Looking for a meaningful family tree activity or Family Day activity for elementary students? This Indigenous education resource helps children explore family, community, identity, relationships, and belonging through an inclusive lesson and collection of hands on activities.
Created by a First Nations educator, this family and community lesson encourages students to think beyond a traditional family tree and recognize the many people who may care for, support, guide, and teach them.
INDIGENOUS FAMILY & COMMUNITY LESSON
Students learn that there are many distinct First Nations, Inuit, and Métis cultures, each with their own understandings of family, community, and relationships.
The lesson introduces students to:
✿ Family, community, and belonging
✿ Extended family and community relationships
✿ Caring for and supporting one another
✿ Learning from parents, grandparents, caregivers, community members, and Knowledge Keepers
✿ The role of Elders in Indigenous communities
✿ Respect and responsibility within relationships
✿ How residential schools and the Sixties Scoop disrupted Indigenous families and communities
✿ The strength and resilience of Indigenous families and communities today
FAMILY & COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
Students can connect their learning to their own lives through a variety of inclusive activities, including:
✿ Family Tree Activity with original hand-drawn tree and heart-shaped leaf templates
✿ People Who Are Important to Me activity
✿ How We Care for One Another reflection activity
✿ My Special and Unique Family activity
The family tree project can also be used to create a beautiful family tree bulletin board or classroom display.
AN INCLUSIVE FAMILY TREE PROJECT
Families do not all look the same.
Instead of asking students to focus only on biological relatives, this resource encourages children to think about the people who care for them, support them, teach them, and help them feel a sense of belonging.
Students may include parents, grandparents, siblings, aunties, uncles, caregivers, chosen family, friends, Elders, teachers, or other important people in their lives.
This makes the activities especially useful for classrooms with diverse family structures.
PERFECT FOR:
✿ Family Day activities in Canada
✿ Family tree projects
✿ Family and identity units
✿ My Community units
✿ Indigenous education
✿ Social studies
✿ Classroom community activities
✿ Lessons about belonging and relationships
✿ Grades 1-4
All artwork included in this resource is originally created by West Coast Indigenous Teacher and is copyrighted.
