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Coaching and Culturally Responsive Teaching

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Coaching and Culturally Responsive Teaching

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November 2019 | Volume 77 | Number 3
A Culture of Coaching Pages 12-13

In her book Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain (Corwin, 2018), Zaretta Hammond seeks to direct attention to the "cognitive aspects of teaching culturally and linguistically diverse students." For her, culturally responsive teaching is a multifaceted approach to fostering higher-order thinking and helping disadvantaged students become independent learners. A former teacher, Hammond believes that instructional coaches can play an essential role in helping educators grow in this practice.
You have misgivings about some current tendencies in professional development on culturally responsive teaching. Where do schools most often go wrong?
Culturally responsive teaching is about improving instruction and helping students of color who've historically been deprived due to structural inequities in our education system become better learners. When done right, it can be powerful in helping students improve their learning. But many educators confuse culturally responsive teaching with multicultural education or social justice education. There's nothing wrong with these things, but they're not about teaching children how to learn, which is the key. Unfortunately, in their haste to implement, schools oversimplify the algorithm-all the pieces that need to come together to get impact. Culturally responsive teaching is a multi-pronged methodology that works through synergy. As I detail in my book, it comprises cultural awareness, information processing, learning partnerships with students, and supportive learning environments. That's not the way it's generally promoted to teachers-it's promoted to them as a simple toolkit of strategies or surface content changes like adding diverse authors or including hip hop.
You say it's important for instructional coaches to generate "creative tension" with teachers in their work on culturally responsive teaching. What do you mean by that?
Good coaching is about being in partnership with teachers and helping them see what they need to do differently to get students to step into their learning in powerful ways. By generating creative tension, the coach can help the teacher see with new eyes what's often going too fast in the classroom, so the teacher can understand what's getting in the way. So, creative tension is a kind of gap analysis. We look into the classroom and help the teacher see current reality around the quality of relationships or who is carrying most of the cognitive load during instruction. That way, we are not just offering generic strategies, but truly helping the teacher get a sense of what she needs to keep doing because it's working and what she needs to stop doing because it's not working. What I see happening now is administrators expecting coaches to bring in a set of one-size-fits-all strategies, but not focus on improving ways to get students to actively process new content.
Are there reflective practices you'd recommend for instructional coaches who want to be better prepared to work with teachers on culturally responsive teaching?
Absolutely. Coaches need to sharpen their own equity lens first. They need to do their own "inside out" work around cultural proficiency and implicit bias. But they also have to delve into the science of learning. They have to understand the teaching moves that get underprepared students not only to re-engage, but also to learn at deeper levels. I'd strongly encourage coaches to engage in their own inquiry cycles and their own professional learning communities. Be a hawkish observer of student learning. Smart districts will invest in building capacity among their instructional coaching ranks before they roll out culturally responsive teaching to their teachers. They've typically done it kind of backwards, so that the coach is trying to learn alongside the teacher. That doesn't work.
Are there common red flags, in terms of teaching practice, coaches should be on the lookout for when helping teachers become more culturally responsive?
Yes, there are. Too often, in observations, we look for multicultural artifacts but don't look at whether students are becoming stronger learners. The first red flag is when a teacher makes culturally responsive teaching all about relationships but leaves instruction unchanged. The next one is, who's carrying the cognitive load? Is the teacher doing all the talking, and are the kids only talking when the teacher tells them they can, like in assigned group work? That's another misconception-that group work equals culturally responsive instruction. Doing more group work doesn't make the instruction culturally responsive. The coach has to understand what truly makes instruction "responsive" and assess how is the teacher igniting intellectual curiosity and chunking content so there are cognitive hooks that draw on students' understanding and current experience.
In your experience, what keeps teachers motivated as they do the difficult work of becoming culturally responsive educators? How can coaches help them keep the vision alive?
Well, I think the key is to start small. You can't just go in and say, "We're going to be culturally responsive in these four areas in 2 months." That's too much and unrealistic. You want to focus on a small, high-leverage step. It might be a shift in how feedback is delivered. Or it can be making the classroom an intellectually safe place so students aren't afraid to take risks. Or it might be a change in classroom routines or rituals. Coaches can help teachers find that "lead domino" of success. This creates curiosity and a process of inquiry that honors teacher knowledge and expertise.

Here's the thing: Coaching around culturally responsive teaching is about helping teachers improve the dynamic within the instructional core so that kids learn better, so they want to take on hard things. That's the dance of instruction, and it can be very exciting. That's what coaches are there to promote.
-Anthony Rebora
Editor's Note: This interview has been edited for space.

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Zaretta Hammond on Coaching and Culturally Responsive Teaching - Educational Leadership

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November 2019 | Volume 77 | Number 3 A Culture of Coaching Pages 12-13 In her book Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain (Corwin, 2018), Zaretta Hammond seeks to direct attention to the "cognitive aspects of teaching culturally and linguistically diverse students."

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Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain

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Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain

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By: Zaretta Hammond

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Padlet with Suggested Texts, Videos, & Articles

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Padlet with Suggested Texts, Videos, & Articles

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Created by ESOL Endorsement Cohort 2019-2020

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Created by ESOL Endorsement Cohort 2018-2019

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Resources for Teaching English-Language Learners

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Resources for Teaching English-Language Learners

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Resources for Teaching English-Language Learners

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From literacy instruction to arts and technology integration, explore strategies for engaging English-language learners.

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Holt Interactive Graphic Organizers
"Graphic organizers are tools that help your brain think." - Kylene Beers
Graphic organizers are an illustration of your thoughts on paper. They can help you brainstorm, organize, and visualize your ideas.

Click on a graphic organizer to download a PDF of it. Once you've downloaded an organizer, type in your comments and print it out.

Each graphic organizer below includes Teaching Notes with lessons and tips on how to use graphic organizers in the classroom.

Help with PDF Files
Generating, Identifying, and Organizing Details

Determining Main Idea and Drawing Conclusions

Order and Sequence

Graphic Organizer Teaching Notes

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Holt Interactive Graphic Organizers "Graphic organizers are tools that help your brain think." - Kylene Beers Graphic organizers are an illustration of your thoughts on paper. They can help you brainstorm, organize, and visualize your ideas. Click on a graphic organizer to download a PDF of it.

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Contains book lists by categories and numerous other resources for EL instruction

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Recommended Resources

Multicultural children's book awards

Book award lists are a great source for new titles, particularly when looking for titles that reflect new perspectives. Here are some of the leading awards in the field chosen by experts committees that include librarians, authors, and educators.
Latino/Latin American/Caribbean Experience More Diverse Perspectives

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Book award lists are a great source for new titles, particularly when looking for titles that reflect new perspectives. Here are some of the leading awards in the field chosen by experts committees that include librarians, authors, and educators. Latino/Latin American/Caribbean Experience More Diverse Perspectives

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Books on Equity and Cultural Proficiency have been one of the hallmarks of Corwin's publishing program, and we take pride in publishing some of the brightest thought leaders in educational equity. This month you'll hear from many of them, and we invite you to explore our other blog posts on Equity. To get you started, we've put together this list of essential reading in Equity and Cultural Proficiency.

