In science, students explored various migratory routes of animal species and examined the human impact on migrating populations. They learned about the components of scientific posters and applied this understanding to create their own, each focused on a specific animal and its migratory path. Students also produced a book titled Migration Tails, which showcased their posters alongside narrative writing based on their chosen animals.
In humanities, the class collectively studied the complex and widespread phenomenon of forced and voluntary migration throughout history, analyzing the socio-economic and cultural impacts on individuals and communities. They investigated specific cases of forced displacement, such as the Canadian government’s relocation of the Inuit to the High Arctic and the ongoing struggles of Palestinian and Syrian refugees in host countries like Lebanon. Students also examined major historical movements, including the Great Migration of African Americans, the Irish Potato Famine diaspora, and the Bracero Program, noting how government policies and crises reshaped traditional livelihoods and community structures.
To connect these themes to lived experiences, students recorded migration stories from members of their own families and communities and shared them during a “Walk A Mile” exhibition, where participants listened to personal stories while wearing the storyteller’s shoes. Students curated the work and constructed a large shoebox installation to house the collected narratives. Finally, families contributed their own migration stories to a collaborative map, which the class curated and displayed in the school hallways.
Teacher Reflection
I think that the students and families loved the exhibition and the walking in the shoes of the person they were hearing the story about, was powerful. They enjoyed the interview process and sharing the recordings with families. They also did a great job with their science posters which they displayed and were able to articulate their learning on exhibition night. Something I would do differently would be how I connected the learning between the science of the animal migratory routes and the migration of people. We were going to look into how migratory patterns of animals have changed due to human impact and compare that to human migratory patterns; this we could have done a better job of doing.
—Matthew Chapman
Student Reflection
We wrote stories about our animals to better understand how the animals migrated. My story was about the bar-tailed godwit and the writing helped me anthropomorphized without making the animal too human.
—Djanira
