As more emphasis is placed on helping children gain a global perspective and understanding of the world, children's literature seems to be a natural vehicle for fostering that understanding. By studying the storyteller, educators can learn about literary traditions of communities, particularly traditions which reflect the use of stories. An…

Two resource units give elementary students an understanding of American Indian arts and crafts. The first unit consists of seven beading activities for early elementary students using beads the teacher and/or students make themselves. The unit gives a short history of American Indian beadwork, describes the materials and designs used by Plains…

The foreign language student must experience popular culture to fully comprehend the framework in which the foreign language functions. Traditional language learning, preoccupied with words, syntax, and pronunciation, has ignored this element, leaving students unprepared to interact with individuals in the target culture. Classroom activities to…

The paper describes how social studies classroom teachers can use the cultural models approach to help high school students understand multicultural societies. The multicultural models approach is based on identification of values which are common to all cultures and on the interchangeability and transferability of these values (universal…

The 4-H Afro-American Cultural Heritage program was established to enable black youths to study historical aspects of the Afro-American experience as a way of understanding what it means to be an American of African descent. The program aims were to facilitate improvement in confidence, racial attitudes, self-esteem, knowledge, and ability to…

This curriculum guide is developed to accompany 7 Chinese Cultural Heritage kits for use in intermediate and middle school classrooms. The units in this guide may be used with or without the accompanying kits. When appropriate, units include: objectives, introductory information, suggested presentation sequence, activity instruction, evaluation…

Presents the rationale for and content of a sixth-grade unit on Africa, focusing on the concepts of race and of variation in cultural patterns. A bibliography of instructional resources is appended. (SJL)

Suggests that through the integration of positive multicultural experiences and materials into common classroom activities, teachers can help ensure an understanding of these concepts and enrich children's experiences with diverse populations and subjects. (SW)

Discusses six techniques that will help teachers evaluate their multicultural views and practices: building multicultural programs; showing appreciation for differences; avoiding stereotypes; acknowledging differences in children; discovering classroom diversity; and avoiding pseudomulticulturalism. (LB)

Presents an excerpt from a play that can be used to help students learn about Black history. The play focuses on an African-American town, Boley, Oklahoma, that outsmarted the most feared bank robbers of the 1930s. It emphasizes Black triumphs. (SM)

Discusses the use of Quest, an internet activity that encourages higher-order thinking. Led by Dan Buettner and his team of "adventurers," students can tour with the Quest team as they explore different countries (AsiaQuest, MayaQuest, AfricaQuest, and GalapagosQuest). Provides examples of how three different teachers utilized Quest. (CMK)

This guide is designed to help teachers incorporate African American history into the classroom curriculum. Designed to increase self-awareness and cultural sensitivity, the guide contains a variety of flexible lesson plans and activities for grades 3 through 12. The first section, "Teacher Background Information," presents introductory…

This seasonal idea/activity book for grades 1-6 features interesting facts on the origins of traditions and customs of spring and summer festivals from around the world. There are numerous hands-on art activities, a map of each country or continent of the activity's origin, and a brief explanation of each tradition. Areas and countries of the…

Hazard Community College (HCC), located deep within the Appalachian mountains in southeastern Kentucky, created the Venture Program (VP) to acclimate a large influx of new faculty to the college and to Appalachian culture. The following four components were integral to the VP's holistic approach to faculty orientation: (1) a system that relied…

The Arab states with their rich background of Islamic and Arab civilizations are continuing their efforts to enhance cultural development either through different forms and levels of education or other activities. Attaining better interaction with other nations is the goal of these efforts. The process of coordinating educational and cultural…