Unit Plan

Planning Sheet
Grade and Topic
Grade 2 Heritage and Identity: Changing Family and Community Traditions
What are the big ideas of the unit?
In this unit, students discover traditions and changing communities through the context of
the family unit. Students will examine the importance of traditions within their families and
their peers, and within their communities. Throughout the unit, students will come to
understand why traditions have changed with their families and in their communities.
They will also examine how traditions and heritage are passed on from generation to
generation. This will be learned through the introduction to celebrations, rituals, rites of
passage, food and holidays that address the diversity of the students and their
community.

Which curriculum expectations are the enduring understandings? (Ontario

specific expectations)
Compare their familys structure and some of their traditions and celebrations with those
of their peers families (e.g.immigration to Canada, family members marrying someone
from a different culture, changes in technology) (A1.2)
Compare some of the past and present traditions and celebrations of different ethnocultural groups in their local community, and identify some of the main reasons for the
change. (A1.3)
Gather and organize information on some of the past and present traditions and
celebrations within their family and the community to which they belong, using primary
and/or secondary sources that they have gathered themselves or have been provided to
them (A2.2)
Interpret and analyse information relevant to their investigations, using a variety of tools
(A2.4) (e.g. list the holiday decorations their family uses today and that were used by
their grandparents, and use a Venn-diagram to help them determine which have
changed).
Identify and describe different types of families (e.g. families with one parent, two

parents, no children; same-sex families; blended and multi-generational families;

immigrant families) (A3.1)
Identify some ways in which heritage is passed on through various family celebrations
and practices (e.g. celebrations around Christmas, Eid-ul-Fitr; Hanukkah, Diwali,
Kwanzaa). (A3.7)
Demonstrate an understanding of simple chronology by identifying and organizing
chronologically some important events and people from multiple generations in their
family and/or community (e.g. construct a three-generation family tree, construct a
timeline showing marriages, births within their families and prepare a chronological list
showing when family members moved, including, if applicable, when they immigrated to
Canada. (A3.5).

What do you want students to be able to do, understand, and know the end of the
unit?
By the end of this unit, students should be able to identify a variety of family structures
and how they influence traditions and celebrations. Students will understand how and
why certain traditions have changed over time and through generations. Students should
be able to identify the value in learning about how traditions came to be and why they
remain important today. Students should have a basic understanding of others traditions
and the importance of these traditions for different cultures.
List possible ways that you as a teacher will have evidence of students
understanding, skills, and knowledge. For your unit, you only have to fully develop
one performance task (summative assessment).
Summative Task: Scrapbook (Students will create a scrapbook using pictures of their
family members and their titles as well as images and descriptions of traditions/ things
they do together. They will also write a reflection paper on what they learned while they
created their scrapbook regarding traditions within their family and how they have
changed over time.
Assessment: Rubric
Summative Task: Students in groups will create a custom box that illustrates items used
during a holiday or tradition. Holidays will be selected on a first come first serve basis
allowing all holidays to be used. Students are required to use images, artwork, artifacts
that they have created and other things that come to mind. Student must remember that
they items they create will be used during a future activity.
Assessment: Rubric
Summative Task: Students in the same groups as the custom box will create and

perform a play based on the holiday they have chosen. Students will use the items they
have created in the custom box as props for their play.
Assessment: Rubric
Summative Task that is Fully Developed (YOU MUST ALSO ATTACH THE
STUDENT OUTLINE OF YOUR SUMMATIVE TASK AND THE ASSESSMENT TOOL)
Custom Box and 5 minute play
Description: Custom Box: Students will create a custom box using a chosen holiday or
tradition. Students will be in a group of 3-4.Students will have to use a variety of artwork,
models, writing and maps that illustrate their chosen holiday or tradition. They will have to
present their boxes to the class through our wonder-filled community circle. Students
will specifically be researching information on cultures and traditions that occur in ethnocultural groups found in their community and relate it back to their own traditions.
Students will also have to write a five-minute play using their custom box to explain what
their holiday is and how its traditions have changed over time.

