Elementary students to get introduction to African culture
With the help of the Taylor Educational Enrichment Foundation, teachers at Naomi Pasemann Elementary School plan to expand their students’ worldview through the power of storytelling.
Fourth-grade teachers Marissa Barrios-Garza and Brynne Doss were awarded a $2,000 grant to bring someone of African heritage or ties to an African nation to share their culture with the young scholars on campus.
“It’s just an idea, you know, just to get more … exposure to these kiddos to not only respect their culture but other cultures because they’re going to see things that they think are odd or different,” Barrios-Garza said. “It’s opening their eyes to other people.”
The school’s population is made up of largely Hispanic, Anglo and Black students who have had few, if any, interactions with different cultures and limited opportunities to do so, educators said.
“We really kind of brainstormed on how we could get the outside world inside our classrooms,” Principal Cynthia Proctor said.
The presenter will bring cultural artifacts and stories of growing up in a traditional African village to share with students and teachers alike. Paseman can expect to welcome the storyteller by the end of January.
With their newfound knowledge of the culture, the educators hope their pupils can relate it to their own lives and see the similarities — not just the differences.
“My hope is that they really just find some joy in learning whatever these presentations bring to us,” Proctor said. “(Also,) the key factors of respect, the riches of the culture and the importance of the culture values … (and) being able to connect their culture to the African culture.”
The school holds an annual multicultural day when each class represents a culture, showcasing products of their research. However, the teachers hope the firsthand source can supplement these cultural lessons, which Barrios-Garza witnessed in the school district where she previously worked in which a similar presentation was put on.
“All of the students were engaged. They talked about it a lot after,” she said. “We brought it back to the classroom and kind of talked about … similarities and differences.”
Broadening pupils’ horizons with multicultural education helps decrease biases and discrimination and allows children to discover a sense of identity, according to Head Start, an early learning program under the federal Administration for Children and Families.
The educators hope to spark a series of cultural presentations at the school, and possibly through the district, if the event is received well.
“Storytelling … it’s a powerful tool to pass down knowledge. And, we have a key phrase in Taylor … ‘If we don’t tell our story, somebody else will, and they’re probably going to do it wrong,’” Proctor said. “We want to inspire, just not only our students but, you know, possibly future generations.”
