Mr. C's Fifth Grade Class (2015-2016): Day 54 (November 20, 2015)

SHIP-FIGUREHEAD PROJECT

Discovering Ourselves through Early Exploration

In the fifth grade class at St. Joseph School, students learned how the 1400-1500s was a great time of discovery throughout the world. Many European countries were in a great race to see who would be the first to find a western water route to Asia. In the process, many explorers intentionally, or more often than not, unintentionally, discovered what we know as the North and South Americas.

At the end of this unit, students had an opportunity to explore their own heritage. In our day to day lives, it is easy to forget that we have our own story of how we ended up in Haverhill, Massachusetts. Throughout this project, students were able to build a boat with an appropriate ship-figurehead, map out the route of travel, write a letter detailing the journey, ask interview questions to a family member, and bring in a culturally relevant item to exchange with others. The assignment provided to be an enlightening journey for students, parents, and teachers. As we continually try to define ourselves, we must remember we have a long heritage that already has contributed to who we are.