Curriculum Expectations Assessed:

Gather and organize information on some of the past and present traditions and
celebrations within their family and the community to which they belong, using primary
and/or secondary sources that they have gathered themselves or have been provided to
them (A2.2)
Interpret and analyze information relevant to their investigations, using a variety of tools
(A2.4)
Identify some ways in which heritage is passed on through various community
celebrations and events. (A3.6)
Communicate the results of their inquiries using appropriate vocabulary (A2.6)
Compare some of the past and present traditions and celebrations of different ethnocultural groups in their local community, and identify some of the main reasons for the
change (A1.3)
Analyze and construct simple maps as part of their investigations into past and present
traditions and celebrations in their local community. (A2.3)
Assessment: Rubric

What learning experiences will students need in order to perform effectively and
achieve desired results? (For your unit, you need a minimum 10 lesson ideas)

Lesson 1: Expectation(s): Compare their familys structure and some of their traditions
and celebrations with those of their peers families (e.g. immigration to Canada, family
members marrying someone from a different culture, changes in technology) (A1.2)
- Identify and describe different types of families (e.g. families with one parent, two
parents, no children; same-sex families; blended and multi-generational families;
immigrant families) (A3.1)
Teaching: Students will be introduced to what a family looks like. Read the story,
Families, by Ann Morris. This book discusses what a family is and what a family looks
like and explains familial roles from around the world. The teacher will also have a minds
on discussion with the class to help the students think about their familys traditions and
how they differ from other students traditions in the class. The teacher will inform the
students that over the course of the next several weeks, the students will learn about
holidays and traditions unique to their family and to their community, and how these
traditions have changed.
Student Task: Students will draw and label a picture of their family. They will discuss
their pictures as a group and talk about the different family members and structures (i.e.
stepmother, stepfather, adoptive parents, birth mother).
Assessment: Formative Collect and check for understanding about roles in their
family.
Lesson 2: Expectation(s):
-

Formulate questions to guide investigations into some of the past and present
traditions and celebrations within their family (A2.1).
- Interpret and analyze information relevant to their investigations, using a variety
of tools (A2.4)
- - Demonstrate an understanding of simple chronology by identifying and
organizing chronologically some important events and people from multiple
generations in their family and/or community (A3.5).
Teaching: The teacher will model to the class how to do a multi-generational timeline.
She will first introduce what a timeline is (i.e. to show events in chronological order). She
will make a simple timeline about her days schedule, using student prompts, to illustrate
the concept of chronology (having dates/times in order from the past to the present).
Then, she will conduct a think aloud, by sharing important events in her familys life,
starting with her grandparents. (i.e. Her grandparents came over from Germany; her
mother is American and her father is Canadian. The end of WWII changed her familys
traditions because of her grandparents escape to America after the war; her parents met
in Peru, and were married in California; grandparents passed away, so traditions
changed etc.). She will show the students what kinds of questions she asked her family
members about their traditions and how they have changed (i.e. Mom, what was
Christmas like for you as a child?, Dad, did you always go to church on Sundays?,
What traditions changed when you got married to Dad, Mom? etc.). The teacher will
have a worksheet with guiding questions the students may ask their family members

