I instituted my school’s first Multicultural Celebration Week in 2006 to spotlight the Hmong and Latino cultures, a set of growing ethnic groups in my county. To gauge the cultural knowledge of my students, I worked with the guidance counselor to create a survey designed to elicit student responses concerning tolerance levels, prior knowledge, and ideas and misconceptions about “other” cultures. I worked with the guidance counselor, music teacher, and media coordinator to create a packet of lesson plans designed to teach students about the Hmong and Latino cultures. I invited students with different cultural backgrounds to say “hello” in different languages on my morning announcement show. These students shared customs and traditions from their holiday celebrations during morning announcements, such as the Chinese New Year and Kwanzaa, reaching 650 students in grades K-6. Billy, a Hmong art specialist and Marie, founder of the local Latino center presented their cultures to all students in grades K-6. Billy showed a variety of Hmong art artifacts, articulating the ways other cultures influenced the creation and evolution of Hmong artwork. As students viewed the clothing, one child asked about the coins hanging from the bottom of a skirt. Billy replied that the coins “show how the French helped the Hmong people. All of the coins on the clothes are old French coins because they are important to Hmong. We record history in our clothes. If something important happens, it becomes part of our outfit.” Marie offered a puppet show, sing along, and horchata or “rice milk,” a combination of water, rice and cinnamon. A follow up survey designed to measure what they had learned from the experience was sent out. Student’s understanding of other cultures was enhanced through this experience. Growth was shown through their willingness to speak to one another about other traditions, cultures, and forms of art. Students were looking beyond what their life is like in a small rural school. Speaking informally with my students was the most telling form of assessment as they asked me detailed questions about the Hmong and Latino people. Students were taught about the Hmong and Latino cultures in the regular ed classroom using the lesson plan packet created by the media coordinator, music teacher, guidance counselor and myself. They experienced genuine cultural artifacts that could be touched (story cloths), heard (singalong), and even tasted (rice milk). Students explored and experienced the “other” culture on multiple levels, catering to multiple modes of learning.
I learned a lot about my Hmong students’ culture and history, such as the clan organization of different families and how clans tend to move in large groups. I learned that my students come from different groups such as the Black, Green, White, or Striped Hmong. I learned the history of story quilts and how traditional Hmong men and women speak to each other using the Hmong Harp when they date. This learning improved my understanding of my Hmong children and expanded my knowledge of my student’s history and culture. I learned that my Hmong students are not shy, but that making eye contact is a sign of disrespect. Physical contact is almost unheard outside of the family unit. This enabled me to become more conscientious of their needs. I now limit my praise of their work to include verbal or written praise and rewards.
Teaching students about other cultures is important in this time of increasing globalization and importance of learning with and through authentic examples.
