Honouring Diversity - Division I
Jaycee Doolittle
This video is a little to advanced for Division I Learners, but I think it is a great starting point for teachers of all grade levels.
This video is a little to advanced for Division I Learners, but I think it is a great starting point for teachers of all grade levels.
Elementary Multiculturalism Video
I love the way this video describes multiculturalism in the terms of mixing colors. Our future classrooms will be a unique blend of all different backgrounds. Students might have a starting idea, or two, about what other cultures and people are like and its our job as great teachers to create and expand those ideas to encompass everybody. ELL come from different backgrounds. You can have multiple students who are ELL who come from a range of different backgrounds, no two students are the same.
I would start my activity by asking if anyone knew what multiculturalism was. I know it is a big topic, but I would want the students to come up with that they think it is. Some probing questions like what is culture, what does multi mean, would be helpful for the students. After we have had a discussion about it, I would show this video to my class and ask them how many colors do we have in our classroom.
I would want to create a rainbow puzzle "quilt" with my students (you can also make a globe instead, passing out different pieces of continents). Each student will get a blank puzzle piece. On their piece I would want they to draw what their culture is like, what foods they eat, what holidays are like, what clothes they were, etc. Once the pieces are all drawn, I would have the students outline their pictures in black marker. They can then paint (paint that is like a wash of color, not a solid opaque color) their pieces, I would suggest that they paint it one solid color of their choice. I would space the students out so that they are not influenced by their friends to paint a certain color.
After the craft is all finished, I would assemble the puzzle "quilt" on display in my classroom. I would have each student show his/her puzzle piece and share something interesting about their culture. By doing this, each student will see that their background is important and that everyone has something a different about their own culture. It showcases that everyone is different and only together as a whole are we a classroom full of awesome people!
I would start my activity by asking if anyone knew what multiculturalism was. I know it is a big topic, but I would want the students to come up with that they think it is. Some probing questions like what is culture, what does multi mean, would be helpful for the students. After we have had a discussion about it, I would show this video to my class and ask them how many colors do we have in our classroom.
I would want to create a rainbow puzzle "quilt" with my students (you can also make a globe instead, passing out different pieces of continents). Each student will get a blank puzzle piece. On their piece I would want they to draw what their culture is like, what foods they eat, what holidays are like, what clothes they were, etc. Once the pieces are all drawn, I would have the students outline their pictures in black marker. They can then paint (paint that is like a wash of color, not a solid opaque color) their pieces, I would suggest that they paint it one solid color of their choice. I would space the students out so that they are not influenced by their friends to paint a certain color.
After the craft is all finished, I would assemble the puzzle "quilt" on display in my classroom. I would have each student show his/her puzzle piece and share something interesting about their culture. By doing this, each student will see that their background is important and that everyone has something a different about their own culture. It showcases that everyone is different and only together as a whole are we a classroom full of awesome people!