Inquiry Project: ED 4272

HOW TO INCORPORATE
MULTICULTUALISM IN YOUR CLASS:
3 Daily ways & 4 yearly ways

By Sarah Bowman

001194061

March 18, 2019

Introduction:
My name is Sarah Bowman and I am an Education
student at the U of L. This inquiry project is very important to
me because I believe that Canada is going through a major
transition period in our population. Communities are becoming
more accepting and open, as new people from other cultures
arrive and this is diversifying the schools. I think teachers need
to be prepared for these changes and so require strategies for
how to create a safe accepting environment for all students,
especially students who face language barriers like English
language learners.

The following daily activities and yearly goals are meant

to create an accepting atmosphere for all students in the class
and the school. This will give students the opportunity to feel
accepted and connected to one another. Using language and
culture to peak students’ interests about one another, may also
help them find meaningful connections with each other. This is
beneficial for ELL students because they are able to take pride
in their own culture, which they may not able to find anywhere
else other than at home, as well, it encourages them to
continue learning their first language rather than losing it.

ELL’s will require more supports to be successful than

just these strategies. By incorporating these into your
classroom, you will help them feel accepted and included by
setting up a foundation for success that can make all the
difference for a student.
Daily 1. Morning Routine

You can incorporate language in many ways, and the best way
to make it a part of your routine is in the morning. Take the
time at the beginning of the year to find all the ways your
students usually say hello/good morning even goodbye/
goodnight in public and at home. For English language
learners, this can allow students to feel welcome and learn
more about each other by greeting each other and building
relationships. Be sure to add new students’ languages if they
arrive part way into the year to help them feel more at home.

As teacher’s we can also incorporate languages into the whole

schools regular routine. You can do this for example with the
national anthem: English/French English/Cree or alternating
which language is used each week. The school itself can also
get bilingual signs so languages surround their students and
they have the opportunity to learn them, both the English
speakers and English language learners.

Site: Canada’s National Anthem in Unofficial Languages http://

www.cadvision.com/blanchas/OhCanada/
Daily 2. Displays

A weekly activity that you can do with your class is learn a

phrase. These phrases can be in other languages and they
should also be easy for students to use everyday to practice. Ex.
Thank you/Merci, How are you/Wie geht es dir, please/ Por
favor. With each week you can add the phrase and its meaning
to a wall so that students can reference back to it in case they
forget. If your multilingual students/ELL’s feel comfortable they
could even teach phrases they know to the class, sharing what
they are knowledgeable about with their peers.

Another display could be centered around students’ roots. The

display, centers around a map on which, you can put students
picture/name tags around it. Students can then show the
different countries they feel connected to whether ancestrally,
with relatives and/or where they used to live. They are attached
to each student with string creating a web of connections.
Students can also write a biography about themselves and their
connections, explaining their importance to their classmates.
Daily 3. Multicultural/ Bilingual Texts

These texts can be weekly or daily read alouds, that include

stories from different countries, their pop culture, nature, or
schooling. Breaking away from mainstream westernized books
gives our diverse classrooms the chance to relate to diverse
characters which students like ELL’s are more likely to engage
and relate with. It also allows students to learn, be empowered
and create an empathetic knowledgeable perspective so they
can live their life without stereotypical judgements.

Bilingual texts are also great to bring into the classroom,

especially if there are students who are ELLs. Choosing books
that are written in their first language can be refreshing and
also encourage their first languages’ development. Students’
familiarity with their first language can help them relate to
English words they are just learning. It also opens up other
students worlds allowing them to be able to experience
languages that they may have not ever heard before.
Year 1. Culture Day

Creating a Culture Day at your school can really help in

developing a multicultural, accepting, atmosphere throughout
the whole school. Setting up booths about different cultures
with examples of food, music, crafts and traditions can really
get students engaged and actively learning.

It is great to get a broad map of all or at least the most com-

mon cultural connections in your school to be able to properly
display a meaningful representation of their culture. This is also
a great opportunity to get parents involved, helping create, and
explain cultures as students rotate through the booths. This can
provide openings for ELL students and their parents to get
involved and build connections in the community while
showing the talents and knowledge they have to offer.

Site: For specifics on how to host a Culture Day or Night

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/celebrating-your-schools-
cultural-diversity-clare-roach
 Year 2. Celebrating Traditions

In Canada we tend to have more focus on Western Traditions like

Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentines Day, Easter and St.
Patrick’s Day. However, with increasingly diverse classrooms there
are many other traditions that students celebrate but are not
recognized by schools. As a teacher making an effort to
acknowledge and celebrate these traditions can make students
feel included and connected in class. By giving them the chance to
showcase what their families do traditionally, they feel more
connected.

It is impossible to celebrate everyone but you can get students to

tell you at the beginning of the year which celebrations and
traditions are important to them and account for them in your
plans for the rest of the year.

