Changing the Classroom Narrative: Teaching in an Increasingly Polarized World

EDUC 575 | By: Valentina Arismendi

There is no doubt that 2020 has brought to light issues that have been seeping into the ground threatening America at its core. Our politicians are lying, our neighbors are dying, and our youth? They’re trying. Trying to cope, trying to understand, trying to resolve. The water in the kettle has been boiling for years and we can all finally hear the screeching noise that whistles for our attention.

As William Butler once said, “The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity.”

So what is the solution? What can we do as teachers to create a generation of students full of compassion, belonging, civic engagement? We need to start young, and we need to start now. In this post I outline two fun and engaging projects to try with your students on the importance of multiculturalism:

For elementary-aged students:

1. From There to Here: Exploring Immigrant Stories

Project overview: Semester-long project in which fifth-grade students create storytelling art exhibitions sharing the journeys of different immigrants in the community.

Some of the learning goals include:

• Introduce students to both the opportunities and challenges immigrants face by hearing real stories
• Improve writing skills through storytelling efforts
• Understand the context of immigration and why people move
• Explore personal identities and family history
• Develop interpersonal skills through interviewing and presenting

For this project, students will research the causes and effects of immigration and then in small groups interview a community member who has immigrated into the United States. These groups will work together to re-tell that person’s story by creating mini-museum “exhibitions” that include a written component along with photographs, art, food, flags, and other artifacts related to their immigrant’s journey. At the end of the semester, students will be able to present these stories to their class and invite community members to explore their exhibits. All the stories will be put into a booklet for the students and audience to take home with them.

Although this is a social studies project, it has the opportunity to expand into other subjects such as Language Arts, where your class can read realistic fiction books about immigrant journeys (like this one), or math where students can create infographics about immigration numbers and trends.

This is a good project to do with younger students since they can sometimes feel embarrassed about their backgrounds if it is different than that of other peers. This project would not only form empathy in students for immigrants but will also empower students to feel comfortable about their own identity and foster a sense of belonging in the classroom.

For middle and high school students:

1. Let’s Taco-bout Traditions: A Food Truck Business

Project overview: Students ideate a concept for a food truck that serves food from a specific culture using primary sources.

Some of the learning goals include:

• Build research skills on how to find primary sources
• Explore different cultures from around the world
• Empower students to embrace their own cultural roots
• Learn marketing and design skills
• Improve public speaking skills

For this project, students will develop a food truck concept by designing a logo, menu, and mock-up food truck wrap. Students will need to research a specific culture in order to find out what traditional foods they should include in the menu. You should encourage students to reach out to community members and ask them about their family’s recipes. This is the key to creating authentic projects!

Students will then learn digital design skills and create a catchy logo and food truck wrap for their hypothetical food truck. Afterward, have your students present their businesses to the rest of the class as their peers act like “investors” for their new food venture. As an added bonus, you can ask your students to create one dish from their menu to celebrate with the class their hard work on the projects!

So, there you have it. Two fun and engaging ways to integrate cultural studies into the classroom and build awareness for current events without isolating any of your students. At the end of both projects, ask students to reflect on some of the similarities they noticed between their own culture and the one they studied. This way students will learn that we as humans are more alike than we are unalike.