Understanding and

Collaborating with Families

A Close Look At Successes & Challenges When
Engaging with Diverse Families

Background
Why do we, as educators, need to learn
about diversity and cultures?
What do we need in order to be diverse in
our teaching?

 Break out of your comfort zone.

Communication
Collaboration
Open-mind & Acceptance
Reflection

Guiding Principles from NAEYC

2a: Knowing about and understanding diverse
family and community characteristics.
2b: Supporting and engaging families and
communities through respectful, reciprocal
relationships.
2c: Involving families and communities in young
childrens development and learning.

Knowledge Base

Diversity
Culture
Race
Gender
Disabilities
Critical Theory
Family Engagement
Family Trends-Challenges & Strengths

There is no other profession in the world that

directly or indirectly touches the lives of people
at the same level as teachers do
- Gloria Swindler Boutte

Although dealing with these topics is

undoubtedly complicated and difficult when left
unaddressed, faulty beliefs and stereotypes
develop and can potentially fester.
- Gloria Swindler Boutte

When in doubt, queer it.

Using a queer eye means we do not assume
that any kind of gender is normal. Instead, we
look at the way in which childrens gender
behavior reflects and reinforces the norms of
heterosexuality.
- Mindy Blaise and Affrica Taylor

Our Semester Long Project

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Defining your Lens

Context and Diversity
Interviews
Family Literacy Lessons
Reflective Synthesis

Procedure
We first had to get permission from our
cooperating teacher for our interviews.
2 parents and 2 students will be interviewed

Permission slips were sent out and needed to be sent

back in order to start our interviews.

Examples of questions that we asked:

Where is your family from, what language do you

speak, traditions/holidays that you celebrate. etc.

Interviews and Demographics

Why did we do this?
Information about interview process and the questions
Demographics

Demographics

F1- Greek (ESL)

F2- Albania (ESL)
F3- Asian/ South Korean (ESL)
F4- White
F5- Turkish (ESL)
F6- Italy/Serbia
F7- Chinese (ESL)
F8- American

F9- American
F10- Hispanic
F11- Venezuelan
F12- Indian
F13- Vietnamese (ESL)
F14- Puerto Rican/ Italian
F15- American (IEP)
F16- Vietnamese (ESL)(IEP)

T1-Teacher

Interviews Continued
Theresas experiences
Lindseys experiences

Our Challenges

Scheduling
Overcoming language barriers
We wished we asked more!
constructing and phrasing the questions
inventive interview techniques for children
who were non-verbal

Examples:
- Goodnight Mom, Buenas
Noches Pillow
- to be a good human
- the American Dream

Our Successes
We learned
o
o
o
o

To never make assumptions

Another way of collecting evidence to incorporate
family & diversity in the curriculum.
Families want to talk about our children.
Families define what is best for their child


It is time for parents to teach young people early
on that in diversity, there is beauty and there is
strength.
- Maya Angelou