How We Organize Ourselves - What Does eBranksome Look Like in Grade 3?

By Kent Watene, Grade 3 Homeroom Teacher

Grade 3 students are fortunate because we began the transdisciplinary theme of “How We Organize Ourselves” just prior to beginning our elearning adventure. 

“How We Organize Ourselves”, like all our units, has a descriptor which guides the direction of our teaching: “An inquiry into the interconnectedness of human-made systems and communities; the structure and function of organizations; societal decision-making; economic activities and their impact on humankind and the environment.”

Referencing this descriptor Grade 3 students have been focusing on economic activities and their impact on humankind. We have been accomplishing this through the conduct of a market day activity in class.     Using our online learning platforms Grade 3 students have worked in groups to create a product suitable to sell during our market day. We did this by collaborating to think of products that we would like ourselves. Then we conducted surveys to collect data to ensure that we meet the needs and wants of our consumers. Next, we analyzed the data and used our understanding of supply and demand to make decisions about the price of our product and quantity that we need to produce.  Due to the current OVID-19 situations, the market day has been canceled.

It would have been nice to participate in the market day for our students. However all was not all gloomy as we have been able to dig deeper into some big picture ideas about “How We Organize Ourselves”, such as societal decision making. Throughout our morning meetings we have been able to discuss why we are doing distance learning. Students have explored why societies have made decisions to protect their countries and communities. We have reviewed these types of decisions from different countries including the countries our teachers are from and compared them to each other as well as the actions that we are experiencing here in Korea.

Overall Grade 3 students have had some rich and real time learning experiences that have helped develop their understanding of “How We Organise Ourselves.”