Family in Samoa

Lesson Overview

WALT: Discuss the role of family in Samoan culture.

In this 60-minute lesson designed for Year 12 Languages students in New Zealand, students will explore the traditional importance of family in Samoan heritage. They will engage with cultural concepts linked to family, learn about Samoan family structures, and create family trees to connect personally with this knowledge.

This lesson aligns with the New Zealand Curriculum Refresh by fostering students’ competence using language and cultural understanding, expanding their key competencies of "Using language, symbols, and texts," "Relating to others," and "Thinking." It also models culturally responsive teaching and inclusion as per curriculum values and principles, especially recognising and respecting Pasifika heritage.

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Learning Objectives

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

• Explain the significance of family in Samoan culture, including key roles and relationships.
• Identify traditional Samoan family structures and terminology.
• Create a family tree that relates to their own family and traditional Samoan structures.
• Reflect on similarities and differences between Samoan and their own familial experiences.

Curriculum links:

• Learning Area: Learning Languages

• Achievement Objective:

• Communicate information, ideas, and feelings in a culturally appropriate way about aspects of their own and others’ languages and cultures.

• Understand social and cultural contexts of language use.

• Key Competencies:

• Using language, symbols, and texts

• Relating to others

• Thinking

• Principles: Inclusion, Cultural diversity, Treaty of Waitangi

• Values: Respect for diversity, Community engagement

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Success Criteria

Students will demonstrate success by:

• Actively participating in class discussions about the Samoan concept of family.
• Accurately identifying and describing roles within a traditional Samoan family system.
• Producing a clear, labelled family tree linking traditional Samoan terms and their own family members.
• Reflecting thoughtfully on cultural connections and differences, sharing insights respectfully.

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Resources Needed

• Whiteboard and markers
• Projector and screen or smartboard
• Handouts of Samoan family terms and family tree templates
• Paper and colouring materials for creating family trees
• Samples or visuals of typical Samoan family trees
• Tablets or computers (optional, for digital family tree creation)
• Glossary for Samoan cultural terms (prepared by teacher)

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Lesson Breakdown (60 minutes)

1. Introduction and Engagement (10 minutes)

• Begin with a brief traditional Samoan family story or proverb introduction highlighting family values.
• Present the WALT and success criteria clearly.
• Activate prior knowledge: Ask students to share briefly what they know or perceive about families in Samoan culture and in their own lives.
• Introduce key Samoan family relationship terms (e.g., "aiga" = family, roles such as "matai" = chief, "tuagane" = brother of a female, etc.).

2. Teacher Input: Samoan Family Structures (10 minutes)

• Show visuals and explain the extended family structures in Samoa, including the hierarchical and respectful roles.
• Discuss cultural concepts like collective responsibility, respect (fa'aaloalo), and community connection.
• Highlight how family structures influence language and communication patterns in Samoan culture.

3. Guided Practice: Family Tree Creation (25 minutes)

• Provide students with family tree templates.
• Guide students step-by-step to map out their own family tree, encouraging inclusion of terms they have learned and reflection on similarities with the Samoan structure.
• For students comfortable with technology, allow creation of a digital family tree.
• Teacher circulates, supports, and scaffolds as needed.

4. Sharing and Discussion (10 minutes)

• Invite volunteers to share their family trees.
• Facilitate a class discussion comparing the diversity of family structures with the traditional Samoan model.
• Emphasise respect and understanding in cultural comparisons.

5. Reflection and Wrap-up (5 minutes)

• Students write a brief reflection on what they learned about family importance in Samoa and its relevance to their own experiences.
• Recap WALT and success criteria; invite students to self-assess their learning.

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Differentiation Strategies

• For diverse learners:

• Provide sentence starters and vocabulary banks for family tree labelling.

• Use bilingual resources or visual aids for English language learners.

• Provide printed examples of family trees with annotations.

• Allow verbal responses or drawing-based work instead of written reflection if needed.

• For advanced learners:

• Challenge students to research and present a specific role within a Samoan family or a related cultural practice.

• Encourage extension by comparing Samoan family structures to other Pacific cultures or languages.

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Assessment

• Formative: Observation of participation and engagement during discussion and family tree creation.
• Summative: Assessment of the completed family tree for accuracy and cultural understanding.
• Reflection piece assessed for insight and personal connection.

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This lesson honours New Zealand Curriculum principles by ensuring cultural inclusivity and connection to community while developing language and thinking competencies through meaningful and relevant learning contexts.

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If you would like, I can also provide a detailed lesson activity worksheet or template for the family tree.