideas can greatly assist your children into becoming global citizens.