before they work on their multi-generational timeline. (This will be spread over 2-3 days,
so students will have enough time to gather information).
Student Task: Students will construct their own multi-generational timeline. They will
gather information from their own experiences, but also by asking their grandparents and
parents about important events in their lives.
Assessment: Checklist Do they have 3 different generations (themselves, their parents
and their grandparents); are they chronological? etc.
Lesson 3: Expectation(s): Interpret and analyze information relevant to their
investigations, using a variety of tools (A2.4). Gather and organize information on some
of the past and present traditions and celebrations within their family and the community
to which they belong, using primary and/or secondary sources that they have gathered
themselves or have been provided to them (A2.2)
Teaching: Christian holidays will be introduced. Students will learn about the Christian
traditions surrounding Christmas. The teacher will brainstorm on the board what
traditions the students may already know about surrounding these holidays (i.e. Santa
Claus, Christmas trees, turkey dinner, exchanging gifts) and then talk about how they are
the same or how they differ using a Venn Diagram from traditional Christian holidays.
Student Task: Students will write a short reflection (of at least 7-10 sentences) about
their own Christmas traditions and how they differ or are similar to the Christian traditions
surrounding Christmas. If they do not celebrate Christmas, they may write about the
traditions they have instead (i.e. they celebrate Hanukkah, so on Christmas Day, they go
to the movies as a family because no one goes to the movies then). Students are then
expected to fill out the Christmas and Easter pages in their holiday passports. In these
passports, students are supposed to put the important information about the holidays
and the traditions that go along with them. Once a student has completed the pages in
their passport and the teacher approves it, she will place a stamp on that page of the
passport to signify the student has the knowledge of that holiday. As students advance in
the course, they will receive more and more stamps in their passport.
Assessment: Checklist (do they have 7-10 sentences, do they include information on
their Christmas holiday tradition and how it differs/is similar to their own traditions.
Lesson 4- Expectations: Compare some of the past and present traditions and
celebrations of different ethno-cultural groups in their local community, and identify some
of the main reasons for the change. (A1.3)
Teaching: Jewish holidays will be introduced. Students will learn about Hanukkah and
Yom Kippur. The teacher will have a SMARTboard lesson, where students will see a
moving timeline with little videos and demonstrations about the origins of Yom Kippur,
and how it originated with the Israelites in biblical times, as well as the origins of
Hanukkah and how it coincides with the beliefs of the Jewish faith. The teacher will also
have a special guest from the Jewish tabernacle located in town. The special guest will
share with the class how their community celebrates these two holidays, and how it may
have differed from celebrations in the past and in different Jewish centers around the

world.
Student Task: Students will go to different centers where they have to play Dreidel,
participate in a Passover meal, and create a menorah. Afterwards, students have to fill
out their Hanukkah and Yom Kippur pages of their holiday passport, which includes and
then receive their stamps when the teacher approves what they wrote.
Assessment: Anecdotal notes are students paying attention to the speaker; are
students asking thoughtful questions about Hanukkah and/or Yom Kippur; can students
follow guidelines at each center to discover the traditions celebrating these two holidays?
Lesson 5- Expectation(s): Describe some significant traditions and celebrations of their
families, their peers, and their own communities, as well as of some other communities in
Canada. (A3.4)
- Analyse and construct simple maps as part of their investigation into past and present
traditions and celebrations in their local community. (A2.3)
Teaching: During this class the teacher will introduce Islamic holidays or traditions. The
major focus will be placed on Ramadan and the festival at the end of Ramadan, Eid-ulFitr. The teacher will read one book on the first day, The White Nights of Ramadan by
Maha Addasi. In the next lesson, the teacher will conduct a read-aloud, connecting the
book by a think-aloud, to what the students learned by reading yesterdays book. Todays
book is called Yippee! Ramadan Is Over, Its Eid by Farjana Khan. Then, as a class,
they will brainstorm the important aspects of Ramadan and how Eid-ul-Fitr fits into the
tradition. The teacher will explain that in large urban centers/ cities in Canada, there are
large Islamic communities forming. She will also review the holidays they have already
looked at, and if the students can see evidence of the holidays being celebrated within
their own community. The teacher will direct them by showing a map of where certain
holidays are celebrated more (i.e. Ramadan, Hanukkah) in Canada, because there are
different cultures living in one area more than another. She will ask for student input on
how to label a map.
Student Task: Students will construct a simple map of their community and the nearest
urban center and label the areas in which Ramadan is celebrated. Afterwards, students
will write a letter to themselves about the things they wish to improve upon since one of
the main concepts of Ramadan is the improvement of oneself. Then, the students will fill
out the Ramadan page of their passport, by stating important ideas they learned in this
lesson. Once the teacher approves it, she will give the student another stamp for their
passport.
Assessment: Anecdotal notes Do students understand the tradition of Ramadan and
Eid-ul-Fitr and why there are some areas where Ramadan celebrations are more visible
in the community?
Lesson 6- Expectation(s): Compare some of the past and present traditions and
celebrations of different ethno-cultural groups in their local community, and identify some
of the main reasons for the change. (A1.3)
Teaching: During this class the teacher will introduce students to Kwanzaa. The teacher
will play African drum music while the students close their eyes. After the music is

