Wrapping

As I begin to think about concluding this inquiry, I must decide how I will present my findings.  My inquiry has really been made up of two parts, and I don't think that they belong in the same product.  The information that I gathered about the nature and purposes of creeds could be presented in a research paper or multimedia presentation.  I think I have decided to create a PowerPoint.  The other side of my inquiry has been more personal and reflective.  I wanted to consider and eventually articulate what is meaningful to me, a personal creed.  I could put both pieces in one package, but I have decided instead to create two separate products that could be displayed together or separately.  I'm not entirely sure that I will want to display the personal component at all.  My intended audience is myself.  However, because I am currently participating in a learning community, I will extend that target to include my instructor and classmates (and anyone else who happens to stumble across this blog).

I've also been thinking about how this new information I've learned about creeds (statements of belief) could be used in an instructional setting.

Curriculum Connections

Grade 2- Social Studies
2.2.1 Explain that the United States government is founded on the belief of equal rights for its citizens.
2.2.5 Identify people who are good citizens and describe the character traits that make them admirable.
2.2.6 Discuss and explain the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance and identify other ways citizens can affirm their citizenship.

Second grade students (7-8 year olds) have probably not given a lot of thought to the beliefs that they hold.  They believe the things that their parents and teachers tell them to believe.  A second grade teacher will probably not ask his/her students to engage in a soul-searching process about their beliefs, but it is a good age to start talking about why society has certain values and how individuals can uphold them.

Classroom Activities:

• Read the books The Declaration of Independence from A to Z by Catherine Osornio and We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States by David Catrow.  Discuss the rights and responsibilities that are described and why Americans believe in them.
• Create posters on paper or with an online tool such as www.glogster.com.  Finish the sentence: I believe that a good citizen...
• Identify good citizens in the school or community.  Students conduct and record interviews describing what these good citizens do and why they do it.  Publish videos on a class webpage of "Model Citizens."  Also include videos of students in the class describing how they will be good citizens as children, and later, as adults.

Grade 8- Social Studies
8.2.2 Identify and explain the relationship between the rights and responsibilities of citizenship in the United States.
8.2.7 Explain the importance in a democratic republic of responsible participation by citizens in voluntary civil associations/non-governmental organizations that comprise civil society.

By the 8th grade (13-14 years old) students should begin taking the opportunity to reflect on their values.  They are likely beginning to look to their peer group for values, rather than their parents and teachers.  It is a good time for activities that require them to clarify what they believe and why.

Classroom Activities:

• Read the Declaration of Independence and the Preamble to the Constitution as well as the Bill of Rights.  Discuss the rights and responsibilities of citizens.  Brainstorm a list of ways that they themselves and others are benefitting from those rights and fulfilling those responsibilities.
• Select an organization that has a significant meaning to the student, such as the Humane Society.  Research the organization and develop a plan to get involved in some way.
• Listen to podcasts of essays from the NPR series This I Believe, including examples of essays of both famous, noteworthy individuals as well as ordinary high school students.  Then students write their own "This I Believe" essays.

As I planned that final activity for 8th grade students, I thought maybe I could try it for part of my final product for this inquiry.  Hmm... we'll see how it goes.