How We Express Ourselves

      This term we started out with a unit discussing how we express ourselves. The Grade 6 looked at two time periods in history where there was massive change in not only fashion but in how people acted, what was considered acceptable behavior, and where parents had a hard time understanding their children. We focused on the 1920s and the 1960s in the USA.

      For the first part of the lesson the class looked into various inventions that changed the lives of people in the 1920s. While many of these inventions existed before the 1920s, they became very common and / or popular during this time. Examples of this were electric streetlights, telephones, and canned goods. Students each chose one item that really changed the time period, researched the item's history, and looked into how that item helped shape the 1920s.

      This was followed by learning about specific people from the 1920s, their lives, how they influenced the 1920s, and how what they did continue to affect people today. They also drew or painted a portrait of the person and tried to match the style to magazine covers from the 1920s. With some of the people, like Louis Armstrong and Coco Chanel, it was easy to see their influence. Some, like Zelda Sayre and Euginia Kelly, took a little more thought.

      After this the class looked into the 1960s and the massive events that helped set the tone for that time period and bring about change. They looked into the Vietnam War, the presidents of the 1960s, the Civil Rights movement, women's rights, and counterculture. 

      The final wrap-up for this until began with students being asked if another giant change in culture could happen in their lifetimes. They wrote an argument style paper defending their point of view of whether this could happen again and what could cause it (or keep it from happening). Finally, their last assignment was assuming this change happened in 2050 to their children. What would have caused it, and how did they react to their children changing so much.