finished playing, the teacher will ask the students what they felt when the music was
played. She will then explain that she played a traditional African drum song. Africans in
all of their celebrations include a drum in some way because music is an important part
to the African culture. The teacher will then read Seven Candles for Kwanzaa by
Andrea Pinkney. The teacher will then discuss with the students how the holiday came
from the African harvest festivals, but an African American then adopted it in the 1960s to
celebrate African heritage in North America.
Student Task: Students will create a harvest song using drumbeats that mimic those that
are played in traditional African songs. Students will also create a Venn diagram of what
is similar and what differs from a traditional African harvest celebration and Kwanzaa.
Assessment: Rating scale Students will be assessed on their ability to create a song
that follows the traditional African rhythms. They will also be assessed on their
knowledge of the similarities and differences of African harvest traditions in Africa and
Kwanzaa traditions here in North America.
Lesson 7- Expectation(s): Identify some different groups in their community and
describe some ways in which they contribute to diversity in Canada. (A3.2)
Teaching: The teacher will introduce the topic of the Chinese New Year to the students.
However, to begin, the teacher will discuss the contributions the Chinese have had on
Canadian diversity (i.e. Chinatown in large urban areas such as Toronto; large population
speaking Mandarin and other Chinese dialects). She will then discuss the topic of
Chinese New Year and how grocery store flyers highlight different foods around that time
of year. The teacher will show the students the flyers she has collected, and students will
get a chance to discuss the different types of food that they see, as well as discuss
whether or not they have tried any of these foods before. The teacher will read the book
Dragon Dance by Joan Holub, which introduces the traditions surrounding the Chinese
New Year.
Student Task: In groups students will be required to create their own Chinese New
Years dance that could be used during the Chinese New Years parade. Afterwards,
students will fill out their Chinese New Year page that has a short activity in their
passport and get it approved and stamped by their teacher.
Assessment: Rating scale Creativity, knowledge of what a Chinese New Year dance
entails, etc.
Lesson 8- Expectation(s):
Evaluate evidence and draw conclusions about past and present traditions and
celebrations in their communities and in their families. (A2.5).
Teaching: The teacher will introduce Hindu holidays and traditions with the focus being
on Diwali. The teacher will hook the students by telling the students that we will be
learning about a festival of lights. She will turn off the lights and have a battery operated
candle and will ask the students why they think there would be a festival about lights. The
teacher will talk with the class about how light represents good and how it can also
represent hope because the light helps us see when it is dark. The teacher will show the
video from the BBC on the Diwali festival (http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningzone/clips/the-

diwali-festival-and-its-significance/4788.html). The teacher will ask the students to listen

