Section Four: Connecting to Friends Around the World Pen Pals in a Far Away Place Global Citizenship is a mindset

that intrinsically values all people as equal (King, 2005) I had wanted to have my students write to pen pals from another country for several years. This year, I felt was the perfect time to make this happen. I found a company (School to School International) that does all of the housekeeping of completing a pen pal exchange. The country that they work in is Guinea, Africa. In Guinea the language spoken is French so STS translates the letters both ways and mails them to us and to our pen pals. This fit perfectly with every aspect of our units in class. Our class theme in general was We Are All Connected and I loved how connected the pen pals were to other aspects of our class. Again, this tied in perfectly with our global citizen characteristic of We are aware of the world and our role in it and We understand that people around the world have different cultures and react to things differently. We connected in many ways to Africa. We were connected to Guinea through our pen pals, to Tanzania with our Peace Corp math with Tanzania Dave, through Africa in general with Mufaros Beautiful Daughters in our Cinderella Around the World unit, and later to Ghana through our Water Filtration Fundraiser. We started off the Pen Pal unit by looking at color pictures through a powerpoint of many different aspects of the Guinean culture, land, etc. The students were interested in the people, their clothing, the food they ate, and many other aspects of the environment that was shown through the visuals. I asked probing questions, sometimes questions as simple as What do you notice in this picture? would get them to be more observant. This activity also allowed us to discuss what things in the pictures were foreign to our students. One of these topics was straw thatched roofs. Through discussion, students were able to learn about these types of roofs and why they are used in places like Guinea. One reason is that the material is cheap and easy to find. After this activity I gave a reflection and response journal prompt: What did you learn about Guinea, Africa from the pictures you saw in the powerpoint? Below are some examples of what the students said. Some themes stood out when reading the journals. They included wonderings about selling things on the side of the road, hauling water, and how the schools were made. They sell fruit and stuff on the side of the rode. Alexis That they haul water up from a river or lake or something so they can drink it. Lana They have straw schools. George They put their clothes up on lines Candy Some schools didnt have walls. Larry

The next day I asked the students the reflection and response journal prompt, How are you the same as student in Guinea, Africa?. I wanted to get the students thinking about students in another culture. More than anything I wanted to observe things that they thought were similar about students in another culture. I pulled out one key theme in all of the journals. All but two of my students made the connection that they are similar to students in Guinea because they both go to school. This led me into a discussion about how some students in Africa are unable to go to school because they either need to work to help support their families or they cant afford to pay for uniforms and books which led us back to the global citizen characteristic of different cultures. After this journal prompt I introduced what we would be doing with the letters. I took printed color pictures of Guinea, Africa that were in the powerpoint and printed out captions that went along with each picture. There were approximately 40 pictures and coinciding captions in all. I mixed the pictures and captions up and then gave each of 4 table groups 10 pictures and 10 captions. I gave them a little direction: figure out who would take which team job for your table and work with your table group and the other table groups to find the correct picture/caption combination. I let them know that they would have to really work as a team to figure it out. At first, it was pretty chaotic. 2 teams figured out who would be doing which jobs pretty quickly and they were already reading captions and looking at pictures. Two of the teams were stuck on figuring out who had what jobs for a long time. I let the students work through issues but did give words of advice where needed. I redirected some of the issues by reiterating that this was a group activity. Eventually, maybe 10 minutes in, all 4 tables were working together and asking other tables if they had a picture that went along with a specific caption and vice versa. This activity was beneficial in at least two ways: First, it allowed the students to work out the problems that went along with learning how to be effective team players (at first, I heard a lot of I want to be the team lead or you should be). Students realized that it didnt really matter what job team members had because in true teamwork everyone works together. Second, the students were learning more about Guinea, Africa in a way that they were not wholly aware of. They were reading and comparing captions to pictures and discussing if this caption related to that picture, etc. but were really doing it to get the task done without realizing that they were also learning about the pictures, the country, and the culture themselves. The next week students were asked to do an observation and response activity with partners. I took the colored pictures and explanations that they had matched in the previous activity showing Guinea, Africa and mounted them onto construction paper. Partners were asked to