Equity and Cultural Proficiency Reading List:

In spite of Brown vs. Board of Education, true integration and corresponding equality of educational opportunity is still far from reality in American schools.

Opening Doors tells the story of Ventura Unified School District's successful implementation of cultural proficiency, which opened long-closed doors for marginalized students and returned gains on every key success metric. Most importantly, it will empower you to do the same for your school or district.

"The book is full of compassion, conviction and hope-pure heart, pure corazón-in the quest to tackle inequality and the opportunity gap head on." - Gilberto Q. Conchas, Professor of Educational Policy and Social Context, School of Education, University of California, Irvin

Fish Out of Water by Kikanza Nuri-Robins and Lewis Bundy

"Fish out of water" are those who don't fit in the mainstream culture, often due to sexual orientation, gender identity, ableness, income level, or ethnicity. This book focuses on survival and adaptation strategies for fish out of water as well as those who teach, supervise, and collaborate with them. It also helps people who are Fish Out of Water to create environments that support those who might be Fish out of Water.

"Fish Out of Water made me think. It is a courageous attempt at the difficult subject of who 'doesn't fit' into the spaces and places we inhabit-and why. But the most valuable part of this book is that it describes what we can do about making our schools, workplaces, and communities more inclusive, and ultimately more effective." - Nicki King, Reducing Mental Health Disparities Project, University of California, Davis

Research shows that students of color learn best in classrooms that reflect their cultural values. This breakthrough book shows educators how to create culturally relevant RTI models that help diverse students thrive!

Step-by-step, you'll learn to skillfully apply 4 core characteristics critical to culturally responsive instruction: communalism, movement expressiveness, orality, and verve.

"This book presents salient and provocative ideas with regards to teaching the way students learn. These ideas are not readily spoken about in teacher preparation programs or in schools. This book provides an avenue to discuss the ways African American students learn best." - Lydia Adegbola, Assistant Principal, NYC Department of Education

The achievement gap remains a stubborn problem for educators of culturally and linguistically diverse students. With the introduction of the rigorous Common Core State Standards, diverse classrooms need a proven framework for optimizing student engagement and facilitating deeper learning

Culturally responsive pedagogy has shown great promise in meeting this need, but many educators still struggle with its implementation. In this book, Zaretta Hammond draws on cutting-edge neuroscience research to offer an innovative approach for designing and implementing brain-compatible culturally responsive instruction.

"Drawing on the research from neuroscience Zaretta Hammond explains what we should have known all along - all children are capable of higher order thinking and capable of producing intellectually advanced work if provided the opportunity to learn by caring and capable adults. Hammond does more than explain the research. Drawing on years of experience in schools as an educator and trainer, she shows how this can be done even in schools that have grown accustomed to failure. At a time when the nation is searching to find ways to close the racial achievement gap, this book will be an invaluable resource." - Pedro Noguera, Professor, NYU, Executive Director, Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools

Most experts agree that student motivation and engagement are critical components of teaching and learning. Yet both are vulnerable to distraction. Effective instructional planning is also motivational planning!

Excited to Learnbegins with background on intrinsic motivation. Next, it introduces the motivational framework for culturally responsive teaching, the foundation of award-winning schools throughout the United States and abroad. Then it provides specific strategies that can be adapted to different subject areas and developmental levels. The epilogue provides guidelines for adult learning and includes an activity to introduce the book to teachers.

"How can you work with classroom dynamics to increase your culturally diverse students' investment in learning? In this theoretically sound and immensely practical guide, Margery Ginsberg offers teachers a clear framework loaded with wonderful hands-on activities that have the power to change how teachers and students relate to each other and to academic learning. This book is designed to enable teachers to unlock their students' inner motivation and reach the students teachers find most challenging."- Christine Sleeter, Professor Emerita, California State University Monterey Bay

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author: Brian Weishar, Sue Bryen, and Jenni Donohoo

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author: Connie Hamilton, Ed. S and Olivia Amador, Ed. D

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Equity and Cultural Proficiency Reading List - Corwin Connect

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Books on Equity and Cultural Proficiency have been one of the hallmarks of Corwin's publishing program, and we take pride in publishing some of the brightest thought leaders in educational equity. This month you'll hear from many of them, and we invite you to explore our other blog posts on Equity.

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NCTE

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Asking an English teacher to pick a favorite book is almost impossible! But that's exactly what we did during our January #NCTEchat, New Year/New Ideas. During the chat, we asked educators to share one text (poem, book, novel) that they would recommend every teacher (or student) read in 2018. As you might expect, we received HUNDREDS of wonderful recommendations!

Get ready to add a lot of books to your To Be Read pile, because over the next few weeks we'll be sharing all of the recommendations we received. We'll kick off the series this week with educators' favorite professional development books.

If we missed one of your favorites, be sure to let us know on Twitter! All recommendations were pulled from January's #NCTEchat archive, which you can find here.
Book descriptions are taken from the Goodreads website.
Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth

Why do some people succeed and others fail? Sharing new insights from her landmark research on grit, Angela Duckworth explains why talent is hardly a guarantor of success. Rather, other factors can be even more crucial, such as identifying our passions and following through on our commitments.

Why you should read this book: We need to start developing the character of our students if we want them to achieve greatness. We need to help develop intrinsic motivation for our students. That starts with helping them discover their "why."

Disrupting Thinking: Why How We Read Matters by Kylene Beers and Robert E. Probst

Beers and Probst discuss an ongoing problem: lack of engagement with reading. The problem, they suggest, is that we have misrepresented to students why we read and how we ought to approach any text-fiction or nonfiction.

Enticing Hard-to-Reach Writers by Ruth Ayers

Enticing Hard-to-Reach Writers invites you on a journey to become a teacher who refuses to give up on any student, who helps children believe that they can have a positive impact on the world, and who-in some cases-becomes the last hope for a child to heal.

A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas by Warren Berger

A More Beautiful Question outlines a practical Why / What If / How system of inquiry that can guide you through the process of innovative questioning-helping you find imaginative, powerful answers to your own "beautiful questions."

Why you should read this book: Great art, books included, promote questions not only answers. This book helps think about the importance of questions.

Pose, Wobble, Flow: A Culturally Proactive Approach to Literacy Instruction by Antero Garcia and Cindy O'Donnell-Allen

This book proposes a pedagogical model called Pose, Wobble, Flow to encapsulate the challenge of teaching and the process of growing as an educator who questions existing inequities in schooling and society and frames teaching around a commitment to changing them.

How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character by Paul Tough

Drawing on groundbreaking research in neuroscience, economics, and psychology, Tough shows that the qualities that matter most have less to do with IQ and more to do with character: skills like grit, curiosity, conscientiousness, and optimism.

