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StaceyYork_2016_Chapter6FamilyCulture_RootsAndWingsAffirmin.pdf
C H A P T E R
6 Family, Culture, and Community �ere is no more complex and tender geography than the borderlands between families and
schools. — Sarah Lawrence- Lightfoot, “Building Bridges from School to Home”
As early childhood educators, we seek to promote children’s development and
learning in a way that influences children positively for the rest of their lives. We
do not work alone. We must connect with families in order to tap the strength of
children’s home cultures in our efforts to achieve the outcomes we long for. We
must embed our programs in the community and use community resources to
support children’s cultural identities and first language and to protect children
from the damaging effects of structural racism. Fostering child, family, culture,
and community relationships to promote school success means we must work
with children and families in a new way.
High- quality early childhood programs are deeply embedded in their local
community. ey reflect the community and the neighborhood they serve. As
a result, an early childhood program in a Baptist church in Chicago should dif-
fer from a Head Start program in the Navajo Nation. e program of a child care
center located downtown in a large city will differ from that of a family child care
provider in a small rural community. An early childhood program operated by a
133
C o p y r i g h t 2 0 1 6 . R e d l e a f P r e s s .
A l l r i g h t s r e s e r v e d . M a y n o t b e r e p r o d u c e d i n a n y f o r m w i t h o u t p e r m i s s i o n f r o m t h e p u b l i s h e r , e x c e p t f a i r u s e s p e r m i t t e d u n d e r U . S . o r a p p l i c a b l e c o p y r i g h t l a w .
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134 • ROOTS AND WINGS
local affiliate of the National Urban League will differ from a public school early
childhood program. e context of an early childhood program shapes both the
how and what of the program. e context of your program shapes how you work
with families, how you provide child care, and how you teach. It also informs
what you teach— the content of the curriculum. is chapter will help you iden-
tify and learn more about the context in which you work. You will also look at
practical strategies for working with families to provide culturally relevant anti-
bias education.
COMMUNITIES
What do you think of when you hear the word community? Do you think of a
sense of belonging, a sense of identity, a distinct place, social- emotional ties, or
segregation? Communities are systems and structures that can perpetuate rac-
ism. But communities are also people. People form and create social networks.
ese networks help families maintain their cultural history and values. ey
contribute to families’ identities and belonging. Religious institutions, local
stores, restaurants, and social clubs help families form culturally specific ties to
the community. For example, an African American church, an Ethiopian grocery
store, and a Mexican bakery can strengthen families’ cultural identities. I fondly
remember going to the Avio (Dutch club) to celebrate Sinterklaas (Saint Nicholas
Day) with the Dutch side of my family. Outings like this helped strengthen my
cultural identity.
Early childhood programs form a bridge that connects families to their local
communities. Your work with children takes place in a specific community,
located in a specific geographic region. e program you create and the curricu-
lum you design must reflect the families, cultures, and community you serve. Yet
communities are dynamic. ey change constantly. e mix of diversity in your
classroom may differ greatly from one year to the next. As a teacher, you need
tools to identify and analyze the diversity of the children in your program, their
families, and the community in which you work.
Begin by immersing yourself in the community. Pick up a neighborhood news-
paper, watch a local cable television program, and attend community events. Talk
with parents, elders, and community leaders about the community. Eat at local
cafés and frequent local shops. Learn about the history of the community.
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 135
Try asking yourself these questions as a way of getting to know the commu-
nity in which you work:
What’s the name of the community in which I work? How did it get its name?
Where is the community located?
How would I describe this community to an outsider?
What is the history of the community?
How is the community changing? How has it changed in the past five years?
How do people make a living in this community?
What are the natural resources in the community?
What do people do for recreation in this community?
What community issues are parents and children concerned about?
What are the threats to people’s health and well- being in the community?
What is the racial and cultural composition of this community?
What are the prevailing stereotypes in the community?
What are the conflicts, controversies, or ongoing tensions in this community?
What do children need to know to be safe and competent in the community?
