EDUC 6358- Creating Affirming Environments

 

As I plan my affirming environment, I will focus on the diverse children and families I have to reflect their cultural background in the program. Additionally, I will plan to represent our diverse community at large (Derman-Sparks, 2010).  

My main focus should be to achieving the four goals to support anti-bias education in my classroom:

  • I will foster the children’s social-emotional growth, self-esteem, and pride in their family, heritage, and cultural background., embracing their social identity (Derman-Sparks, 2010).

  • I will foster visibility, empathy, care, and respect for diversity in each child (Derman-Sparks, 2010).

  •  I will cultivate in children the sense of justice in diversity (Derman-Sparks, 2010).

  •  I will encourage children to feel competent to speak up when they experience or face prejudice (Derman-Sparks, 2010).

Planing my environment, the pictures and photos I display should represent my diverse classroom and our local environment, representing the families’ and others’ similarities and uniqueness (Derman-Sparks, 2010). Each child and family should feel welcome and connected to our classroom. I should offer children materials that will allow them to explore and investigate their learning environment. The props and toys and a large representation of books in our class’s library should represent our diverse children’s cultural backgrounds. The dramatic play area should offer authentic props representing the children’s heritage (Derman-Sparks, 2010). Such as colorful fabrics with distinct textures and prints, assorted dolls with different skin colors, features, and authentic dolls made out of material. Also, I could encourage the children’s families to donate artifacts that represent their culture. Besides, the music should represent various cultures, exposing the children to distinct languages and unique tunes.

Besides that, I should use my observations of bias or prejudice for teachable moments, incorporating small and large group conversations with the children to raise their awareness and model and foster problem resolution skills (Derman-Sparks, 2010). I should plan opportunities for children to share their emotions and act out scenarios representing their lives (Laureate Education, n.d.).

Another vital aspect of my affirming environment is collaborating with the families. Learning about each family’s individuality and allowing each family to feel part of our classroom’s family. I was inspired by Ms. Adriana’s Family daycare, by the many ways she included families in her program. I was particularly inspired by the idea of having a designated shelf for cultural awareness, where each month, one family was invited to share objects and artifacts representing their cultural background (Laureate Education, n.d.). This tradition fosters and celebrates diversity in so many ways. It allows children and parents to be exposed to similarities, differences, and uniqueness of each family, as they can share the same cultural background and have distinct traditions.

 

References:

Derman- Sparks, L. & Edwards, J. o. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). Strategies for working with diverse children: welcome to an anti-bias learning community. Baltimore, MD: Author.

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

  1. AnonymousJanuary 23, 2021 at 10:42 AM

    Ilana,
    I can visualize how inviting your EC environment will be for ANY and EACH child/family that joins you! I know seeing representations of each child's family and culture initiates positive verbal communication and fosters a sense of pride. Well done!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anthony SingletonJanuary 24, 2021 at 7:40 AM

    Hi llana,
    Great post! I believe the child care center that you visualized would be a wonderful place for children to learn and grow. I was also inspired by the cultural shelf in Adriana’s Family daycare. It is a great idea to let families know you recognize their differences and also represent those differences through visualizations in the classroom.

    ReplyDelete

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