Notice and Note: Strategies for Close Reading by Kylene Beers and Robert E. Probst

Beers and Probst offer insights into how to create text-dependent questioning in assisting students to develop greater reading comprehension skills.

Embarrassment: And the Emotional Underlife of Learning by Thomas Newkirk

In this groundbreaking exploration, Newkirk offers practices and strategies that help kids and teachers alike develop a more resilient approach to embarrassment.

Why you should read this book: It helps teachers and students to move outside their comfort zones.

Building Powerful Learning Environments: From Schools to Communities by Arina Bokas

A learning environment has traditionally been viewed as something that educators created and sustained inside their schools. Building Powerful Learning Environments expands this understanding to embrace families, communities, other learning institutions, and businesses not as helpers, but as co-builders of a powerful learning environment.

Culturize: Every Student. Every Day. Whatever It Takes. by Jimmy Casas

In Culturize, Jimmy Casas shares insights into what it takes to cultivate a community of learners who embody the innately human traits our world desperately needs, such as kindness, honesty, and compassion.

Change Over Time in Children's Development by Marie M. Clay

How do children's simple literacy responses become controlled, accurate, and coordinated? Clay answers with a rich and readable account of literacy learning drawn from research and theory in developmental psychology, neuropsychology, information-processing theory, and linguistics.

Literacy Essentials: Engagement, Excellence, and Equity for ALL Learners by Regie Routman

Based on her ongoing teaching, leading, and coaching in diverse schools and districts, Routman offers K-12 teachers and leaders practical, easy-to-implement tools to help students develop as self-determining readers, writers, and learners.

Helping Children Succeed: What Works and Why by Paul Tough

Mining the latest research in psychology and neuroscience, Tough provides us with insights and strategies for a new approach to childhood adversity, one designed to help many more children succeed.

Shifting the Monkey: The Art of Protecting Good People from Liars, Criers, and Other Slackers by Todd Whitaker

Poor employees get a disproportionate amount of attention. Why? Because they complain the loudest, create the greatest disruptions, and rely on others to assume the responsibilities that they shirk. Learn how to focus on your good employees first and help them shift these "monkeys" back to the underperformers.

Teach Like a Pirate: Increase Student Engagement, Boost Your Creativity, and Transform Your Life as an Educator by Dave Burgess

Based on Dave Burgess's popular "Outrageous Teaching" and "Teach Like a PIRATE" seminars, this book offers inspiration, practical techniques, and innovative ideas.

World Class Learners: Educating Creative and Entrepreneurial Students by Yong Zhao

Researcher and professor Yong Zhao unlocks the secrets to cultivating independent thinkers who are willing and able to create jobs and contribute positively to the globalized society.

Teach Like Finland: 33 Simple Strategies for Joyful Classrooms by Timothy D. Walker

From incorporating brain breaks to offering a peaceful learning environment, this book pulls back the curtain on the joyful teaching practices of the world's most lauded school system.

The Innovator's Mindset: Empower Learning, Unleash Talent, and Lead a Culture of Creativity by George Couros

George Couros encourages teachers and administrators to empower their learners to wonder, to explore-and to become forward-thinking leaders.

For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood . . . and the Rest of Y'all Too: Reality Pedagogy and Urban Education by Christopher Emdin

With this fresh and engaging new pedagogical vision, Emdin demonstrates the importance of creating a family structure and building communities within the classroom, using culturally relevant strategies like hip-hop music and call-and-response, and connecting the experiences of urban youth to indigenous populations globally.

The Wild Card: 7 Steps to an Educator's Creative Breakthrough by Wade and Hope King

In this book, Wade and Hope King show you how to draw on your authentic self-your past experiences, personality quirks, interests, hobbies, and strengths-to deliver your content creatively.

Readicide: How Schools Are Killing Reading and What You Can Do About It by Kelly Gallagher

Reading is dying in our schools. Educators are familiar with many of the factors that have contributed to the decline-poverty, second-language issues, and the ever-expanding choices of electronic entertainment. In this provocative new book, Kelly Gallagher suggests, however, that it is time to recognize a new and significant contributor to the death of reading: our schools.

The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller

Miller dispenses with the more traditional reading instruction of book reports and comprehension worksheets in favor of embracing students' choices in books and independent reading.

Book Love: Developing Depth, Stamina, and Passion in Adolescent Readers by Penny Kittle

In Book Love Kittle takes student apathy head on, first by recognizing why students don't read and then showing us that when we give kids books that are right for them, along with time to read and regular response to their thinking, we can create a pathway to satisfying reading that leads to more challenging literature and ultimately, a love of reading.

Reading Ladders: Leading Students from Where They Are to Where We'd Like Them to Be by Teri Lesesne

With reading ladders, you start with the authors, genres, or subjects your readers like and then connect them to book after book-each a little more complex or challenging than the last.

Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom by bell hooks

bell hooks-writer, teacher, and insurgent black intellectual-writes about a new kind of education, education as the practice of freedom. Teaching students to "transgress" against racial, sexual, and class boundaries in order to achieve the gift of freedom is, for hooks, the teacher's most important goal.

Looking for even more books to add to your collection?

Be sure to check out NCTE's store for hundreds of books and journals that can help you develop your teacher toolkit! Some recent favorites have included:

Continuing the Journey: Becoming a Better Teacher of Literature and Informational Texts by Leila Christenbury and Ken Lindblom

In Continuing the Journey, Leila Christenbury and Ken Lindblom are joined by almost two dozen classroom teachers and researchers to offer practical advice, encouragement, and cutting-edge ideas that you can implement in your classroom, with a focus on literature and informational texts.

Strategic Writing: The Writing Process and Beyond in the Secondary English Classroom, 2nd edition by Deborah Dean
For this revised edition, Dean worked with high school teachers to refine, reorganize, and update the material to better support classroom teachers dedicated to teaching not just the process of writing but also the strategies that help students learn to write effectively throughout their lives.

Deep Reading: Teaching Reading in the Writing Classroom, edited by Patrick Sullivan, Howard Tinberg, and Sheridan Blau
Contributors to this collection argue that college-level reading must be theorized as foundationally linked to any understanding of college-level writing.

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2018 Reading Recommendations: Professional Development - NCTE

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Asking an English teacher to pick a favorite book is almost impossible! But that's exactly what we did during our January #NCTEchat, New Year/New Ideas. During the chat, we asked educators to share one text (poem, book, novel) that they would recommend every teacher (or student) read in 2018.

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50 Top Titles

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This list of culturally diverse books to read, savour and recommend is a joyous celebration of the 50 most fabulous books for children of all ages living in multiracial, multicultural UK today.

Thanks to Seven Stories, The National Centre for Children's Books for sharing the list with us today - and to the experts they called on to pull it together: Julia Eccleshare (the Guardian children's books editor), Jake Hope (from Youth Libraries Group), Library specialist Sarah Smith and Katherine Woodfine from the Book Trust.