Early childhood educators can fall into the trap of blaming families for chil-
dren’s developmental delays, limited experiences, or difficulty learning. It is
important to remember that just as children do not grow up in isolation, fami-
lies don’t parent in a vacuum. Families live in neighborhoods and communities
shaped by the larger economic, social, and political context.
e families you serve may live in neighborhoods or communities that are
full of challenges. Communities can generate toxic stress through substandard
housing, lack of jobs that pay living wages, fragmented transportation systems,
inadequate health care, and minimal social services. is type of stress affects
children’s brain development in a way that prevents them from developing exec-
utive function and self- regulation. ese skills are crucial to learning. Without
them, it is difficult for children to succeed academically.
Teachers must be able to see children not just as individuals but also as mem-
bers of various social groups. Children live in families, cultures, neighborhoods,
and communities. Programs, communities, media, society, and public policy all
play a huge role in children’s development.
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136 • ROOTS AND WINGS
Here is an exercise in contextual analysis that will help you see how the
sociopolitical context and structural racism, in particular, powerfully influence
child development and family life within a community. Cover the top of a table
with a large piece of butcher paper. Set out felt- tip pens, and with a few other
teachers or parents, draw a map of your town. Be as detailed as possible. Include
all the kinds of diversity in your community. For example, if families are segre-
gated by economic class, race, or culture, show that on your map. What are the
cultural, educational, human service, health, and advocacy agencies serving fam-
ilies with young children? Where are they located in the community? Where are
the government agencies, police stations, and fire departments? Where are the
businesses and places of employment? What and where are the sources of toxic
stress in the community? Who and what are creating adverse childhood experi-
ences? Who and what are protecting children from toxic stress? Who and what
are working to reduce the stress? Who is supporting the community, and who has
turned away from the community? Whom should you and your program be work-
ing with to reduce the toxic stress of racism, poverty, and lack of opportunity?
Whom should you be working with to protect families and children from these
social forces? What can you do at the community level to support families so that
children can develop fully and succeed academically? Discuss your observations
and ideas with others. (is activity is adapted from the Big Foot exercise by the
People’s Institute in New Orleans, Louisiana.)
Promise Neighborhoods Because our society, communities, and neighborhoods influence families, early
childhood programs can’t dismantle structural racism, strengthen families’ cul-
tural connections, and promote children’s development and learning on their
own. is task takes an entire community development effort.
One exciting community development movement with great potential is
the Promise Neighborhoods program. Promise Neighborhoods is a federal grant
program that seeks to improve educational outcomes for children and families
by transforming distressed communities. e program helps communities bring
all agencies and organizations serving families together so that “all children and
youth growing up in Promise Neighborhoods have access to great schools and
strong systems of family and community support that will prepare them to attain
an excellent education and successfully transition to college and a career” (US
Department of Education 2015). is model is based on Geoffrey Canada’s Harlem
Children’s Zone. High- quality schools that use culturally responsive curriculum
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 137
are at the center of the Promise Neighborhoods program, surrounded by cultur-
ally appropriate supports delivered by culturally responsive organizations. Early
childhood services include networks of anchor schools, child care, programs that
transition children to kindergarten, after- school and school- age care programs,
parenting classes, and home visiting services.
e Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ) is a Promise Neighborhood located
in North Minneapolis. Parents sign a “College Bound Commitment” pledging
to make college a top family priority. Local residents from the cultures repre-
sented in the neighborhood serve as “Connectors” who enroll families, help them
write an “Achievement Plan,” and coach them one- on- one until their children
graduate from high school. NAZ partners with many local agencies to provide
support services. Individual employees in these agencies are called “Navigators.”
ey use their specialized skills to assist families with specific needs, such as
child care and early childhood education, housing, health and wellness, family
finances, career training and job placement, children’s academic success, family
engagement, and mental health. NAZ and other Promise Neighborhoods provide
excellent examples of mobilizing culturally relevant community assets to pro-
mote the healthy development of children within families and to help children
achieve academic success.
FAMILY ENGAGEMENT
Promise Neighborhoods and Head Start programs use a family engagement
model. Parent involvement has matured into a multifaceted approach. is is dif-
ferent from traditional parent involvement, which emphasizes including parents
to support the school and to foster positive attitudes toward children’s educa-
tion. Parent involvement conjures up images of parent volunteers sorting books
in the school library, carnivals, bingo nights, inviting parents on field trips, and
fundraisers.
