Dear Parents,
The UWC mission is to use education as a force to secure a peaceful and sustainable future for all. Valuing diversity, building trust and understanding are core to our bold vision for education and require commitment from our entire community as we continually strive for positive and just action.
Recently, UWCSEA has released more information on the action we have been taking in relation to our commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). I hope that you have had the opportunity to take a look at these tools and resources. You can access them on our school website here: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. You can also read articles on the work we are doing in the Infant School in Dunia: pp. 28-29 in this issue, pp. 8-9 in this issue.
These big ideas begin with our youngest learners. Please read the Curriculum Letter below, introducing our new Unit of Study. This unit will focus on exploring both issues of DEI in an Early Childhood context and the Safeguarding Curriculum (Trust Networks) that has been outlined in our K1 Blog previously.
As the children become more comfortable with one another, and our classes now feel more like a family, we begin to see behaviours that mirror the types of conflicts you might see amongst siblings. One phrase we are hearing more often now is, “You are not my friend.” This is a common general blanket statement that children use to express frustration or displeasure with the actions of one of their peers. We are working hard to teach the children how to speak to the action that was upsetting them, rather than making broad, hurtful statements that don’t provide the offender with any feedback for improvement. During this next Unit of Study, focused on the concept of “Peace”, Mrs. Morgan will be pulling small groups of students to work together on developing social and emotional skills focused on connecting and collaborating with others.
Examples of common broad, unhelpful and hurtful statements:
“You are not my friend.”
“You are a baby.”
“I don’t like you.”
“You are not invited to my party.”
“You are mean.”
To speak to the action, and improve communication skills, we are teaching children “I Statements”:
I feel __________when you ___________________.
I want you to _____________________.
Some examples of children using common “I Statements” are:
I feel upset when you cut the queue.
I want you to stop.
I want you to go to the end of the line and wait your turn.
I feel hurt when you push me.
I want you to stop.
I want you to keep your hands to yourself.
I feel angry when you write on my paper.
I want you to stop.
I want you to write on your own paper.
I feel upset when you take the toy from me.
I want you to give it back.
I want you to wait your turn for the toy.
Please work with your child at home on using “I Statements” to help them better communicate what they are feeling frustrated about.
If you have any questions, or ideas to share, please do not hesitate to reach out to your child's classroom teacher. We are committed to being partners in your child's learning.
Thank you for your continuing support,
The K1 Team
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