Tomorrow we'll be launching a discussion blog where you can share your favourite and most inspirational diverse books of all kinds - and there'll be features, blogs, galleries and other stuff on diversity on the site all this week so stay tuned!

Early Years

Amazing Grace
By Mary Hoffman, illustrated by Caroline Binch (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
The classic picture book about the little girl who loves stories and shows us that we can be anything we want to be.

Fruits: A Caribbean Counting Poem
By Valerie Bloom, illustrated by David Axtell (Macmillan Children's Books)
A rhythmic counting poem that describes all manner of delicious Caribbean fruits as a little girl tries to eat as many of these as she can in a single day.

The Goggle-Eyed Goats
By Stephen Davies, illustrated by Christopher Corr (Andersen Press)
A vibrant and colourfully illustrated tale about Old Al Haji Amadu's five extremely naughty and very hungry goats who gobble and gulp through whatever they find.

Handa's Surprise
By Eileen Browne (Walker Books)
A mouth-watering story about Handa who puts seven fruits into her basket to take to her friend Akeyo, but one by one these disappear as all manner of creatures snack upon them.

By Rita Phillips Mitchell, illustrated by Caroline Binch (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
As much as Hue Boy longs to be bigger, he discovers size isn't everything in this uplifting village-based story about a small boy with a very big personality.

Leon and Bob
By Simon James (Walker Books)
A quiet reflective book about the unusual friendship shared by Leon and Bob and the sense of fun and fulfilment others can bring into our lives.

Not So Fast Songololo
By Niki Daly (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
An African town is brought to life through sight and sound in this touching story of young and old where Grandmother Gogo and grandson Songololo set out on a stroll together.

Over the Hills and Far Away
By Elizabeth Hammill, illustrated by 77 artists (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
A stunning collection of 150 rhymes from countries all over the English-speaking world, including Great Britain, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ghana, South Africa and the Caribbean compiled by Seven Stories co-founder Elizabeth Hammill. The collection contains best-loved nursery rhymes, but also new discoveries, and vibrant rhymes from Native American, First Nation, Inuit and Maori cultures.

Ramadan Moon
By Na'ima B. Robert, illustrated by Shirin Adl (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
The festival of Ramadan and its celebration across the world is explored in this thoughtful book which looks at the role faith plays in many children's lives.

Rastamouse and the Crucial Plan
By Michael De Souza, illustrated by Genevieve Webster (Little Roots)
A cheeky, cheese-filled tale about super bad thief Bandalulu who has stolen all the cheese from Mouseland.

So Much
By Trish Cooke, illustrated by Helen Oxenbury (Walker Books)
A fun, feel good and familiar story about the different generations of a family brought together by their love for a new baby.

Where's Lenny?
By Ken Wilson-Max (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
An ideal first picture book by an award winning author/illustrator in which Lenny and his dad have a game of hide and seek in the house, enjoying fun and games together.

Younger readers (5+)

Azzi In Between
By Sarah Garland (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
A powerful graphic novel about Azzi and her family who seek refuge, filled with drama and tension it shows just how dangerous some people's home lives can be and the difficult decisions needed to reach a place of safety.

Kasia's Surprise
By Stella Gurney, illustrated by Petr Horacek (Walker Books)
A moving and hope-filled book about Kasia and her mum who have moved to the UK from Poland, it looks at the importance of the people we are close to and the gradual acceptance of change.

Betsey Biggalow is here
By Malorie Blackman, illustrated by Jamie Smith (Random House Children's Books)
Somewhere between Pippi Longstocking and Tracy Beaker, Betsey Biggalow, who stars in these short, pacey stories, is an imaginative and enquiring girl who is sometimes mischievous but always endearing.

The Colour of Home
By Mary Hoffman, illustrated by Karin Littlewood (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
Hassan feels out of place in a cold, grey country so different from his colourful Somalian home, which he was forced to leave because of war. But gradually things change... and he sees the new colours of home.

Fly, Eagle, Fly!
By Christopher Gregorowski, illustrated by Niki Daly (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
A story of fulfilment and freedom shown through the parable of the baby eagle who is reared with chickens. This simply told yet dramatic story from Africa will delight children everywhere and encourage them to "lift off and soar," as Archbishop Tutu puts it in his foreword.

A Hen in the Wardrobe
By Wendy Meddour (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
This is a funny, heart-warming family story set in Britain and Algeria, with fascinating glimpses of traditional Berber culture and lots of colourful characters.

By Jeannie Baker (Walker Books)
Although thousands of miles apart, there are many similarities between the homes and daily routines for the two boys in this book; its minutely detailed illustrations inspire readers to see that, in spite of surface difference, there is often more similarity in our lives than might, at first, be recognised.

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters
By John Steptoe (Puffin Children's Books)
This special book has a fairy-tale like charm as a King takes on the search for a wife. Mufaro has two daughters, one rude and mean and the other generous and thoughtful: which will win the hand of the King?

Number 1 Car Spotter
By Atinuke (Walker Books )
A witty story about the hugely appealing Oluwalase Babatunde Benson (AKA Number 1) who sets about searching for and solving problems and carrying out chores for his family.

Under the Moon and Over the Sea: A Collection of Caribbean Poems
Edited by John Agard and Grace Nichols (Walker Books)
A lyrical and lively collection of poetry that captures the sights, sounds, tastes and tales of the Caribbean and its people.

Walter Tull's Scrap Book
By Michaela Morgan (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
The inspirational true story of Walter Tull's life is vividly re-imagined here in scrapbook form, drawing on photographs, documents and records of his life. Born in Kent, in 1888, Walter Tull became not just the first black British professional outfield football player - for Tottenham Hotspur and Northampton Town - but also the first black officer in the British Army.

Older Readers (8+)

Boy Overboard
By Morris Gleitzman (Puffin Children's Books)
Jamal and sister Bibi want to lead Australia to victory in the World Cup, but that entails a journey from their homeland, Afghanistan where their family has upset the authorities, and a lengthy voyage overseas.

By Armin Greder (Allen and Unwin)
The poignancy of the pictures in this story about a man washed up on an island beach and outcast by its community explores intolerance and is a powerful and moving conversation starter for discussions around acceptance.

Journey to Jo'Burg
By Beverley Naidoo (HarperCollins)
A deeply affecting modern classic about a brother and sister who journey through the South Africa of Apartheid in a race against time to find their mother thereby saving their poorly baby sister, Dineo.

The Life of Stephen Lawrence
By Verna Allette Wilkins, illustrated by Lynne Willey (Tamarind)
Full of life and potential, Stephen Lawrence was a boy with huge hopes for the future. Murdered in 1993, the book looks at prejudice, injustice and a family's fight to uncover the truth.

Little Leap Forward
By Guo You, co-written by Clare Farrow and illustrated by Helen Cann (Barefoot Books)
This semi-autobiographical tale looks at Little Leap Forward, a boy who grew up in the hutongs of Beijing during the Cultural Revolution in China.

