Arts and Cultural Diversity: Practical Lessons

Hi MIMU,

OK, I get that I can use visual arts and drama to teach cultural diversity, but I need practical lesson plan ideas - HELP!

Signed,

No Idea(s)

No problem, No Idea(s). Here are just a few off the top of Udy's head.

IN THE EARLY YEARS

Project 1: What makes you different?

In order to introduce the topic of cultural diversity to the students have them paint self portraits, emphasizing to paint how the saw themselves.

The goal is to make students think of how they are different.

Project 2: Work together as a group and create a rainbow.The goal is to make the students see the classroom as a rainbow, see the beauty of diversity. How the classroom is more beautiful with students from different cultural background.

Project 3: Get a big cardboard and have the whole class trace their palms and decorate them in ways that represent themselves.

Use this project to reinforce the theme of cultural diversity in the school, communities and Canada as a nation.

IN MIDDLE YEARS

Project 1: Organize a tour to an Art museum. while viewing, students will gain an understanding and appreciation of many cultures.

Project 2: Have students research into different peoples group in the world and then have them draw a harmony globe.

Project 3: Research and draw animals from different cultures and what those animals represent to that culture.

Project 4: Get the students to do a mini dance- drama showing the pluralistic nature of Canada.

In this play, students will cut cardboard into different pieces and write the names of the different nationalities represented in Canada. Each student holding their piece up with the country’s name on it will dance to the platform with the music from that country and together they will form the map of Canada.

The goal of this mini-play is to show the cultural diversity in Canada.

IN THE SENIOR YEARS

Project 1: The class research stories of immigration, then discuss what immigrants might experience when they arrive in a new country, e.g language barriers. Students choose a variety of stories they told to dramatise in groups. The scenes must show why the person/family leave, how they feel,what they pack, their preparation and departure.(Students are to invent parts of the story).

Project 2: Have the students research about the mannerism of people from the different cultures represented in Canada, e.g East Indians, Nigerians, Filipinos, mexicans, Japanese, Portuguese and so on. Have them create a play in which the represent these countries. Have one of them role-play as a Canadian who is meeting this immigrants for the first time and how he is overwhelmed by their different ways of greeting, how loud some them talk and the do’s and don’ts of these people.