Teaching About Different Cultures in A Montessori

Today’s schoolrooms are more varied in terms of ethnicity and religion. And we live in a global world now, so children even those going to Montessori schools in Torrance, CA needs to learn about other cultures and religion. If you are involved in such schools, or just want your child who goes to a Montessori to know more about this topic, here are some pointers on how to include that in your classroom.

You can introduce different culture, their eating habits, practices, etc. through Geography lessons. When they are learning about different continents or regions of the world, let them focus on their food. If your class is diverse and you have children whose roots are in such continents, they can talk about why certain food items are culturally significant in the countries they represent.

Every month, children can learn about some festival that is going on in another country and you can center your lesson plan on it. For example, Chinese lunar New Year falls in January or February; so, the children can learn about it while learning about China or Asia in general. They can make lanterns; learn about traditional dances that are performed, and so on. Similarly, during April, they can learn about Easter and how it is celebrated in different countries. Such lessons will not only increase the children’s knowledge but also bring the classroom together especially if it is a very diverse classroom.

Language lessons can also help a diverse Preschool in Torrance, CA classroom learn about other cultures. It can be done through the visual and spoken curriculum as well as music and dance lessons. For example, teaching children steps of belly dancing can turn into lessons on the culture of the Middle East. Similarly, children can learn about Spanish culture when they see flamingo dances.

Crafts can be another way to introduce culture studies to your class. For example, you can talk about Japanese culture when you teach your children origami; or in November, you can ask them to paint “Diya” or small earthen lamps to learn more about Diwali which is the festival of light celebrated in India.