EC4 students have been diving into How We Express Ourselves inquiring into the Central Idea People recognize important events through celebrations. We started this unit by discussing different celebrations that we experienced at school such as Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. The students were able to reflect on these experiences and mentioned different ways that they celebrated them. As 
we prepared for our FON EXPO, we collaborated with a parent from Japan who introduce students to a new celebration: Japanese New Year. Students learned how people in Japan celebrate this special event, the special food and also traditional games that are played. We also explored other new year celebrations and invited a parent to talk about a special celebration within her family, Chinese New Year. During this opportunity, EC4 students were able to make connections with their own New Year celebrations in their own family.
EC4 students have been enthusiastic as they discussed different ways families celebrate birthdays. A book entitled My Lucky Birthday by Keiko Kasza provided inspiration for the students as they investigated the different elements of a birthday celebration. Our invitation tables provided opportunities for the students to explore more about birthday party elements such as balloons, birthday cakes, birthday decorations and birthday gifts. Students used their creativity to decorate our classroom with birthday decorations. As we discussed about birthday cakes, students were curious about how to make them. So, they reviewed recipe books and interviewed their moms to find the answer.
During this Unit of Inquiry EC4 integrated with Bahasa Indonesia class and learned more about Independence Day in Indonesia. Students listened to history behind the Independence Day and experienced a traditional game, marble race. In library class, EC4 students uncovered elements of different celebrations and will investigate the similarities and differences among them. In the upcoming weeks EC4 students will wrap up this unit of inquiry by investigating about favorite celebrations for each student and the reason behind that.