Oranges in No Man's Land
By Elizabeth Laird (Macmillan Children's Books)
Ayesha lives in war-torn Beirut, a city divided by conflict. When Ayesha's granny falls ill, she must cross the barricades into deadly no-man's land to try to get the medication that is so badly needed.

A Nest of Vipers
By Catherine Johnson (Random House Children's Books)
The youngest member of a collective of pick pockets and con-artists in 18th century London, Cato Hopkins appears at risk of paying penance for his crimes with his life...

Talking Turkeys
By Benjamin Zephaniah (Puffin Children's Books)
A thought-provoking and wide reaching collection of poetry for children that explodes from the page, begging to be read aloud.

By Candy Gourlay (David Fickling Books)
Quirky, unusual and filled with affectionate humour, this story looks at the relationship between Andi, who is short, and her long lost, enormous half-brother Bernardo who comes to live in London from the Philippines.

Too Much Trouble
By Tom Avery (Frances Lincoln Children's Books)
A fast-paced read about brothers Em and Prince who struggle to make a life and home for themselves on the streets of London. Winner of the Diverse Voices award 2010.

Trash

By Andy Mulligan (David Fickling Books)
Raphael is a dumpsite boy whose days are spent sifting through rubbish and whose nights are spent sleeping beside it. This deeply affecting story tells how one fateful moment - the discovery of a small leather bag - can radically change one's fortunes...

The Trouble with Donovan Croft
By Bernard Ashley (Oxford University Press Children's Books)
Keith's new foster brother, Donovan, won't speak to anybody, will Keith be able to uncover the reasons why and help Donovan to open up?

The Unforgotten Coat
By Frank Cottrell Boyce (Walker Books)
This acutely perceptive, gem of a book recounts how Julie tries to help two Mongolian refugees who are struggling to fit in with their new classmates in Liverpool and movingly describes why their friendship ended unexpectedly...

The Wheel of Surya
By Jamila Gavin (Egmont)
The violence and danger of India during the Independence movement and its partition from Pakistan acts a catalyst for Jaspal and Marvinder to flee from their village in an effort to reunite with their father who is a student in England.

Teenage (13+)

By Tanya Landman (Walker Books)
Following the vicious murder of her brother, orphan Siki vows to become an Apache warrior to take revenge upon her brother, Tazhi's, killers.

The Arrival
By Shaun Tan (Hodder Children's Books)
This wordless graphic novel explores the many reasons that lead people to leave their old lives and homes behind and set out upon the journey entailed in starting afresh. For teenagers, adults and younger readers too.

Artichoke Hearts
By Sita Brahmachari (Macmillan Children's Books)
Aged 12, Mira's life changes when her Nana Josie becomes ill and Mira begins to learn about the secrets of her family and loved ones in this emotionally honest novel.

Blood Donors
By Steve Tasane (Walker Books)
A skin-crawling novel about Marshall O'Connor who lives in the "Finger", a block of flats with a deep, dark and deadly secret. This distinctive, fresh and decidedly creepy novel explores stigma and prejudice.

The Breadwinner
By Deborah Ellis (Oxford University Press Children's Books)
Kept house-bound by the Taliban's law that women and girls should not leave the house on their own, Parvana, her mother and sisters are in danger of starvation when their father is arrested.

Moonfleece
By Philip Ridley (Methuen)
A playscript that explores the tensions between two groups of teenagers who come to learn the way party politics influence the everyday lives of individuals and the devastating impact this can have.

Half-Caste and Other Poems
By John Agard (Hodder Children's Books)
The poems in this highly original collection, penned by John Agard, uncover a wealth of human experience and on differences in race.

Noughts and Crosses
By Malorie Blackman (Random House Children's Books)
Sephy and Callum live in a world of split communities and civil unrest. Can their feelings for one another grow and blossom against this backdrop and what will occur if those feelings are discovered?

By Joe Sacco (Jonathan Cape)
An extraordinary piece of current affairs reportage told in graphic novel form and recounting the conflict in the West Bank and Gaza strip.

Persepolis 1 and 2
By Marjane Satrapi (Vintage)
This eye-opening graphic novel about author Marjane Satrapi's childhood growing up in Tehran uncovers the way a country's politics, religion, history and traditions, influence a sense of identity.

Refugee Boy
By Benjamin Zephaniah (Bloomsbury Children's Books)
Thrilled to have left his home country of Ethiopia for the first time, Alem is excited to be spending a holiday with his father in London. Happiness turns to despair, however, when he discovers that his father has left him alone in an unfamiliar country...

By Bali Rai (Random House Children's Books)
This highly personal story was partly influenced by Bali Rai's own experiences. It looks at the impact cultural traditions can have on young people growing up in modern times and the book will resonate will all who have experienced the pressure of expectation at the hands of their family.

The Weight of Water
By Sarah Crossan (Bloomsbury Children's Books)
Poetic and reflective, the story tells how Kasienka comes to England from Gdansk in Poland with her mother, a suitcase and a laundry bag full of clothes, desperate to search for her father.

* This article was amended on 14 October 2014 to correct the description of Handa's Surprise.
Topics

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Diverse voices: the 50 best culturally diverse books

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This list of culturally diverse books to read, savour and recommend is a joyous celebration of the 50 most fabulous books for children of all ages living in multiracial, multicultural UK today.

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IFLA

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Book Riot

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Robyn Dailey

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Powtoons Presen

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Video

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Introduction to Culturally Relevant Pedagogy

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Practical Applications

The idea of developing as a culturally responsive teacher demands that we are able to take this theoretical notion and enact it through actual classroom practices. Being a culturally responsive teaching, for me, is applying best teaching practices (using prior knowledge, modeling activities, making lessons explicit and age appropriate, vocabulary development, high expectations for learning, thoughtful planning, meaningful assessments, individual attention to learning styles, differentiated instruction). This year I provided daily opportunities for children to express their ideas in order to make connections with others in the class and with people from various cultures. Below you will find several activities. One became a staple routine in my classroom, one activity is a result of the staple routine activity and one is an activity that would act as a catalyst for getting to know my students with more depth.

1. Unpacking Your Cultural Knapsack: A Culturally-Specific Activity
Unpacking Your Cultural Knapsack with students
This activity for students was an adaptation (in name only) to the Cultural Knapsack activity that I experienced as a part of the process in the Culturally Relevant inquiry team. I felt that this activity should be both a written assignment and a hands on project. Instead of jotting down what children would place in their knapsack, children were asked to use their backpacks and bring items from home that would identify their family, culture, interests and ideas. Keeping in mind that this was the beginning of the school year, children were asked to work in pairs to share their information just as we teachers did during the Culturally Relevant inquiry team session. In addition, students were asked to write down what they had learned about their partners and additional questions that they might have for their partners. The day before children brought in their knapcksacks, I shared my own knapsack with them. My students had many questions and were able to learn some new things about me and in turn I found out that I had some common interest with them.
Cultural Knapsack Outcomes
I hoped that overall, students would walk away with a greater appreciation for their classmates. I was greatly pleased. Students were extremely excited about this activity. I saw such a sense of pride as students began to discuss their lives and the things that were important in them. Students made connections with each other that possibly they would not have and, ultimately, children walk away with a greater sense of respect for each other. This activity took about a week to complete. I introduced the activity on Monday. I shared my knap sack with them on Wednesday and we had our big class share on Friday. I allowed students to leave one object that would remain in the room as a way of reminding students that we all come with a story to share. The lasting affects of this activity could be seen through the end of the school year. Children would occasionally change the one object that represented who they were which would elicit natural curiosity from the others. Children were genuinely interested in each other as their questions would suggest.

