This recognition is a sublime way to finish our project. It demonstrates to the education community what students and teachers can achieve when they work together.

To Edublogs, we want to say thank you for providing us with this blog to help us create our collaborative project.

To everyone who followed our project and voted for us, we say

Each week, we have blogged, commented and conversed about a wide range of topics.

Week One: Typical School Day

Week Two: Recess Activities

Week Three: Food

Week Four: Our Local Environment

Week Five: Traditional Stories and Festivities

Week Six: Traditional Song

Whoever You Are

The students worked together to create this reading of Mem Fox’s story, Whoever You Are.

This story reminds us that even though everyone in the world is very different, we are all equal.

Tolerance and understanding are very important virtues to develop, and can help to create a world full of peace, productivity and pleasure!

Simply press the play button to hear the story and use the arrows to turn the pages that don’t automatically advance.

Make New Friends

Nothing brings people together like a song. Here are the lyrics, sing along!

1. Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other is gold.

2. A circle is round, it has no end, that’s how long I will be your friend.

3. A fire burns bright, it warms the heart, we’ve been friends from the very start.        

4. You have one hand, I have the other, put them together, we have each other.

5. Silver is precious, gold is too, I am precious and so are you.

6. You help me, and I’ll help you, and together we will see it through

7. The sky is blue, the Earth is green, I can help to keep it clean.

8. Across the land, across the sea, friends forever we will always be.

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The students have learnt so much about our world and developed their understanding of different ways of living.

The Our World, Our Stories project has proved that even though the world is a big place, technology can help make it smaller. Our classrooms are not bound by four walls and we have a whole world full of students, teachers and community members to learn from and with!

Leave a comment and share something you have learnt or something you have enjoyed about Our World, Our Stories.

Our song is a combination of My Paddle’s Keen and Bright and Land of the Silver Birch. They are traditional Canadian folk songs that were often sung while paddling in a canoe. The paddlers would use the beat of the song to help them paddle in unison. The two songs are partner songs (Two songs that can be sung together at the same time).

Have you ever paddled in a canoe before?
Can you think of any other times that songs are used to keep the beat?

Connecticut, USA

We love listening to Mrs. Yollis’ class sing This Land is Your Land, 2KM & 2KJ singing G’Day, G’Day and B4 singing Haere Mai. It is so fun to hear different songs from around the world!

We are going to share a short song that has been sung at American baseball games for over 70 years. If you’ve ever been to a baseball game in the U.S.A. you’ve probably heard this song before! We hope you enjoy it:

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We sing this song a lot at our school assemblies, and the line, “Root, root, root for the home team“ always gets a little bit loud! When you sing this song, you typically say the name of your favorite team in place of the words “home team”.

So at our assemblies some of us sing “root, root, root for the Red Sox!” while others sing “root, root, root for the Yankees!” because these are the two most popular baseball teams where we live.

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What are the popular home sports teams where you live?

What is your favorite professional sport to cheer for?

What did you think of the song? Do you have any questions about it?

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Haere Mai

B4′s song is a song of welcome.

We sing it each week at assembly, and to welcome special visitors to our school.

What do you think ‘Haere Mai’ means?
Can you find the words for ‘boy’ and ‘girl’?

G’day G’day

Slim Dusty (David Gordon Kirkpatrick 1927 – 2003) made this song famous and many incorrectly believe he wrote it. G’day G’day was actually written by Rob Fairbairn. It is a fun song that people have been singing for decades.

Here is 2KM and 2KJ performing the song for you.

Here are the lyrics so you can sing along.

Do you know what these words/phrases mean?

G’day

Strike a light

Bloke

Havin’ a yarn

Dinky-di

Didgeridoo

Are there any other words/terms that you need us to define for you?

What do you think of our Aussie song?

California, USA

This week, the focus will be traditional songs.

Mrs. Yollis’ class will kick off the week with a famous American folksong,

This Land is Your Land

by Woody Guthrie.

The words are below if you’d like to sing along!