observe the pictures, reread the explanations and then respond to them with one of 3 sentence starters, I wonderI noticeI connect. I partnered students up. I eventually allowed students to pick their own partners but I wanted to practice responsible partner picking for academic success before. Some of the partners were successful but others were not. Some kids held back and some took over. Only a couple of the groupings seemed to share the load. This could have been due to different grade levels working together. I paired 3rd with 2nd and proficient readers with low readers to ensure groups had students who could read the passages underneath the pictures. It seemed to be a good balance at the beginning. The non readers became the observers and the readers became the writers. The groups discussed what they wondered, noticed, or connected with. Then the writers wrote their responses. Three out of five groups had ten or more responses, one group had 5, and one group had only 3. Knowing the students and observing their interactions, there were several reasons I initially identified for the discrepancy in group responses. First, some students were shy and not yet comfortable with their classmates. Second, some of the groups were more into socializing. Others were not paying attention when I gave directions and didnt know what to do at first. One last thought is the most obvious to me, the students paired with the responsible 3rd grade students wrote the most, which could mean (and I think did mean) that those responsible 3rd grade students led the responses. My hope was that students would begin to follow in the footsteps of the other more responsible students and share more later partner/group work. The more responsible students would act as good role models for the younger students. The directions I gave were as follows; you and your partner/s will need to decide who will read and write. Both partners observe any picture/s that look interesting to them. Read the caption. Discuss with partner. Respond with an I connect, I wonder, or I notice sentence. No limit on how many pictures and captions needed to observed but they needed at least 3 responses. Since we were just beginning our partner/group dynamics in class, I had high hopes that the amount of students off task would improve. Interestingly enough, I actually thought they were more off task than was the case. When they shared out some of their responses, they did not give themselves enough credit and only shared one or two of their thoughts. As I read their responses later, I realized they were being thoughtful and observing more than first indicated in the

pictures. This was a reminder to me that even though I walk around and check my students and some may seem off task, they connect on a deeper level than I sometimes think. After participating in the above activities, I then asked them to complete a reflection and response journal. The question was similar to ones we had discussed whole group, How are you the same as people/students in Guinea, Africa? I gave this journal prompt to check for individual understanding. I recorded both their partner work observations and their journal responses and pulled out key themes that resonated through all of the groups and journals. These thoughts had to do with selling food, cultural norms, and similarities and differences related to school. Many students had wonderings on why there was so much trash in the pictures. They also noticed the dirt roads and lack of cars. This was interesting to me because living in such a populated place like San Diego it is a given that people drive cars here. The students were very observant when noticing the lack of cars in Guinea. We then discussed many of the responses during the next class day. This was a time to make the students think and question. It was a discussion that asked why but not necessarily answered the questions. I wanted to get the students thinking about the broader world and questioning what they noticed. Since this was toward the beginning of my research it wasnt about answers. Below are a sampling of the responses related to the themes which relate back to the global citizen characteristics of being aware of the world and understanding cultural differences: Thoughts about selling food: Dan (2nd grade) and Elly (3rd grade) had many comments and wonderings about the pictures of people, young and old, selling food. I wonder how old you have to be to sell food. We wonder if you sell food at the side of the road, does that mean you dont go to school? I wonder if selling food is common? Thoughts on cultural norms: We notice these girls are building a fire with sticks and twigs. (Larry-3rd and Jessica2nd) Also, different religions live side by side. (Dan-2nd, Elly-3rd) I wonder why they carry stuff on their head. (Lana-3rd and Sally-2nd) We noticed that they have a tendency to carry things on their head. (Dan-2nd, Elly-3rd)

These responses led me to the question, Why might they carry things on their heads? Students werent sure. One student said, Maybe they need their hands to carry other things? This led to another question connected to water and transportation. We discussed further how their arent many cars and referred back to the powerpoint where it highlighted that many people either walk or bike to where they need to go. We then began a brief discussion on water and how many people in Africa get their water from water sources other than a faucet. This would be a continual topic of discussion to help lead into the unit on Access to Water Around the World. I noticed that there is a dirt road. (Dan-2nd, Elly-3rd) They use goats to eat trash. (Larry-3rd and Jessica- 2nd) We notice that Guinea, Africa has a lot of trash in it. (Alison-3rd, John-2nd) From these responses we discussed what trash did to the environment in the pictures. We talked about how it was in the water and what that might do to the water. Would you want to drink or bath in that water?, I asked. EWWW! Thats gross!. This was another good pre-discussion for our water unit later. I then asked why they thought goats were used to eat the trash. Because goats eat everything! said one student. Another student said maybe they dont have trash trucks?. This, again, was to get students thinking more than actually answering the question itself. Thoughts on similarities and differences of school: We wonder what it says on the board. (Barbara-3rd, Candy-2nd, Kacey-3rd) We also connect they go to school. (Lana-3rd and Sally-2nd) We connect because we both learn. (Alison-3rd, John-2nd) I noticed that a child is carrying a slate under his arm. (Dan-2nd, Elly-3rd) We notice that the classroom is dirty. (Alison-3rd, John-2nd) From these responses I then asked the students if they thought that all students in Africa went to school. We discussed how some students have to work to help support their families and therefore cant go to school. We talked about how all kids in the United States have to go to school because it is the law. We also discussed how some students in Africa cant afford the uniforms and supplies needed for school and so they cant go either. I also made sure to discuss the following responses of two groups of students: We wonder how the students translate whats on the board. (Alison-3rd, John-2nd) I wonder why they write in French. (Lana-3rd and Sally-2nd)