2. Morning Meeting:

An Ongoing Activity

Students were introduced to Morning Meeting as a transitional time during the morning when the whole class meets to discuss the day and the events that were important to the class community. Because students are at a different comfort level when speaking in front of a large group, I begin the circle time by asking students to share their thinking with the person sitting next to them. At the end of this segment, students who felt comfortable to share out in the larger group were asked to do so. When I began to transition students whole group discussions, more reserved students were given prior notice along with the topic and discussion question so that they would have adequate time to prepare their thinking. Students were taught pro-social conversation etiquette: 1. Look at the person speaking 2. Listen actively and build onto the conversation or ask questions 3. Wait your turn to speak 4. Agree to disagree without arguing. (Provide a reminder poster: Having Meaningful Conversation)

Students were also armed with a series of conversational prompts that would assist them in having longer more in depth conversations. Conversational prompts are helpful to all students but especially students that I observed who had difficulty sharing their ideas and making connections with others aswell as second language learners.

One of the aspects of my classroom that had always been successful was Morning Meeting time. However, in order for me to make this important time of the day relevant I had to pay close attention to the interests, needs and norms of my students. Normally, students would meet at the beginning of the day and form a circle on the floor (can be modified if you have older students). There was always a topic up for discussion. Usually these topics were initiated by me but stemming from what children were interesting in(e.g. fashion, sports). I would form a higher order thinking question and allow students to discuss the issue. Throughout the school year I taught children how to think critically about a topic. Students were asked to support their thinking with evidence and make meaningful connections. Often these connections would be made using their own personal experiences. This time afforded my students and me the opportunity to speak candidly about topics and issues that mattered to them. The students and I were able to highlight issues that were happening in our classroom, our school, their communities and globally. Students were also taught how to be active listeners. Students were expected to listen and then build onto each others' conversation by providing an additional example that would further prove the point being made or ask clarifying "Can you explain what you meant when you said...." or probing "That's one way to look at it, but what about.....?

As a result of consistent Morning Meeting time, my students became more aware of each other and developed a respect for ideas and cultural norms other than their own. Through the use of inquiry children became more knowledegable about and sensitive to those around them. Students began to expect the structure and moved towards independence by ultimately introducing their own topics of discussion and developing the life long skills that are necessary to have meaningful conversations both in and out of school. Students acquired social consciousness and were inspired to make changes within their own community and abroad.

3. Taking a Stance: Springboard Activity (Activity completed with a goal in mind- timed task)

As I listened to the conversation from my morning meetings, it gave me the opportunity to tune into the ideas, interests, and thinking of the students in my class. This springboard activity was sparked by a discussion that my students had after the emergence of the civil protest in Egypt organized by college students via Facebook that asked for Prime Minister Mubarak to step down. We spent several days discussing the issues occuring in Egypt. Children had the opportunity to research questions, have whole/small group discussions, and questioned a teacher in our building whose family in Egypt was taking part in the protests. Students were then asked to think of the effects that this protest had on them. Students were asked to think about taking a stance to make change in their own communities; what things would they want to change? Through this inquiry, children decided that there were issues in our building that they wanted to address.

Students were introduced to the various modes that they could use to express a desire for change (Protest, petitions, and letters) . Students were given models of letters, petitions and letters to use as references.

Students were asked to meet in small groups in order to make a list of issues that impacted their enviornment at school. Students were then asked to share those issues with the entire class and I recorded their information on the smartboard. Students were then asked to vote on the four most important issues. This is what they listed:

Uniforms: They felt that wearing their uniforms on a daily basis took away from their need to express their individuality.

Cafeteria Food: Students felt that they should have more input into the kinds of meals that they were being served daily.

School Garden: Students wanted occasional opportunities to eat in the school garden with their class.

School M ural: Students wanted an additional school mural to be added inside of the school to help raise morale.

Students were able to vote on the issue that appealed to them the most and then be a part of that committee.

Committees met for several weeks to organize and decide how to approach their issue. Students researched to find out what person in our school building would help them have their concerns heard and possibly met. While I knew directly who the children could speak with, this project afforded an opportunity for the students to conduct authentic research. Students asked question to teachers, counselors, the parent co-ordinator and adminstrators. While it is usually the principal who makes the final decision, students also benefited from the idea of networking to accomplish a task and the power of getting others to buy into ideas. These groups met once a week or as time permitted to devote time to their issue.

As a result of students being afforded the opporunity to allow their voices to be heard, students became more assertive in getting things that they needed. They became advocates for themselves as well as their classmates. They begin to notice issues in their neighborhoods that they wanted to see changed. They begin to ask "Why do things happen this way in my neighborhood and in a better way in other neighborhoods?" They begin to have larger conversations about change and some of the things that they could do to promote change in their neighborhoods and researched other protests and changes that were happening in the world. They felt empowered.

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Practical Application of Culturally Relevant Teaching

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The idea of developing as a culturally responsive teacher demands that we are able to take this theoretical notion and enact it through actual classroom practices. Being a culturally responsive teaching, for me, is applying best teaching practices (using prior knowledge, modeling activities, making lessons explicit and age appropriate, vocabulary development, high expectations for learning, thoughtful planning, meaningful assessments, individual attention to learning styles, differentiated instruction).

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KIPP Wheatley

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KIPP Wheatley encourages teachers and leaders to learn more about how to become culturally relevant pedagogues. The following information may be useful in understanding-and sharing with students and families-the curriculum's approach to culturally relevant pedagogy.

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Review of Educational Research

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The Theory and Practice of Culturally Relevant Education - A Synthe

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NCTE

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How can we reach all of our students-especially those who have been underserved in America's classrooms? The authors of Writing Instruction in the Culturally Relevant Classroom suggest that culturally relevant pedagogy can make a difference. Although it certainly includes inviting in the voices of those who are generally overlooked in the texts and curricula of US schools, culturally relevant teaching also means recognizing and celebrating those students who show up to our classrooms daily, welcoming their voices, demanding their reflection, and encouraging them toward self-discovery.

Following Gloria Ladson-Billings (1995, 2001), educators who prioritize culturally relevant teaching:

hold high academic expectations,

demonstrate cultural competence, the understanding that their own worldview and understandings may or may not align with those of their students, and

are sociopolitically aware, that is, they have a willingness to acknowledge and critique inequity.

