ABSTRACT
Th e following “Who Are We?” activity is one that I have successfully used for over 20 years in a variety of courses designed for future elementary, middle, and high school teachers. However, with appropriate modifi cations this activity can be used with any 4th through 12th grade social studies class. Th e activity sprang from my desire to better know my students and my realization that they did not naturally have substantial insights into their own cultural ways of being. I typically encourage students to “push the envelope” of what they might consider to be polite inquiries concerning their culture, but I leave the ultimate decisions up to them as they form groups to investigate various aspects. “Pushing the envelope” of acceptability is an important tactic since students quickly learn that very little is off limits if we learned to address one another with respect and keep our focus on ideas rather than individuals’ personalities.