to some of the foods that they eat and the activities that they do during Diwali. She will
write the information on the board after the clip is over as students share what they have
learned and organize it into different categories (food, events, decorations etc.). The
teacher will also review the other festivals that we have discussed about the importance
of light and how they differ from Diwali.
Student Task: Students will make Rangoli patterns. Afterwards students will be expected
to finish their Diwali page, focusing on comparing Diwali with other Festivals of Lights
(i.e. Hanukkah). Students will then compare these celebrations with their own ideas of
lights (i.e. Christmas lights on a tree, lighting candles for various celebrations etc.) The
teacher will also approve their holiday passport before they leave for the day.
Assessment: Checklist Students will be assessed on their ability to compare Diwali
with other celebrations that have the concept of light as a focus.
Lesson 9- Expectation(s):Identify some reasons ways in which heritage is passed on
through various community celebrations and traditions (A3.6).
Teaching: This lesson will focus on community celebrations. The teacher will bring in
newspaper clippings of various community events that are unique to the community (i.e.
fall fairs, cultural days, local heritage days). The teacher will explain how there are
certain traditions that are unique to the community we live in. These traditions could be
based on a culture that is prevalent in a community (i.e. Scottish communities have
Highland games) or a historical event that occurred in their community (i.e. Founders
Day). She will explain that one of the important sources to learn how community
traditions have formed and changed is the local newspaper.
Student Task: She will split the students into groups and they will have to find out what
the tradition is, why our community celebrates it, and any interesting information they
find. They will write their information on a piece of chart paper. With teacher guidance,
the students will chart their different community traditions as a class and then each group
will share their information with the rest of the class. They will have to include information
on whether or not the tradition is related to their communitys cultural groups or if it is
related to their areas specific history (i.e. a festival celebrating an important historical
figure that lived in their town).
Assessment: Checklist students will be assessed on their ability to synthesize
information and if they understand the difference between a historical/ their communitys
heritage-based tradition and a cultural-based tradition within a community.
Lesson 10- Expectation(s): Compare some of the past and present traditions and
celebrations of different ethno-cultural groups in their local community, and identify some
of the main reasons for the change (A1.3). Describe some significant traditions and
celebrations of their families, their peers, and their own communities, as well as of some
other communities in Canada (A3.4). Compare their familys structure and some of their
traditions and celebrations with those of their peers families (e.g. immigration to Canada,
family members marrying someone from a different culture, changes in technology)
(A1.2)

Teaching: The teacher will have prepared a review lesson for students on the
SMARTboard. She will ask students before they start the lesson if they can share with a
partner one of their favourite holidays they learned about during this unit. They must tell
their partners at least 3 facts they learned, using their passports. The teacher will then
direct students to share forward their ideas. She will then explain the review lesson to the
students.
Student Task: The students will complete a review on the SMARTboard as a class. They
will have to identify the holiday or tradition based on an image shown on the screen.
They will also have to describe some of the traditions and celebrations of their families
using a fill in the blank format on the SMARTboard. They will also have to compare their
traditions of their families with their classmates traditions, using a Venn diagram on the
board.
Assessment: Formative check for understanding and for student growth of knowledge
of concepts relating to traditions and celebrations.
Lesson 11- Expectation(s): Identify some ways in which heritage is passed on through
various family celebrations and practices (A3.7).
Teaching: The teacher will review the holidays we have discussed in class on the board.
She will also reiterate the fact that heritage is passed on through our families, but
sometimes through the generations, the tradition might change a little bit. The teacher
will then show the students a recipe from her grandmother for Christmas fruitcake. She
will then show a recipe that her mother has that is similar to the one her mother used to
make, but she had to change it because her mother is allergic to nuts. Then she shares
how she makes both, to keep the tradition of both her mother and her grandmothers
fruitcake recipes.
Student Task: Students will think of a recipe that has been passed down in their family
(The teacher will make a note ahead of time to send to parents, so they can assist their
child prior to the day to find a recipe). The students will then create as a class a
cookbook with all their recipes that have been handed down from generation to
generation. If students can, they can share how some of the recipes have been adapted
over the years and explain why that has happened.
Assessment: Rating scale students will be assessed on their ability to identify one
aspect of their familys tradition that has been passed down, and why it might have
changed or not changed. They will also be marked on their procedural writing in writing
their recipe.