The following resources from NCTE and ReadWriteThink.org offer resources on culturally relevant pedagogy.

Culturally relevant teaching is a term created by Gloria Ladson-Billings. What does it mean to develop a culturally relevant pedagogy? How might we think about community in our teaching? In this interview in Language Arts, Gloria Ladson-Billings explores the implications of these and other questions for language arts teachers.

In the very popular Talking Points article " Connecting Students to Culturally Relevant Texts", Yvonne Freeman and David Freeman argue the importance of providing students with culturally relevant books and discuss their criteria for deciding if a book is culturally relevant to a particular child. The ReadWriteThink.org lesson plan Assessing Cultural Relevance: Exploring Personal Connections to a Text cites this article.

" The Power of Song: Exploring Cultural Relevance in the Eighth-Grade Classroom" from Voices from the Middle details research on culturally relevant practices in an eighth-grade language arts classroom, including the selection and utilization of culturally relevant texts, scaffolding with popular culture, the incorporation of new literacies, and instructional focus on students making personal connections with classroom content. Work with a teen to create a wiki with everything people should know about the teen's top ten favorite songs with this activity from ReadWriteThink.org.

In this article from English Journal, there is a description of "Choosing Culturally Relevant Primary Materials as 'Entry Points' to Characterization". The examples given are using primary sources during a unit on patriotism. Use this ReadWriteThink.org resource to dig deeper into using primary sources in the classroom.

English Leadership Quarterly published a themed issue on " Culturally Relevant Pedagogy ". This issue offers a sampling of how English educators are applying Culturally Relevant Pedagogy to a broad spectrum of work and research including articles on "Common Core to Cultural Literacy: Incorporating History and Technology in Unit Frameworks" and "Children's Literature as Medium for Teacher Self-Reflection".

"Literature often has been considered a quick and easy way to bring multicultural perspectives into the ELA classroom. Yet for effectual change, significant shifts in pedagogy prove more powerful than surface additions."

This quote comes from an article from English Education in which the authors focus on how a college of education's multicultural mission statement intersects with one teacher's life story. The ReadWriteThink.org lesson plan Promoting Diversity in the Classroom and School Library through Social Action invites students to explore the effects of stereotypes by analyzing children's books. Then they create bookmarks that encourage readers to question the assumptions of stereotyped books and to seek out matching, balanced texts.
This post presents a curated set of resources from NCTE's archives. If you are a member of NCTE, you have full access to all these articles and need only login to the website to view them. If you're not a member, consider joining today!

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How can we reach all of our students-especially those who have been underserved in America's classrooms? The authors of Writing Instruction in the Culturally Relevant Classroom suggest that culturally relevant pedagogy can make a difference.

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Prodigy Document

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Strategies

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No single teaching approach will engage each student at once, but building a strategy to consistently deliver culturally-responsive lessons will help you appeal to diverse learners with distinct backgrounds.
To augment their understanding and responsiveness, this involves:

Empowering students to share thoughts

Integrating diverse work and study practices

Understanding student learning needs and styles

Emulating culturally-significant instruction styles, such as oral storytelling

Helping you plan and deliver lessons that resonate with a diverse classroom, below are 15 culturally-responsive teaching strategies and examples. Available as a printable list for quick reference , use the ones that best apply to you.

Conditions for Creating a Culturally-Responsive Classroom

Reflected in the 15 strategies and examples in the next section, there are four conditions any teacher must fulfill to establish a culturally-responsive classroom, according to an authoritative academic book about the subject called Diversity and Motivation .
As you prepare and deliver any lesson, strive to:

Establish Inclusion - This starts by highlighting how the topic you're teaching may relate or apply to students. For example, many societies and cultures have fireworks festivals. While such a festival runs, you could teach how to calculate speed using fireworks in sample questions. Establishing inclusion also involves regularly grouping students with different classmates, encouraging discussion to solve problems. In doing so, they can share unique perspectives.

Develop Positive Attitudes - This further focuses on relating content to students. A popular method is allowing them to choose between activities and assessments that let them showcase their values, strengths and experiences. For example, while providing clear learning goals and evaluation criteria, encourage students to submit their own project ideas.

Enhance Meaning - You can bolster lesson content by drawing connections with real-world issues, asking students to use opinions and existing knowledge to address them. For example, when teaching about government, you could contextualize concepts through municipal political issues. When appropriate, use student jargon to clarify these issues or improve communication in general.

Foster Confidence - Make the assessment process less intimidating by offering different ways to demonstrate skills and understanding. For example, avoid handing out quizzes that are purely multiple choice or fill-in-the-blank. Among other question types, mix in problems that involve writing short- and long-form answers. After, give students time to assess their own progress and performance, helping them focus on growth .

Meeting these four conditions largely relies on using specific approaches, such as the 15 explored below.

15 Culturally-Responsive Teaching Strategies and Examples

1. Learn About Your Students

At the start of the year or semester, demonstrating desire to adapt your teaching style to students can help them feel valued.
Because open communication should uncover their learning needs and preferences, try:

Distributing questionnaires, asking about interests

Handing out surveys, gathering information about learning styles

Holding open discussions, allowing students to talk about positive experiences from past classes

Once you've gathered enough information, tell the class you'll focus on adjusting your teaching approach to help them learn as best as they can.

Students should quickly warm up to you.

2. Interview Students

You'll build a stronger understanding of students' values and habits - as well as strengths and weaknesses - by individually asking them questions.

While running a large-group exercise, pull each student aside for a few minutes. Ask about:

Their favourite lessons and activities

Which kinds of exercises help them remember lessons and improve skills

Note what each student says to identify themes and different preferences. Then, when possible, relate content to their interests and deliver lessons that appeal to shared strengths.

3. Integrate Relevant Word Problems

Working with 41 7th grade students throughout an academic year, a 2015 study published by the Canadian Center of Science and Education used such contextual learning strategies to increase test scores by more than 44%.
Create culturally-relevant word problems by:

Including student names to make subject matter relatable

Linking to student interests, such as by measuring the shot distance of a famous soccer player

Referencing diverse cultures, such as by determining the diameter of a specific ethnic food platter

Using these word problem tips will not only help you establish a culturally-responsive classroom, but engage students more than by using abstract questions.

4. Present New Concepts by Using Student Vocabulary

Delivering relatable content goes beyond math class.

In any subject, you can grab and keep student attention by using their vocabulary to build understanding before moving to academic diction.

Let's say many of your students are sports fans with family from soccer-crazed nations. Use a soccer example to demonstrate metaphors in language arts class:
Andrea Pirlo is an eagle on the pitch, armed with vision sharp enough to detect the smallest openings and recognize opportunities his opposition can't.
This kind of culturally-responsive language should open the door to presenting challenging skills and concepts, engaging students while doing so.

5. Bring in Guest Speakers

Guest speakers can bring context and passion to history, geography and social studies lessons, capturing student interest.