Family engagement is a new model for promoting children’s development and
closing the achievement gap. A family engagement model is based on the belief
that families are interested in their children’s learning and academic success,
that families want to be involved in their children’s education, and that families
are the most important influence on children’s learning. Family engagement is a
two- way relationship built on mutual respect. Both families and early childhood
teachers benefit from the partnership that develops through family engagement.
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138 • ROOTS AND WINGS
Teachers often use terms like engaging and engaged when they are discuss-
ing the qualities of effective early childhood learning experiences. An engaging
experience captures our attention, is hands- on, active, meaningful, provocative.
Similarly, parent engagement brings families and programs together in active and
meaningful ways, to share their knowledge and work together to benefit children,
families, and the early childhood program.
Family engagement is a comprehensive approach to promoting families’
well- being. It enhances a center’s efforts to provide culturally relevant anti- bias
education and close the achievement gap. Appreciating diversity, culture, and
family are core values of family engagement. Family engagement strategies rec-
ognize and incorporate cultural traditions and values. ese strategies respect
differences in life experiences, cultural perspectives, and parenting practices.
Family engagement is a strengths- based model centered on the firm belief
that parents are the experts on their children. Families are viewed according to
their capacity to support their child’s development, their skills and knowledge,
and their cultural connections. As early childhood professionals, we engage with
families in meaningful ways so that children thrive. We take the time to get to
know families. We build positive, respectful, reciprocal relationships.
Family engagement practices vary from program to program. Most family
engagement approaches include these key elements:
• welcoming all families
• building family partnerships
• getting to know families
• supporting families as learners and teachers
• connecting families and communities
• empowering families
Welcoming All Families Family engagement begins with a friendly program that reflects the cultures of
the families served, making them feel welcome. An entry that greets families in
many languages, and hallways and common spaces with artwork, posters, and
photographs of the families help convey the message that families belong. An
open- door policy that welcomes families into the program at all times creates
transparency and enhances the role of programs as partners with families.
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 139
Because relationships form the foundation of family engagement, all staff—
from director or principal to teachers to staff at the front desk, in maintenance,
and in the kitchen— need to have great people skills. When I walk into my local
Head Start school, the first person I see is the receptionist, and she always has a
smile on her face and is ready to engage in small talk. As I walk down the hall to
a classroom, I pass kitchen staff coming and going as they clean up one meal and
prepare to serve the next. ey, too, smile and greet me. As I near the classroom,
I come across a bus driver playing with the children walking to the gym and a
custodian repairing a door. Both look up, smile, and say hello as I walk by. Before
I reach the classroom, I have encountered at least four staff members. eir
demeanor and interpersonal skills make me feel welcome and convince me that
this is a good place for children.
Building Family Partnerships When we are working with young children, we cannot separate the children from
their families. Early childhood teachers must broaden their mission to encompass
serving families, not just children. Teachers in high- quality programs realize this,
and they seek to foster children’s developmental education while at the same
time supporting parents in creating a healthy, satisfying family life.
When a family participates in an early childhood program, it opens up its
family system to include other adults in the care and teaching of its youngest
members, the children. In this way, an early childhood program is a member of
an extended family. As a member of multiple extended families, a program must
provide care and education in a way that complements each family it serves. It
shares in the responsibility for encouraging cultural identity and acceptance of
human diversity. It welcomes all types of families, establishes respectful parent-
teacher relationships, includes parents in all aspects of the program, and engages
in problem solving to manage cultural clashes.
How can we individualize service to families at all levels of the program? How
can an early childhood program meet the wants and needs of each family? To
make sure your program meets families’ needs, you must get to know each fam-
ily, provide ongoing communication, involve family members in the program, and
engage in problem solving when conflicts arise. (For more on managing conflicts,
see “Managing Cultural Conflicts.”)
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140 • ROOTS AND WINGS
Getting to Know Families Enrollment
Enrollment is the perfect time to establish a relationship with children and their
parents or other family members. It is important that staff make parents feel
welcome and accepted right from the start. A personal relationship with parents
gives a much stronger message than the written information in the program flyer
or parent handbook.
At intake meetings, tap into parents’ knowledge of their children and ask
them to share information about their family’s beliefs and practices. Inform
parents of the center’s commitment to a culturally relevant anti- bias program.
Reiterate that commitment by stating the culturally relevant anti- bias policy
in the center’s brochure and parent handbook. Conclude the intake meeting by
inviting the parents to participate in the program and share their family’s tradi-
tions, home language, and holidays with their child’s class.