Chorus:
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California, to the New York Island
From the redwood forest, to the gulf stream waters
This land was made for you and me

As I was walking a ribbon of highway
I saw above me an endless skyway
I saw below me a golden valley
This land was made for you and me

This land is your land, this land is my land
From California, to the New York Island
From the redwood forest, to the gulf stream waters
This land was made for you and me

What do you think of when you listen or sing this song?

We sang the song a cappella (ah ku pel uh)  which means it was sung without a musical accompaniment.

Do you play an instrument that could have accompanied our song?

Ghana, West Africa

Kumasi is found at the heart of the Republic of Ghana

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The name of our school is Best Brain International School.

This is how our school day starts:

A child wakes up mostly with sibling at about 5:30am and prepare for school

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These are the colors of the school uniform of Best Brain International School

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Little Kwasi Okyere, our model pupil (student) put on his school uniform

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This is the main two story building of Best Brain International School

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This is the arrival of students at the school's premises

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It is a usual practice for students to pray before class activities starts

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Students march to classrooms in ascending order (from lower classes to upper classes) with drum rhythm

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Here is a video showing students marching to classroom

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California, USA

A favorite recess game at our school is called

Bamboo!

Here is a video demonstrating how the game is played.

Would you like to play Bamboo?

Do you have any unusual equipment at your school that has lead to a new game?

In Belize, Anansi stories became part of the tradition when slaves were brought to the Americas from Africa. Since then they have stayed popular and there are many stories about this mischievous Half Spider-Half Man.

Who are the popular characters in YOUR stories?

Are they mischievous like Anansi?

(Click “CC” to have words to read along with Vanyah and N’Gaii)

Transcript:

Hi My name is N’gaii.

Hi my name is Vanya.

Brer Anansi and Brer Tiger Riding Horse

Both Brer Tiger and Brer Anansi loved the beautiful Ms. Selena and were trying hard to win her heart. Anansi knew it was difficult to compete with Tiger because Tiger was big and strong. He decided to play a trick on Tiger. Anansi spread the rumor around the entire village and he also personally told Ms. Selena that Tiger was his riding horse. Word got out to Brer Tiger, who was furious. Everyone was teasing and making fun of him. When Brer Anansi heard that Brer Tiger was looking for him, he ran home, put an egg in his mouth, and oiled his face so he would look sick. He got under his blanket and waited. When he heard a bang on the door and shouting, he pretended he could barely speak. Eventually Brer Tiger got in. Brer Anansi rolled his eyes so only the white parts showed. He began groaning as though he was in terrible pain. He begged Brer Tiger to take him to the doctor and promised that they would settle the matter as soon as he was well. He kept on groaning and soon after, broke the egg in his mouth and pretended like he was vomiting. Brer Tiger got frightened and worried. He quickly offered to take him to the doctor. Pretending to be sick, so weak and couldn’t walk, Anansi kept on groaning. Brer Tiger picked him up gently and put him on his back. Anansi said to Brer Tiger, can you please hand me the stick that is leaning in the corner so I can have it to help me walk when I get to the doctor. Tiger did as he was told.

*break in video

He gave the stick to Brer Anansi as Brer Tiger began to leave. Brer Anansi said Brer Tiger,  “I am so weak. Can you please tie a rope around your neck so I can hold on good I’m afraid I’m going to fall. Again he did as he was told. They then left for the hospital. Ms. Selena was sitting under a tree in the main area of the village, selling delicious food. Most of the villages gathered around laughing and talking since it was Saturday evening, none of them were working. As soon as Brer Anansi saw that they were approaching the crowd he dug his heels into Brer Tiger’s back, held onto the rope as tight as he could and whipped Brer Tiger with the piece of stick as hard as he could. The pain whipped through Brer Tigers body and he took off running. Everyone laughed and shouted, “Brer Tiger is Brer Anansi’s riding horse for real!” When they reached an area where Brer Anansi knew it was safe to get away, he jumped off of Tigers back and hurriedly climbed a tall tree. Brer Tiger stood under the tree and waited. Hours came and went but Brer Anansi did not come down. Eventually Brer Tiger got hungry and left to look for food. Brer Anansi climbed down and ran away to safety.