Plus, according to a 2015 study by the Economics of Education Review , students are often encouraged to work harder when they share a background with an educator.

So, diverse guest speakers may inherently engage and motivate students who share a culture with them.

6. Deliver Different Forms of Content through Learning Stations

Whether due to culture, socialization, preference or learning needs, students respond differently to different types of content.

You can provide a range of material to each student by setting up learning stations. Each station should use a unique method of teaching a skill or concept related to your lesson.
For example, students can rotate between stations that involve:
After going through each station, you can help students further process the material by holding a class discussion or assigning questions to answer.

7. Gamify Lessons
Easy-to-implement practices include:

Offering rewards, such as badges, for completing specific tasks or achieving certain scores

Setting a clear learning goal for the lesson, charting progress throughout the class to motivate students

Creating an "instruction manual" for a project, which contains the rubric and best practices for earning a high grade

Plus, gamifying your lessons is a way of making connections with contemporary gaming culture - helping students within this culture process and demonstrate understanding of content.

8. Call on Each Student

Call-and-response - the practice of asking students frequent questions while giving lessons - usually keeps them engaged, but also enables them to share thoughts and opinions.
Involve everyone by:

Encouraging the sharing of personal perspectives, when a question allows for it

Calling on students without their hands up, acclimatizing them to speaking amongst peers

Asking a question after each new point or thought, having a student teach back the concept you just spoke about

By lesson's end, this call-and-response approach should allow each student to speak at least once.

9. Use Media that Positively Depict a Range of Cultures

Using media, such as books and movies, that positively depict a range of cultures and are relevant to your syllabus can partially address this need. Finding options through databases such as IMDB or American Literature isn't a tough task.

As a bonus, using different media should boost engagement levels.

10. Offer Different Types of Free Study Time

Free study time typically appeals to students who prefer solo learning, but many cultures prioritize learning in group settings.

You can meet both preferences by dividing your class into clearly-sectioned team and individual activities, such as the following:

Provide audiobooks, which play material relevant to your lessons

Create a station for group games that teach curriculum-aligned skills

Keep a dedicated quiet space for students to take notes and complete work

Allow some students to work in groups while taking notes and completing work, away from the dedicated quiet space

Presented with these options, free study time should appeal to a wider range of learners.

11. Encourage Students to Propose Ideas for Projects

By asking students to submit ideas for their own projects, the benefits of choice extend beyond free study time. Specifically, they should build confidence by showcasing their strengths.

So, encourage them to pitch ideas for taking a project from concept to completion.

A student must show how the product will meet academic standards in his or her pitch. If the idea falls short, give the student ideas to refine it. If the student can't refine the idea, he or she can choose a project from a list of options you provide.

Not only will you be pleasantly surprised by some pitches, but you may generate ideas for future culturally-responsive exercises and assessments.

12. Experiment with Peer Teaching

There'll almost always be some student vocabulary and communal practices you never pick up on. But you can fill these gaps through peer teaching.
Relatively-simple exercises include:
Students who read and discuss story passages with peers recall more content and score higher on assessments, according an Ohio University pilot study . And, according a science education study , students who work in pairs and groups typically perform better on tests that involve reasoning and critical thinking.

Such results are largely achieved due to students discussing and rationalizing concepts in their own words, many of which belong to contemporary cultural lexicon and are not academic.

13. Establish Cooperative Base Groups

Your role consists of creating groups of three or four, scheduling meeting times and detailing agendas for them. Filling knowledge gaps and encouraging communication is also involved. Students' roles focus on supporting each other while striving to meet learning goals over the year.
While working in base groups, students can:
The connection to culturally-responsive teaching is the same as peer learning: Cooperative base groups encourage students to make sense of concepts you've taught by using their own words and thoughts.

14. Run Problem-Based Learning Scenarios

This is because, when presenting a relatable real-world problem for your students to solve, two cultural connections will typically occur.

First, there will likely be a cultural link in the question, whether it's explicit or students make it themselves. Second, because they can apply different approaches to solve the question, they may use unique cultural perspectives.
But if you want to create a scenario with explicit cultural ties, consider:

Encouraging students to take historical, sociological and anthropological viewpoints

Framing the problem using ethnic events - for instance, solving logistical challenges of running a heritage festival - in the area

Regardless, the student-centred nature of problem-based learning will allow your class to use culturally-relevant examples and information when appropriate.

15. Involve Parents by Using Take-Home Letters

Involving parents in their child's learning is a core part of almost any culturally-responsive teaching approach - they act as the main educators in many societies and can provide cultural context.

When starting a new unit or trying out an education tool for the first time, consider sending a letter home to parents. For reference, here's the letter Prodigy provides to its teachers.

This opens the door to parent participation.

While not all moms and dads will be subject matter experts, most should be able to provide guidance.

Downloadable List of Culturally-Responsive Teaching Strategies and Examples

to download and print a simplified list of the 15 culturally-responsive teaching strategies and examples to keep at your desk.

Interested in other teaching strategies to deploy in your classroom?

Culturally-responsive teaching strategies overlap in important ways with many other pedagogical approaches. Consider researching other teaching strategies to help bolster your approach, or combine different elements of each strategy!

Active learning strategies empower, engage, and stimulate your students as they put them at the center of the learning process.

In contrast to traditional learning activities, experiential learning activities aim to develop knowledge and skills through direct, firsthand experience.

Project-based learning involves an open-ended approach that sees students work alone or collectively to work on an engaging, intricate curriculum-related questions or challengse.

Inquiry-based learning is broken down into four categories, all of which emphasize student questions, ideas and analyses.

Adaptive learning focuses on changing - or "adapting" - content for each student on an individual basis, especially with the help of technology.

Final Thoughts about Culturally-Relevant Pedagogy

Delivering culturally-responsive lessons can not only help you engage students, but allow them to make personal connections with content.

Greater student investment should lead to other benefits, such as more rigor and motivation.

A happier, focused classroom is the ideal outcome.
>> Create or log in to your teacher account on Prodigy - a free game-based learning platform that delivers a range of culturally-relevant math content through engaging word and scenario-based problems. Aligned with curricula across the English-speaking world, it's loved by more than 700,000 teachers and 20 million students

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15 Culturally-Responsive Teaching Strategies | Prodigy

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No single teaching approach will engage each student at once, but building a strategy to consistently deliver culturally-responsive lessons will help you appeal to diverse learners with distinct backgrounds.

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Culturally Relevant Literature for Classroom Use (K-12)

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Culturally Relevant Literature for Classroom Use (K-12)

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Book list by grade level

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Connecting Students to Culturally Relevant Texts 

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Connecting Students to Culturally Relevant Texts 

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By: Yvonne & David Freeman

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5 Steps Toward Successful Culturally Relevant Text Selection & Integration

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5 Steps Toward Successful Culturally Relevant Text Selection & Integration

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By: Sue Ann Sharma & Tanya Christ