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Multicultural Literature with culturally rich text.

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Multicultural Literature Makes a Difference

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Multicultural Literature Makes a Difference

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Using literature that is culturally rich and has been written by authors of various cultures. By using literature that is rich in multiple cultures in the class it will help create empathy and identify formation within students. (Gay, 2018)

Multicultural Literature creates the following for early childhood students:

Helps them feel like they belong and included

Creates a sense of cultural awareness and helps them understand who they are and where they come from.

Helps students to have empathy and respect for other cultures.

A few multicultural books that are culturally rich for early childhood students:

The Colors of Us by Karen Katz

Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard

Same, Same But Different by Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw

All People are Beautiful by Vincent Kelly

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Curriculum that is used in the multicultural classroom should have issues that have been discussed in case studies. For instance, the Flint Water Crisis. Furthermore, justice within the educational system should teach students about inequity. Through these case studies, we learn how to treat students fairly and be mindful of the issues that students face in various communities.

Diversity and Social Justice Education by Paul C. Gorski and Seema G. Pothini has several case studies scenarios that contain the topics of race, class, gender, disabilities, language and religion. This book would be good to use to plan lessons for all students to feel included and seen in the classroom.

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Throughout curriculum, teachers should teach history from various points of view and cultures. The voices of multiple cultures should be explored and heard for students.

In early childhood education, lessons can include historical events through story time, art, music, classroom centers or even various foods. Students can take trips around the world and see through videos, books or stories various cultures and learn about historical events in those cultures such as the Civil Rights Movement, Indigenous Reservations or Cinco de Mayo.

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Teachers should create units based on themes that incorporate lessons that teach about integrity, justice and the imago Dei (Palmer, 1998). These lessons should be founded on Proverbs 31:8-9, which encourages people to fight for people who can not fight or speak for themselves. The proverb mainly refers to those who are poor and needy and to treat them fairly.

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In lesson plans it is essential to honor every students' cultures. Gonzales et al. (2005) suggest that lessons should honor the cultural experiences of each student by integrating their home cultures into the core instruction.

In lesson plans, teachers can incorporate narratives such as historical fiction into their lessons. Through their lessons teachers can guide students in discussions about the similarities of their cultures to how they live at home. The topics can consist of historical events such as: The Trail of Tears, the Holocaust, or Pearl Harbor. These events can expose students to social injustices and the responsibility of being civil to all people (Banks, 2008).

In lesson planning, teachers can also incorporate faith into their core instruction. Palmer (1998) suggest that integration of imago Dei can be connected to multicultural education and the justice depicted in the Bible will help students to learn about integrity, inclusion and helps build character.

Teachers can showcase and integrate students’ cultural backgrounds into the literature and various lessons with in unit. Teachers can integrate multicultural books like Esperanza Rising, Inside Out and Back Again, and Brown Girl Dreaming to help students experience their cultural identities, resilience and social justice. They can experience these themes by connecting their lives to the characters in the books to their lives (Gay, 2018).

Teachers can differentiate groups in their classrooms by adding in relevant examples of various cultures so that students can hear, read and see cultures and make the connection to themselves.

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In classrooms teachers can build empathy of others different cultures by grouping. Teachers can incorporate flexible and fair grouping in their classrooms. These groups can be comprised of the following:

mixed languages-Have students with various languages sit together.

different cultures in groups instead of everyone from the same cultural background.

ability levels instead of all groups being all high performing students or all low performing students.

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Lessons can:

be adapted and based on students' cultures.

be adapted and based on students' languages.

be adapted and based on students background knowledge.

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In lessons teachers can allow students to process their ideas, faith, values and goals in their journals. Students should have the ability to have time to write out their thoughts in a safe place. Students can reflect and plan throughout lessons.

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A classroom should represent all voices. The classroom should display visuals that represents each culture in the classroom and even some that are not in the classroom. The classroom can be decorated with various flags from different countries around the world, student art that they create of their families, and pictures that depict the diversity of cultures in the class. The classroom should celebrate every students’ cultural identify and allow them to feel as if they belong in the class.

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Classrooms should create and foster a sense of strong community. Teacher should get the input from students on the norms in the classroom. Teachers can create classroom norms and incorporate some of the values they experience in their homes such as: treat others the way you want to be treated, love your neighbor, and do not judge others. Through these classrooms teachers teach students kindness, respect and uniqueness for all cultures. These ideas can come from what they have learned in their faith and what their cultures represent (Lickona, 2004).

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Teachers can allow time for students to communicate in their classes. Times for students to affirm each other and share encouraging stories. Teachers can incorporate time such as circle time or have time for open dialogue. Teachers can have time for students to learn how to reflect on behaviors and learn to build trust among each other. Through this time, students gain a voice in the classroom and can support each other. Zehr (2002) describes this as building and reinforcing a strong sense of responsibility in a classroom community.

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In classrooms teachers can guide students in reflective and respectful conversations. These discussions can guide students in correctly pronouncing culturally specific names, foods, special holidays and celebrations. Through this circle time, teachers can also incorporate “show and tell” time so every student can experience the cultural lived experienced of every student in the class.

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A way that schools can showcase and celebrate different cultures is to host Culture Nights. These type of school events allow families to showcase, celebrate and participate in various cultures through: food, music, clothes, sports, games and stories. This type of school event will allow for the affirmation of cross-cultural celebration and appreciation (Henderson and Mapp, 2022).

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Parents need a voice and presence in schools. In order to meet the needs of parents. Parent Workshops are necessary. These types of workshops can touch on topics such as: technology, homework assistance, ESL support or curriculum support at home. These types of school events will help grow parental confidence, support families of various cultures, and help grow students academically.

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Community service is a great way for students to connect to others and build school and community relationships. Epstein (2010) discusses various community service projects that schools can participate in such as collaborating with various churches or small business to allow student to apply what they are learning in class and encourage student to build civic responsibility and empathy for others.

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Teachers can send home weekly news letters that incorporate values from various cultures in the classroom. Teachers can have newsletters that spotlight kindness, love and support through biblical references such as kindness, patience, love, and faith (Romans 12:10).