From these responses we briefly discussed what language they thought the students spoke or should speak. Most thought English. I then discussed how in Africa there are many languages. I then asked why they thought that the students of Guinea spoke French? The students, not surprisingly, had no thoughts on this question. I explained the answer in as simple terms as possible. I told them that French is the language that people speak in France. I used this opportunity as more of an introduction to the fact that some countries want to own other countries for their land or other things and sometimes countries take over other countries for this reason. France took over Guinea a long time ago for a while and they brought their language with them. This was a history lesson for another time and place but it gave a simple explanation to these inquiries. Writing to our Pen Pals We then began to write our pen pal letters. The letters themselves were very modeled and most of the students wrote the same thing that I wrote when I modeled how to write one. This was the first letter written and within the first 2 weeks of school. Some of my 2nd graders coming in really needed some guidance with their writing so allowing them to write from what we modeled allowed them to participate without feeling intimidated. At the end of January we received our pen pal letters from Guinea. The students were so excited and loved reading and sharing the letter with the other students. Something I did not anticipate was the culture norms that came through in the letters. Several mothers were shopkeepers and the families were bigger than ours are typically in America. We discussed these norms. I also made sure to discuss the salutations the letters had. At the end of the letters the Guinea students were very loving. This was less formal than our letters. I also discussed that some words may not translate into English in the same way they were meant. We discussed each of the letters and talked about any confusion the students had when reading them. An interesting aspect of the letters was what the students said about their schooling. Some of them wrote that they were in 6th year primary school and were 14 years old and some were 6th year and only 12 years old. This led to a discussion on how it is common for some students to spend several years in one grade level. Many of them dont go to school straight through because they often help out their parents when needed at home or selling things to help with family expenses. Our students created another writing piece in response to the one that they received in January. They highlighted aspects of their family, who they were, and their favorite things to do. This was a chance for them to really let their pen pal know more about them. I modeled a response letter

for the students and then pulled a small group to help the low writers feel successful in completing this activity. We were to receive one more letter by the end of the school year. This was such a great unit to bring in the global citizen characteristic of we understand that people around the world have different cultures and react to things differently. The students were able to get a glimpse into the family life of students in Guinea. They were also able to learn a little bit about how schools work in Africa. This helped them to become more aware of the world beyond their immediate surroundings. I do wish that we would have felt more of a connection with our pen pals. The fact that some of them were quite a bit older than my students and that some of the students didnt know if there pen pals were boys or girls created a sense of detachment for my students. The other thing that created a sense of detachment was that some the letters were addressed Dear Pen Pal so it didnt seem as personal as the ones addressed to the students directly. These were all learning experiences for future reference when selecting another pen pal Connecting to our Peace Corp Friend, Tanzania Dave I have had a Peace Corp correspondence match with David Schlessinger (who we appropriately named Tanzania Dave), who is completing work for the Peace Corp in Tanzania, Africa, since the last school year. We have emailed back and forth several times. Last year, my students came up with really great questions to ask him and he responded very generously to each and every question my students had for him. He has been teaching environmental lessons at a primary school since 2nd semester of last year. I was excited to continue our correspondence because I thought that it would be a great opportunity to hit several of the global citizen characteristics including we are aware of the world and our role in it, we understand that people around the world have different cultures and react to things differently, and we participate and help the community around us and around the world. At the beginning of this year, I asked him if we could have our students ask questions to each other. The questions alone that he emailed from his students to our students absolutely highlighted their culture. It was exciting and fascinating. We discussed the questions and answered them thoughtfully. Just by reading the questions my students were able to see the similarities and differences between our two cultures. Some questions included Are the students farmers?, Does the school grow food?, Do the students clean the environment when they arrive at school (all Tanzania students sweep the school paths, prune bushes, cut grass, etc. when they arrive at school each day), Do the students hall water from a water source for daily use?. I asked the students why they thought the Tanzanian students were asking the questions they were. We discussed that maybe they were farmers and had to hall their own water. When I sent our answers, I asked Mr. David to have his students answer the same questions they had asked us so that we could compare and contrast our environments.

