Embracing Diversity in Your Classroom this Holiday

October has come to an end, and we are well on our way to the next holiday. The leaves are falling, so are temperatures, but our spirits most definitely aren’t with all of the celebrations we know are coming up. How will you inclusively celebrate your students this December? Mobile Ed Productions, Inc. might have the answer for you. 

Prodigy defines diversity as “everything that makes people different from each other.“ Diversity in your classroom embraces students’ “race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, ability, age, religious belief, or political conviction.” Being truly diverse in our classrooms means understanding and embracing that each student brings different backgrounds and experiences into your classroom. The University of Rhode Island explains that diversity is an exploration of the different strengths we have based on our differences. 

Learning about diversity and embracing it effectively in our classrooms has many crucial benefits for students including: 

• Empathy for others
• A safe environment for students to learn
• More open-minded students
• Students with confidence
• Improving academics 
• Encouraging critical thinking

Not teaching about diversity in our classrooms weakens our ability to effectively teach students and can harm a student’s self-esteem and identity. Our educators recommend doing this in your classroom to embrace different cultures this upcoming winter: 

• Start with self-reflection. How well do you know your students? How have you been embracing forms of diversity in your classroom so far? Take time to speak with your students about their own cultures and backgrounds. Connect with families and the local communities to learn about their history and experiences.

• Teach diversity in your lesson plans. What can you do in your lesson(s) that embrace multiple cultures? We recommend bringing in cultural assemblies for students, reading books or watching films about different holidays, or having students share their own experiences or traditions right in your classroom. Education.com provides a fun activity to do with your students this year.

• Research. If you are going to put up diverse decorations, bring in multicultural foods, or play new games, be sure to understand the meaning and its context before doing so. Involve your students in the process by gathering information from them about their favorite treats and games. Perhaps have them bring in their own traditions so they can teach others. 

1. Embrace all forms of diversity. In your celebrations, make sure you are providing activities that everyone can participate in, food that everyone can eat, and respect socio-economic differences during this time. Some students may have a hard time around the holidays for different reasons; be sure to make them feel supported during this tough time, whatever that means for that student. 

Mobile Ed Productions’s Christmahanukwanzamadan is one of our joyful, holiday-themed programs designed to entertain and educate your students about how people celebrate different traditions across the world. This program uses multimedia and music to show students that the world is a large place filled with many different cultures. This 45-minute program will bring joy and fun to all of your students no matter their background. You might even see it snow during this program!

This program will teach students about: 

• Various winter holidays
• Cultural customs
• Historical figures
• Holiday music

Educators from Harris Hill Elementary in Penfield, NY had great things to say about our Christmahanukwanzamadan program: 

"Most of my teachers were incredibly pleased with the performance! They loved the variety and the facts that were presented were novel and engaging! The kids really didn't know a lot of the information about Ramadan and Kwanzaa. We even had parents emailing in to thank us for enriching their children culturally!!"

We are booking up fast this December and want to bring our program to you! Call us during our open hours on Monday-Friday at 800-433-7459; we’d love to chat with you.