Some celebrations could include, Chinese New Year, Buddha Day,

Mardi Gras. Teachers can include activities about the celebrations
but to save time they can also make a special announcement to
tell them about the tradition and why its celebrated on that day.
Year 3. Multiculturalism & Google Earth

Google Earth has been a beneficial technology for schools for

numerous academic curriculums and now cultures can be included.

Teachers have many options with the online version of Google Earth.
Teachers can create a tour, a scavenger hunt of a city’s culture, finding
specific sites to show students the geography and famous land marks,
even common streets and people with the new street mode. Students
can create their own tour depending on how much has been mapped.
This is a great way for ELL’s to show their peers where they came from
and share stories.

Another new feature that has been added, is Voyager, which has
pre-created tours with images and information about destinations.
There are many different kinds of tours, including schools around the
world, even about residential schools in Canada

There are also specific tours of numerous cities from all over the
world. These are already created ready for teachers and students can
use. It is not for daily use because it is quite easy to get sidetracked so
teachers will have to be very vigilant and have a plan for what they
will do.
Site: Google Earth (on Google Chrome) https://www.google.com/earth/
Year 4. Creation of Group Texts

Teaching diverse classrooms gives teachers a rare opportunity

to create unique and original books. Giving students the
opportunity to work in groups full of diversity allows them to all
bring their talents to the table.

One specific example is a school in the York Region District

School Board in Canada. Which had a group of 3 girls write a
story together who all had varying levels of English from fluent
to very little. They wrote the story together and then all
translated it into their native language and English. Allowing
them to be the proud authors of a lovely story.

Another option for teachers with the creation of texts is a

online site called Skribjab. This site allows students to create
their own bilingual book and share their masterpiece world
wide once it has been completed. They can even read other
students stories that have been published on the site.

Site: http://www.scribjab.com/
References and Resources
1. Morning Routine
Coelho, E. (2004a). Creating an inclusive classroom. In adding English: A guide to
teaching in multilingual classrooms (pp. 36-49). Don Mills, ON: Pippin
Publishing page 43
Schwarzer, David, et al. “Fostering Multiliteracy in a Linguistically Diverse Class
room.” Language Arts, vol. 80, no. 6, 2003, pp. 453–460. JSTOR,
www.jstor.org/stable/41484158.
2. Display
Coelho, E. (2004a). Creating an inclusive classroom. In adding English: A guide to
teaching in multilingual classrooms (pp. 36-49). Don Mills, ON: Pippin Pub
lishing page-39-40
Photo: SlidePlayer. Hello to all the children of the world. http://
slideplayer.com/slide/246254/
Photo: VectorStock. Thank you modern calligraphy vector image.
https://www.vectorstock.com/royalty-free-vector/thank-you -
modern-calligraphy-vector-18205034
3. Multicultural/Bilingual Texts
Boles, Maria. (2006). The Effects of Multicultural Literature in the
Classroom. Eastern Michigan University, Seniors Honors
Theses pages 6-11
Coelho, E. (2004a). Creating an inclusive classroom. In adding English: A guide to
teaching in multilingual classrooms (pp. 36-49). Don Mills, ON: Pippin Pub
lishing page 40,43)
Cummins, J. (2006). Identity texts: The imaginative construction of self through mul
tiliteracies pedagogy. In O. Garcia, T. S ketnabb-Kangas, & M. E. Torres-
Guzman (eds.), Imagining multilingual schools: Languages in education and
glocalization page 52
Photo: StudentSavvy: Engaging teaching ideas and resources. Integrate Multicultural
fun into the classroom https://www.teachstudentsavvy.com/2014/12/I
ntegrate-multicultural-fun-into-the-classroom.html
1. Culture Days
Edutopia. Celebrating Your School’s Cultural Diversity: To plan and manage a vibrant
Culture Night, anchor the ideas in social studies curriculum, involve the
community, and make sure there’s food!. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/
celebrating-your-schools-cultural-diversity-clare-roach
Photo: Daily Herald. Lincolnshire school celebrates diversity with special activities.
https://www.dailyherald.com/news/20180914/lincolnshire-school-celebrates
-diversity-with-special-activities
Photo: Daily Herald. Stevenson students showcase diversity at World’s Fair https://
www.dailyherald.com/article/20160127/submitted/160129019/
2. Celebrating Tradition
Learning at the Primary Pond. 4 (non-Religious) Ways to celebrate the holidays in
our classroom. https://learningattheprimarypond.com/blog/5-non-religious
-ways-to-celebrate-the-holidays-in-your-classroom/
Photo: https://bendigopc.org.au/2015/11/pplaygroup-and-sunday-school-
end-of-year-celebration/picture1-3/
3. Multiculturalism & Google Maps
Google Earth. https://www.google.com/earth/

4. Creation of Group Texts

Cummins, J. (2006). Identity texts: The imaginative construction of
self through multiliteracies pedagogy. In O. Garcia, T. Sketnabb-
Kangas, & M. E. Torres-Guzman (eds.), Imagining multilingual
schools: Languages in education and glocalization page 60-62
Photo: Skribjab. http://www.scribjab.com/