Below is a table of the questions my class generated and the responses: Questions Asked My 2-3 grade class Tanzania school students Are the students farmers/ We are not farmers. We as a The students at Matamba does the school grow food? school do not grow food. One primary school grow (at the of our students has a relative school garden and farm) these who is a farmer. types of crops: corn, avocado, sunflower, wheat, coffee, potatoes, bananas (and actually a lot more but these are some main examples) Do the students clean the No. We do help clean up The students spend large chunks environment when they when we make a mess during of the day "cleaning the arrive at school (this is an school. environment", which can be activity all students do here sweaping the school grounds in Tanzania- they sweep the (with branch brooms), trimming paths, prune bushed, cut plants, weeding, digging, and grass, various "cleaning" cleaning the restrooms as well as environment activities) And garden and farm activities and for how long? hauling water What state is the school in? The state is in the state of We are in the region Njombe California. (which is like a state) Does the students/ school We dont have or raise The school has livestock, just raise livestock? livestock but we know people chickens (but each students who own chickens. family probably has some types of livestock- cattle, chickens, pigs, and goats are the most common) What do the students study? The students study math, The students study math, science, language arts, environment (I teach), history, reading, grammar, history, art, science, English, Kiswahili, places, how to be nice to each geography, fundi (which is like a others, how to be respectful, trade- carpenter, mechanic, electrician etc..), civics and other subjects What type of games do the We play soccer, baseball, and The games they like to play are students play? video games soccer, netball (which is kind of like basketball), marbles What type of food do the We eat pizza, spaghetti, fried The students eat ugali (which is students eat? chicken, burritos, apples, ground corn paste on which you strawberries, can add sauces, meat, veggies) wali (rice), bananas, kande (rice and beans), chipsi (fried potatoes), mayai (eggs) Do the students haul water No, we wash our hands by *Mr. David did not respond to from a water source for turning on a water faucet. We this question directly but he did daily use? bring water bottles to drink. say in October that, We are near

We use a toilet to go to the bathroom and we flush the toilet. The water for our faucets come from: The Sea? The sewer? The mountains? A lake or a river? Maybe the Colorado river? From somewhere far away? From snow or ice on a mountain?

How old are the students? Do the students use computers?

We are 7-8 years old. Yes, we use computers at home. We use them at school sometimes, too.

What holidays do the students like the best?

The holidays we like best are Christmas, Easter, Halloween, and Valentines Day.

What type of drinks do the students drink?

What type of music do the students like?

We like to drink water, milk, chocolate milk, apple juice, orange juice, slushies, and lemonade. We like all kinds of music, Some of us like metal, pop, rock and Christian music. Some of us like classic, calming music. Some of us like Taylor Swift and One Direction. Some of us like California Girls song.

the beginning of the rainy season again, water will become much more available. I was hoping to maybe do a water project in my village, but the world bank is already doing a project with my village and a neighboring village to build a big water tank, and also repair the Bomba system, which are basically pipes in the ground that lead to outdoor taps, fed by rainwater or streamwater. We are 11-12 years old. In my village, there is a computer lab. (This is extremely rare in Tanzanian villages. Most villages are still without electricity). Some of the students have used a computer there. There are a few villagers with computers in Matamba. Perhaps a few have used computers in cities such as Mbeya. But on a regular basis- most don't Christmas, Nane Nane (which is 8/8, a national holiday celebrating farming), saba saba (7/7, another national holiday), Easter (pasaka), New Year's soda, chai (tea), water, juice, milk, malta (a soda like drink)

Bongo Flava (kind of Tanzanian hip hop), religious (christian) songs, tarabu, american hip hop, reggae, dance, twanga pepeta (tanzanian style of music)

Analyzing our answers showed the students how similar and different our lives are. After discussing our answers, I asked them the following reflection and response journal prompt, How are you the same as students in Guinea, Africa and Tanzania, Africa?. Below are samplings of their journal responses:

