11 Ways to Celebrate Cultural Diversity in the Classroom (2023)

You don't have to be an expert to say that your students are different and unique. They come to class from a variety of backgrounds, including their cultures, ethnicities, religions, languages ​​and economic status. They have different views on politics and pop culture, as well as different learning styles and levels of motivation.

As a teacher, you have the opportunity to create a special place where every student feels like they belong. One way to encourage this sense of belonging is to celebrate cultural diversity in the classroom. Whether your students are new to this country or their families have lived here for generations, they will relish the opportunity to explore their backgrounds and share information about their cultures.

That being said, some students may not recognize their unique culture. Be sure to point out that every family has things that make them special: traditions, family size or composition, or even activities you enjoy together.

The benefits of celebrating diversity in the classroom

Implementing diversity activities in the classroom is more than just entertainment! The more your students know about other cultures, the better they will understand the world around them. Let's take a closer look at manyBenefits of celebrating diversity in the classroom.

academic

A culturally diverse classroom helps students develop their critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Encountering new and different ideas and perspectives causes students to evaluate their points of view. Throughteamwork and partners, students learn to respect the differences of their peers. Also, you'll likely find things you have in common.

In addition, students from different classrooms and schools tend to perform better academically. Studies show that these students tend todo better on achievement tests, drop out of school less often, and enroll in collegemore often.

social

become a studentmore empathetic when encountering other culturesregularly. They are less likely to develop biases and prejudices and are more likely to be open to new thoughts, ideas, and opinions as they continue their studies.

Planning activities to promote diversity in the classroom helps all students develop their leadership skills and become more confident. In addition, your students will have the opportunity to form relationships with people who look, think, act and speak differently from them.

future benefits

All teachers, even in the elementary grades, prepare their students to go out into the world. By prioritizing exploration of cultural diversity in the classroom, you open them to a world much larger than their hometown.

Many companies want employees who arepleasant interaction with different people. When students have opportunities to learn about other cultures from an early age, they are better prepared to enter the global community as adults.

The 11 best ways to celebrate cultural diversity in the classroom

By celebrating diversity in your classroom, you can enrich your students' learning experiences and help them expand their social circles. You can even benefit from it! There are many ways to incorporate diversity activities into the classroom. Here are some activities to encourage diversity in your classroom.

1. Christmas celebrations

Create a calendar that highlights celebrations around the world. Choose those that represent the cultures of the students in your class. As a holiday approaches, take the time to discuss what it's about and find simple ways to celebrate, such as:

• Make a relevant craft
• Serve a delicacy of this culture
• Read a book related to the holidays.

You can also explore how different cultures celebrate the same holiday. For example,Christmas is celebrated in many cultures., but these celebrations can look very different. As the major holidays in the United States approach, ask your students to share their favorite family traditions for those holidays.

Thanksgiving is essentially an American holiday. Chances are each family represented in your classroom celebrates this holiday in their own way. Invite your students to share a Thanksgiving tradition in their family. It could be a special food they eat, a game they play, or a movie they watch. Ask them if they know how this tradition began and what it means to them.

If possible, you might also consider hosting a Thanksgiving dinner in the classroom. Ask students to bring a special dish that your family eats for Thanksgiving. Have students provide the recipe for their dish and turn the recipes into a multicultural Thanksgiving classroom cookbook.

2. Music and Art

Another way to encourage diversity in the classroom is to work with your school's music and art teachers to immerse yourself in the music and art of the cultures represented by your students.

Talk about composers, musicians and singers from every culture. Listen to musical examples and talk about the similarities and differences your students hear. If there are tools unique to one culture, show your students pictures of them. Even better, find the actual instruments for students to see firsthand.

You can alsoTeach students simple folk songsfrom different cultures. Younger students will especially enjoy learning fun songs. Look online for videos of others singing, but make sure the lyrics are age-appropriate for your students.

Talk about artists and art styles from your students' cultures. Have students create an artwork in the style of each culture, then display it in your classroom as part of a multicultural bulletin board.

3. Multicultural Library

Another way to encourage cultural diversity in the classroom is to build a library that includes books with characters who live in or are from other countries. Also include books written by different authors. Be sure to includeage-appropriate biographiesfor people from different cultures.

4. Guest speakers and interviews

You can read a lot about another culture, but nothing beats information straight from the source. Invite people from different cultures to speak to your class in person or virtually. Using video conferencing technology, your class can connect with people in your city, state, country, and even around the world!

Ask your students to prepare questions in advance to put to the speaker. Look for people who represent a wide range of life experiences, such as: B. First generation immigrants, multilinguals and refugees. An easy place to start is with your students' parents, grandparents, or older siblings.

You can also have your students interview someone from a different culture than their own. This can be other students in your class, school staff, neighbors or friends. Then allow students to share something they learned from that person with the class.

5. Show and tell

Ask students to bring something from home that represents their culture. Then have them present the article to the class and explain why it is important to them. Allow two to three students to attend each week during the school year. Remember to remind students to ask their parents or guardians for permission before bringing any item to school!

6. Interpretation

Ask the students to choose an important person from their culture for the investigation. The person can be a current or historical figure. Then schedule a day for the studentsdress like you and present the information they found. You can even modify this activity to have students choose a person outside of their culture.

7. Games from around the world

Another fun way to celebrate diversity in the classroom is to bring in international games for breaks and indoor celebrations. Some easy to play games includeMancala, Tangram uLudo. Ask your students what their favorite game is and invite them to bring a game from home if they can.

You can also talk about sports and games that are popular in the home countries of your students' families. If possible, find opportunities to get out and play some of the community sports and games.

8. Global Pen Pals

Encourage your students to write to their pen pals. If your class has students from many different cultures, you can bring students together with friends or family members of other students who live outside of the United States.look at this program. It offers project-based opportunities to meet other students, schools, countries and cultures.

9. Cultural Newsletter

Set up a bulletin board in your classroom to highlight a different country or region of the world each month. Be sure to include photos of the country and its location on a map, as well as a few simple words in your native language. You can even view information about famous people or events related to that country. Get creative!

10. Learn a new language

Teaching about other languages ​​is a great way to celebrate cultural diversity in the classroom. If you haveStudents who speak languages ​​other than English, allows them to share their language with other students. Ask each multilingual student to teach the class a few words in their native language. Here are some easy word ideas to share:

• Greetings and introductions
• Numbers from 1 to 20
• months or seasons
• family members
• Nuclear

If a student isn't comfortable being the teacher, ask him or her to teach you first. You can then present the information to the class. Depending on their grade level, you can even have students form groups to create short skits using the new words they've learned.

11. Holiday Multiculti

One of the most popular activities to promote diversity in the classroom is to host a multicultural fair.

Ask students to bring food, games, crafts, or other items that represent their culture. Extend the invitations to include family members and invite other classes in your school to participate. You can also team up with other teachers to host a larger celebration or turn it into a school-wide fairadd the fair to your CV.

There are different types of diversity, including language, race, ethnicity, religion, family background, and socioeconomic status. Each student in your class, new to the United States or not, has a unique home culture. When you celebrate cultural diversity in your classroom and around the world, your students will become more aware of and appreciate the global community to which they belong.

Looking for expert advice and resources on teaching English to high school students? come and see usESL Resource Center.