Community Care Packages

Community is one of my favorite themes and the fact that it is two months long...it’s doubly fantastical!

I wanted to do something different from what I had done in the past.  

We hear the word community used so often and rightfully so.  It is one of those innate things that comes with the need to belong to something. And for my students, I wanted that something to be bigger than them.  We started off by watching Alex’s video and how she talked about the different communities she belongs to.  The kids made circles maps and brainstormed all of the different communities they belong to.  From classroom, school, neighborhood, church etc.  They found it interesting that they could belong to more than one community.  I then took it a step further to discuss the communities out there that are important to us.  One of my friends is in the military and I had an idea...so I put a little bug in their ears about the soldiers overseas.  We discussed how important their job is and how their community as soldiers makes our lives safe and protected.  

So, we decided to bring things in for some care packages.  Now I know some people went really big and I’m amazed at some of the ideas that are popping up on the G+ #Community!  However, my students at this time are very quiet and VERY shy!  They don’t show excitement, they don’t ask questions, they are just very reserved.  Which is why I chose to build a community within our classroom in hopes that they would feel comfortable being themselves in our classroom.  We kept it small in that only my students brought in donations.  I wanted them to directly feel like they contributed.  We brought in magazines, candy, snacks, and other items from the suggested lists.  

At the beginning of this 2nd month, I shipped our care packages along with some Christmas cards and letters to my friend and his unit who are overseas.  Luckily, right before we left for Winter Break, I found out that our packages arrived and were being enjoyed by all.  The kids took ownership of this activity and really felt a sense of community while doing so.  They realized that these soldiers are over there, thousands of miles away from their own communities and families.  Adding to the impact was the fact that it was the holidays and they wouldn’t be able to spend them with loved ones.  This gave my students the chance to look at life through a different lense.  One that many 5th graders haven’t looked through before.  They learned to be sympathetic to others and that sometimes, a kind gesture like this can mean the world.