inquiry on diversity

J1 – YEAR 4 / 5 HAMDAN

In our class we were discussing our right to go to the toilet during class time. Some students admitted that they were scared to ask a teacher to go, that they felt bad interrupting the lesson or had bad previous experiences and didn’t feel brave to ask. This led to asking some bigger questions about our rights as kids. Mr Hamdan shared the UN convention of the Rights of the Child, and we looked at the different articles that connected to the toilet discussion we were having. This made us wonder about ‘how we can raise our voice to make change?’ We started inquiring more into the importance of children being able to go to the toilet at any time and learnt that ‘holding on’ can impact on our health. We believe it should be a right for all children to go to the toilet when they need. This is very supported by our teachers. We connected this learning with the bigger questions of children’s rights and why they exist. We are now thinking deeper and going further in our learning on how we can raise our voice to make change. Next week we have parliamentary role playing to see how laws are made which will help us think about this further.
(Olivia Chambers, Alex Birkett and Mrs Rust)

"If you don't use your voice, things won't change."
Alex - Year 5
"Children have rights and everyone should respect them."
Olivia - Year 5

H1 ILIC & H2 DIXON - YEAR 5/6

In our class we have been discussing how we are all diverse.  We found out that we originated from lots of different countries, making us very multicultural. This led us to ask our parents questions about where we originated from and why. This made us think about the different cultures around the world. We generated some open ended questions about a culture that interested us and are in the middle of researching those questions to find and sort out the information. We have learnt how to note take, summarise and work within word limits. We are making choices on how to present our information through word, power-point or SWAY. 

"We are all different, but we are all Australian. We need to acknowledge different cultures and beliefs."
Lara - Year 5
"Being different is interesting, if we were all the same, it would be boring. Learning how different people live their lifestyle at home, how they cook and what their religion is has been an opportunity to go deeper into my learning."
Cody - Year 6
"Everyone is different. Some people have different religions or beliefs, and we need to respect them."
Jazmin - Year 6
"This has made me think about how different we are to each other and how boring it would be if we were all the same. I am starting my research today. I am asking the question 'What problems do the people of Japan have?' I am interested in finding out how their system of government works and how they solve those problems."
Alyra - Year 5

"I have learnt that Australia is not made up of just one culture, that we all originate from different places. Our Government plays an important part in making sure that we are respectful of peoples’ cultures. I am researching India and looking into how their environment is different to Australia’s. I am learning that there are differences not just in people but environments."

Dooley - Year 5
"We need to know about diversity so we can respect each other's beliefs and personalities and not overlook them. They are a very important thing"
Addi - Year 6

D BLOCK, SKINNER & ARUNDELL - YEAR 6

In our class we were discussing diversity and how our genetics make us different. This made us think about many things like….


·         Is celiac a genetic disease?
·         What are the dominant colours in hair and eyes?
·         Are all our characteristics genetic?
·         What role does nature play in our diversity as opposed to nurture?

This led to some independent inquiries into different facets of genetics. Each student came up with 3-5 open ended questions about their concept to research. Now we are sorting out the information to answer the questions we had. We will be using digital technology such as SWAY and PREZZIE presentations to present and share our findings with the rest of the class.
 (Addi Burke, Bella Tsangaris and Mrs Rust)


"Diversity is important because when someone has a different belief to you, you can’t push them to believe yours or judge them because they believe differently to you."

Bella - Year 6