The first lessons of the new year in one of our classes were devoted to a challenging topic – the soft sounds ć and ci. Remembering all the rules was not easy, but as always the children rose to the task.
The ć sound is tricky because Polish spelling has two ways of writing it. At the end of a word and before a consonant we write ‘ć’ (as in ‘być’ – to be, or ‘ćma’ – moth), and before a vowel we write ‘ci’ (as in ‘ciocia’ – auntie, or ‘babcia’ – grandma). The pupils reinforced this rule with worksheets and handwriting exercises, as well as games on the interactive whiteboard, matching pictures to the correct spelling.
The class then watched a cartoon about a grandmother and talked about their own grandparents. The conversation led into an art activity: the pupils made cards for their grandparents. There was no shortage of creativity – the cards turned out beautifully, each one different, and they will be flying to grandmothers and grandfathers all over the world. The work also included colourful diplomas and certificates.
In Poland, Grandmother’s Day is celebrated on 21 January and Grandfather’s Day on 22 January. In many Polish families abroad, grandparents live far away, in Poland or in other countries, so a handmade card with greetings in Polish is a particularly precious way of keeping family ties strong.
More photos from the lesson can be seen in the gallery.