We both drink water. We both read books. We both have pets. We both live in buildings. We both eat. They both go to school/ I am the same as students in Africa like this. Kacey (3rd grade) I am the same as people in Guinea, Africa. Because we both like soccer. We both have pets. We both read and write. We both fish for food. Larry (3rd grade) We are the same as students in Africa in many ways. One way I am the same is we both have houses. I live in a house he or she has a house. We also both go to school to learn. We both have hands to hold and arms to hug. We both have mouths to eat with. Sandy (3rd grade) I am the same as students in Africa in many ways. One way I am the same is we both go to school. And we both live in houses. Mary (2nd grade) After reading my students responses it was clear that we connected to Tanzania through sports and learning. 14 out of the 17 responses stated something related to the fact that both are students and go to school. Several also stated that we both play soccer. One idea that came up in 1/3 of my students responses was that we both have/live in houses. I found this interesting because I would assume that students would consider it a given that people live in houses. When I asked the students about this, one students simple reply backed my assumption up with a twist, Everybody lives in a house, dont they? Unless you are homeless. Below is an email Tanzania Dave sent to me after I inquired about connecting our classes on a project: Maybe we could do an art/drawing exchange. It is difficult for me to mail things outside of the country, but I might be able to have someone bring a small package back to the USA and then mail it. I like your day in the life of idea. I want to do more exchange activities. I will keep you posted on projects where you might be able to help- I will probably write at least one grant and then maybe you would be able to contribute but there are a lot of rules and procedures. The rainy season has started again so getting household water is much easier. Here's a song maybe you could teach your students. It's called Wimbo wa Safi (the cleaning song), and it goes like Row row row your boat: English: clean, clean, clean your house, shower every day; wash your hands with soap after you use the bathroom, and before you eat. Kiswahili: safisha, safisha, safisha nyumbani, kuoga kila siku nawa mikono kwa sabuni baada ya kutumia choo, na kabla ya kula I read this email to my students and we learned the song. I also taught the students some games that were played other than soccer, which they have learned through all of our connections to Africa, is a very popular sport there. In a morning meeting we brainstormed ideas for what we could do to help his students. I asked them what are some ideas of things we can send to Mr. David and his students? Here are some of the ideas they had:

Maybe items we dont use. Leo (2nd grade) I think we could send them water bottles. Or things with holes to send them to go in the Bomba pipes so only water gets through and the animal poop wont. Larry (3rd grade) We can send them school supplies like scissors and pencils. Jessica (2nd grade) Maybe we can send money to them. John (2nd grade) Containers to keep their food fresh. Alison (3rd grade) Some fun stuff like puzzles and art supplies and some books. Alexis (2nd grade) We can send them clean bed dress and towels and stuff like that. Sally (2nd grade) Through analyzing their suggestions, I could tell they had a good understanding of the student needs of the areas we studied in Africa. It was clear by comments like Alexis and Jessicas above that they knew that school supplies are hard to come by. When we discussed it more my students had a good understanding that African schools that we know of do not have a lot of money to go toward school supplies. It was clear that the students took some quality understanding away from the activities we did in relation to the pen pals unit. There were also comments related to Larrys above. This showed me that although we hadnt begun our Access to Water Around the World yet our simple discussions related to it in the previous units already had an impact on their thinking. They already knew that there was a need for clean, fresh water. We learned several things from this unit of study. First, I loved having a correspondence with someone so connected to the African culture. It gave us a firsthand account of student life. What we also gained from this unit was a clear understanding of how students live in Tanzania. It was such a great learning experience for the students. The questions that both classrooms answered were so telling and they really made my students think about how we are similar and different. Even though we did not act on what we could do to help Tanzania Daves students, the act of brainstorming what we could do enabled them to think about actions we could take to help others. This helped them to begin to think about two more global citizen characteristics, we participate and help the community around us and around the world and we help the world be a better place by taking action. There was so many more activities that I wish I would have done with this unit. If I had more time, I would have enlarged a map of Tanzania and pinpointed the exact location of the village that Tanzania Dave was in and posted it on the Global Bulletin Board. I also would have loved to collaborate with him on a project that would have connected the two schools. As highlighted in his email to me above, we brainstormed ideas for how we could help his school but because communication was slow due to lack of internet access for him we had already begun our water filter fundraiser and did not have enough time or resources to fundraise for both causes. I think, upon reflection, I would have pushed to complete a pen pal connection with his students instead of going through a whole different organization. We discussed it but one of the main reasons we

didnt do this was due to the limited amount of English his students could understand and the limited amount of Swahili that he could speak and understand. This would have made it very difficult for him to translate all letters. He and I discussed completing a day in the life activity, as well, where each of our students could draw pictures with captions to show how we lived. Unfortunately, we ran out of time for this as well.