Every Family Has a Story - Launching the Immigration Stories Inquiry

Revisit the I-STILL-WONDER chart from G2-Fall Living Nations Gallery (MG-18). Read aloud 4-5 sticky notes about 'who came here after the First Peoples' / 'where did my grandma come from.'

• Affirm continuity: we are still standing on the same homeland we honored in fall.
• Recite the G2-Fall land acknowledgment together.
• Transition: this term we ask what happens NEXT in the story of who is here.

M-2-S-CUL-01-B Photograph

Photo 11x17 of the actual class I-STILL-WONDER chart from the end of G2-Fall, with yellow sticky-notes showing children's wonderings ('who came here after the First Peoples?', 'where did my grandma come from?', 'how did people get here from far away?'). The chart is the bridge between fall and spring. Caption: 'Your wonderings from December - now we begin to answer them.'

Today we begin a 16-week inquiry about FAMILIES - and how they come to be in the place they live. Every family has a story. Some families came from far away by choice. Some families had to leave for safety. Some families were brought here long ago without choice and built so much of this country. Some families have been here since time immemorial, which we learned in fall. ALL of these stories matter. Today we listen to Allen Say's Grandfather's Journey - this is HIS family's story.

• Sometimes home is two places. We can love two homes.

  model He came from Japan. He went to California. He went back to Japan. The story tells us his heart was in TWO places at once.

  prompt After the read-aloud: where did Allen Say's grandfather come from? Where did he go? Did he come back?

• Thumbs up if Allen Say's grandfather had ONE home or TWO homes in his heart?
• Show me on the world map: where was Japan? Where was California?

M-2-S-CUL-01-A Illustration

Display poster 24x36 portrait showing MG-1 as detailed in media_global_notes. Children gather around to find their own continent on the map. The G2-Fall land-acknowledgment ribbon at the bottom is intentionally visible - the continuity is the point.

MG-1 Illustration

Used as visual reference and as the central anchor connecting all six unit threads - displayed at the front of the room throughout the term. The G2-Fall land-acknowledgment ribbon at the bottom is INTENTIONAL - the Spring unit never erases the G2-Fall foundation. Regionally customizable: the school silhouette can be modified to match the school's actual building.

• Identity chart launch: each child writes their name in the center circle and starts drawing 5-7 petals (family language(s), favorite food, place that matters, family tradition, one thing that makes you you).

  scaffold Sentence stems on petal labels
• Partner share: tell a partner about TWO of your petals.

• Show me one petal on your identity chart and read it aloud.

• Add 'family', 'story', 'heritage' to Word Wall
• Preview tomorrow: we learn that photographs of families can tell us about journeys

• Tell a family member about your identity chart. Ask them: where is one place that matters to our family?