Creating a Culturally Inclusive Classroom
An inclusive classroom, one that all students feel like the belong to and are equally valued, begins with the teacher. I thought I was a culturally inclusive teacher. That is until I read more about it and found that it was more than just celebrating Diwali or having “people colored” crayons in my classroom. A culturally inclusive classroom appreciates diverse cultures and learns from them. Diversity is celebrated, not ignored. Diversity can be seen in many ways. It can be seen in the students from other countries, students that are deaf, students that are autistic, and the students that are “different”. My goal is to create a culturally inclusive classroom, where everyone feels appreciated and respected. In order to do that, I need to take a step back and reflect upon my previous teaching practices and decide what changes I need to make.
Educators work with many diverse cultures, ones that we know a lot about and ones we know little about. What that means and how we approach it affects the way our students are accepted and appreciated. But, how do I go about creating this environment? As I reflect on my years of teaching, I realize I need to change some things I am doing and would like to add things into my classroom environment as well.
First, I need to take a closer look at my students. Where are they from and what challenges might they have? How might I need to alter my teaching to best meet their needs? I need to learn as much as I can about them as quickly as possible. A good place to start is by opening the lines of communication with the families. Sending out a parent survey and asking questions about language, religion, holidays, and food. Knowing the answers to these questions is essential in creating a culturally inclusive classroom from the very beginning.
Literature is a big part of my classroom. However, as I think about the books I read, I realize that I don’t read a lot of books that are multicultural. I researched culturally inclusive literature and found several books that I would like to add to my library that I think will embrace diversity in my classroom.
Another addition I would like to add to my classroom are pen pals. I have been looking into joining a pen pal group for my class and found a group on Facebook called Kindergarten Pen Pals. I’ve requested to join the group and am hoping to add this into my curriculum next year. I would like to focus on other countries, where they are located, what their homes and families look like, and how their lives are similar or different than ours. I think this would be an exciting project and one I am anxious to begin.
I would like to add posters that show diversity in my classroom. I have a lot of posters that show concepts and skills, but not of people and cultures. Showing children pictures of people that are different than they are but doing the same things is important in showing and appreciating diversity. For example, a family eating dinner or playing a girl playing basketball. Finding similarities creates connections.
Through this course, I have learned that creating a culturally diverse classroom isn’t about celebrating Martin Luther King in February, or celebrating Kwanzaa in December. It’s about every day in your classroom. Every day celebrating the diverse cultures that are in and out of your classroom. This starts with me and with the way I treat and respect my students and how we appreciate and learn from the other cultures around us.
Resources
Inclusive schools. (n.d.). Retrieved June 02, 2016, from http://www.ed.gov.nl.ca/edu/k12/inclusion.html
Tips for Integrating Multiculturalism and Diversity into the Preschool Classroom - Hatch. (2012). Retrieved June 02, 2016, from http://www.hatchearlylearning.com/integrating-multiculturalism-diversity/
Facebook logo. (n.d.). Retrieved June 02, 2016, from https://www.facebook.com/groups/kindergartenpenpals/?ref=ts
OBrien, A. (2011). The December Dilemma: Acknowledging Religious Holidays in the Classroom. Retrieved May 26, 2016, from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/december-dilemma-religious-holidays-anne-obrien
Educators work with many diverse cultures, ones that we know a lot about and ones we know little about. What that means and how we approach it affects the way our students are accepted and appreciated. But, how do I go about creating this environment? As I reflect on my years of teaching, I realize I need to change some things I am doing and would like to add things into my classroom environment as well.
First, I need to take a closer look at my students. Where are they from and what challenges might they have? How might I need to alter my teaching to best meet their needs? I need to learn as much as I can about them as quickly as possible. A good place to start is by opening the lines of communication with the families. Sending out a parent survey and asking questions about language, religion, holidays, and food. Knowing the answers to these questions is essential in creating a culturally inclusive classroom from the very beginning.
Literature is a big part of my classroom. However, as I think about the books I read, I realize that I don’t read a lot of books that are multicultural. I researched culturally inclusive literature and found several books that I would like to add to my library that I think will embrace diversity in my classroom.
- Grandfather Counts by Andrea Cheng, illustrated by Ange Zhang. Lee & Low, 2000. This story is about a grandfather visiting his family in America. When he arrives he sees that his family doesn’t speak Chinese and he doesn’t know how to communicate with them. I love how the granddaughter in this story teaches her grandfather English and he teaches her Chinese. This book would have been perfect for my class this year as we have a student that speaks Chinese, and we are teaching her English. This would be a great text to self connection for my students.
- Margaret and Margarita/Margarita y Margaret by Lynn Reiser. Greenwillow, 1993. This story is about two friends that don’t speak the same language. It shows how they overcome the language barrier and teach each other their language.
- Celebrating Families by Rosemarie Hausherr. Scholastic, 1997.This story is about all types of families and their homes. Fourteen young people--including children of one- and two-parent families, adopted families, foster families, families with a physically challenged parent, and extended families--introduce their home lives to readers.
Another addition I would like to add to my classroom are pen pals. I have been looking into joining a pen pal group for my class and found a group on Facebook called Kindergarten Pen Pals. I’ve requested to join the group and am hoping to add this into my curriculum next year. I would like to focus on other countries, where they are located, what their homes and families look like, and how their lives are similar or different than ours. I think this would be an exciting project and one I am anxious to begin.
I would like to add posters that show diversity in my classroom. I have a lot of posters that show concepts and skills, but not of people and cultures. Showing children pictures of people that are different than they are but doing the same things is important in showing and appreciating diversity. For example, a family eating dinner or playing a girl playing basketball. Finding similarities creates connections.
Through this course, I have learned that creating a culturally diverse classroom isn’t about celebrating Martin Luther King in February, or celebrating Kwanzaa in December. It’s about every day in your classroom. Every day celebrating the diverse cultures that are in and out of your classroom. This starts with me and with the way I treat and respect my students and how we appreciate and learn from the other cultures around us.
Resources
Inclusive schools. (n.d.). Retrieved June 02, 2016, from http://www.ed.gov.nl.ca/edu/k12/inclusion.html
Tips for Integrating Multiculturalism and Diversity into the Preschool Classroom - Hatch. (2012). Retrieved June 02, 2016, from http://www.hatchearlylearning.com/integrating-multiculturalism-diversity/
Facebook logo. (n.d.). Retrieved June 02, 2016, from https://www.facebook.com/groups/kindergartenpenpals/?ref=ts
OBrien, A. (2011). The December Dilemma: Acknowledging Religious Holidays in the Classroom. Retrieved May 26, 2016, from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/december-dilemma-religious-holidays-anne-obrien