Finding Meaning
Year 6 has begun its journey towards the apex of the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (IBPYP) – the final exhibition. This year, the students are exploring the human experience and the diversity of our perspectives, through the lens of storytelling.
As part of their Primary Years Programme (PYP), Year 6 students have begun exploring storytelling and its importance in understanding history and our place in the world. Their work is part of the Unit, Where We Are in Place and Time, and will culminate in an in-depth exhibition later in the term, including some detailed thinking about the ways in which individuals, communities, places and events all have stories that can be told from multiple perspectives.
To launch their exploration, the students were presented with various learning provocations set up by their teachers.
One was an intriguing display of suitcases, each filled with a collection of items that combined to tell the story of individual journeys across place and time.
Another was a series of archival images that provided a visual narrative of Australia's history.
The story of languages was also explored through an examination of some Aboriginal languages. This included a special focus on palawa kani, an Aboriginal language that is being revived in Tasmania after all native speakers died in the late 1800s.
Yet another learning opportunity was a tea circle. Over cups of herbal tea, the students considered concepts such as ritual, tradition, and community, teasing out the ways that storytelling is not just about sharing a narrative, but also about listening to each other and building empathy and understanding.