Defining unfair

To begin our journey into social justice, I wanted the students to have an understanding of the word unfair to help them choose a topic that is within the framework of social justice. As a whole group, we defined unfair as something that is unequal, not the same, and does not make you feel good. Then, the students viewed The Sneetches via YouTube. The cartoon's underlying theme is prejudice and therefore depicts many examples of unfairness. After the video, the class returned to the rug and debriefed the film. Next, the students returned to their seats and wrote and/or drew one to three examples of unfairness they saw in the video. To close, we returned to the rug and discussed how the plain-belly Sneetches felt when these acts of unfairness were happening. My next plan's objective is for the students to develop a sense of fairness and equity by sharing an experience that was unfair to them.

Examples of student work:

Example #1: The thing that's unfair is the star belly children don't let the plain belly Sneetches play with them.

Example #2: The thing that's unfair is the star belly Sneetches ate marshmelle (marshmellows) with our the plain belly Sneetches.

Example #3: The thing that's unfair is the star belly Sneetches ate hot dogs.

Example #1: The other Sneeches did get stars and the star Sneetch beley (belly) Sneeches (Sneetches) got to play in the beach.

Example #2: The mommy told the little Sneeche (Sneetch) to not talk to the plain belly Sneeches.

 We continued with our discussion of The Sneetches by highlighting the star on the Sneetches' belly and what it symbolizes. We made an anchor chart: Stars for Sneetches vs Stars for First Graders (please see below). After our lists were complete, we reviewed how the plain-belly Sneetches felt when they were excluded from the star-belly Sneetches' events. 
       Next, I had the students vote on what "star" was the most important to them. Prize box won with a landslide. Then I asked, "How would you feel if prize box was taken away?" I recorded their answers (i.e. disappointed, unfair, sad, mad) on the chart and offered another example. "Imagine it's Friday, pizza day for lunch. As you are walking toward the cafeteria you smell the cheesiness in the air and your mouth starts to water. When you arrive, Ms. Taylor (our head lunch lady) tells you Ms. Liza's class will be served a different lunch today." I observed the students' reactions and asked how they would feel if this happened. These exercises allowed the students to make a connection with the plain-belly Sneetches by experiencing the feelings associated with unfairness.

Stars Anchor Chart