Expanding our classrooms to the world...
Our commitment to diversity and life-long learning inspires our passion for placing children's learning within a global context. We believe in the importance of supporting children to actively explore the world's rich cultural, technological and artistic traditions and innovations. We see the unfolding of a deep interest in - and desire to engage with and shape - the world as the true essense of forming a life-long disposition toward learning and happiness. We actively explore the cultural richness within our school community, and that of our wider national and global context.
In our Pre-K and Primary Grades, we begin to explore the world beyond the classroom by learning about the children's differing family backgrounds and cultures. We explore cultural diversity through activities that lend themselves to direct experiences, such as preparing and trying different cuisines enjoyed by children at home, creating costumes and dressing up in different forms of traditional and modern clothing, experimenting with different forms of art and music from various cultural origins, bringing languages (Spanish and Mandarin) into the classroom, and learning about the world through our interdisciplinary themes.
In our Intermediate Grades, as the children become more adept at abstract reasoning and thinking, they engage in projects that require them to delve more deeply into learning about diverse people and places. Within a 'Movement' theme for example, the children might engage in researching and building a model 'mode of transport' from each major continent or look at 'traditional versus modern' means of moving goods within and between places around the globe. In an 'Identity' theme, they might investigate how their life would be similar and/or different if they lived in another country, or 'belonged' to a different cultural background but still lived in Seattle. This might involve constructing different homes to experience what it might be like to live in a one-room dwelling, or hosting a traditional meal, in which they eat traditional cuisine with their extended family (or 'pretend' extended family) to simulate how family dynamics can be changed through eating practices.
Teaching in a global context allows the children, over time, to develop important understandings into human history, innovation and diversity. It is also one of the things that makes life at QACS so incredibly fun and exciting!
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