You can use enrollment forms to collect information about a family’s culture
and its influence on parenting and family life. Some teachers may feel that ask-
ing such questions is invading a family’s privacy. e truth is that parents who
are asked these questions on enrollment forms usually feel valued and confident
that the staff won’t overlook or forget this important information. Families get
the message that you respect them and will help them preserve their home lan-
guage, cultural values, and traditions. And of course, teachers need complete and
accurate information if they are to meet the individual needs of each child. You
can use the information gathered on enrollment forms to individualize caregiv-
ing styles and routines and to plan curriculum activities, celebrations, and family
events. Here are some questions you might include in your enrollment form or
your intake interview.
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 141
FAMILY INFORMATION FORM
Family Structure
Who lives in your household? Please name each person.
Who else has cared for your child?
What type of residence do you live in?
Family Culture
What is your family’s ethnic or cultural background?
How do you identify yourself?
What languages are spoken in your household or with your extended family?
How comfortable are you speaking and reading English?
What traditions, objects, or foods symbolize your family?
Why are these things important? What values or history do they represent?
What is your current religious a¡liation or background?
What values do you want us to teach to your child?
How can we validate and support your family’s lifestyle here at the center?
From Roots and Wings: A�rming Culture and Preventing Bias in Early Childhood Programs, Third Edition, by Stacey York, © 2016. Published by Redleaf Press, www.redleafpress.org. This page may be reproduced for individual or classroom use only.
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142 • ROOTS AND WINGS
What songs, rhymes, chants, stories, or toys could we include that would represent and support your
home culture?
What heroes or celebrations could we include that would represent and support your home culture?
Does your family celebrate birthdays? If so, how?
Would you be willing to share your home culture with your child’s class?
Parenting
Describe your child’s eating schedule.
How are meals served in your family?
What foods does your child like?
What foods does your child dislike?
What words does your child use for urination and bowel movement?
Describe your child’s sleeping and napping schedule.
How do you put your child to sleep?
Does your child share a bedroom? If so, with whom?
Does your child sleep in the same bed as someone else? If so, with whom?
From Roots and Wings: A�rming Culture and Preventing Bias in Early Childhood Programs, Third Edition, by Stacey York, © 2016. Published by Redleaf Press, www.redleafpress.org. This page may be reproduced for individual or classroom use only.
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 143
How does your child relax or self- soothe?
What are your child’s favorite activities?
How do you discipline your child?
How do you handle the following situations?
toilet training
sharing
messy play
gender roles
racial concerns
Whom does your child play with at home?
What are your child’s responsibilities at home?
What are the rules in your home?
Is there anything else you would like to tell us about your child?
From Roots and Wings: A�rming Culture and Preventing Bias in Early Childhood Programs, Third Edition, by Stacey York, © 2016. Published by Redleaf Press, www.redleafpress.org. This page may be reproduced for individual or classroom use only.
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144 • ROOTS AND WINGS
Home Visits
Home visits help teachers get to know children and their families in a more
personal way. ey also offer opportunities to meet other family members and
increase your understanding of how the family lives. Visits should be brief, last-
ing no more than thirty minutes, and should be arranged ahead of time with the
child’s family. Keep in mind that some families may view home visits with cau-
tion and concern, especially if they have experienced negative visits from social
workers, child protection workers, or other human service workers.
Welcome Night
Many programs host back- to- school nights. Traditionally, these events are for
adults only. e parents gather in a large room or in their child’s classroom and
listen to a presentation by the teacher about the curriculum, expectations and
rules, book orders, and fundraising. How about planning a “welcome night”
instead? Invite the families into your classroom along with their children. Make
it interactive. Ask attendees to talk with their own family members about their
goals for the year or what their children would like to learn this year. Bring all the
families together, and ask the adults to share some of the ideas that came up in
their family discussions. Write the ideas on the board. Follow up with an activ-
ity to help families get to know one another. Focus on relationship building and
active engagement.
Ongoing Communication
Once a parent- teacher relationship has been established, it is crucial that teach-
ers maintain open communication with parents. Staff members need to talk with
parents as often as possible, not just when a child is sick or having a difficult day.
Realize that some parents may be shy, timid, or just not accustomed to asking
questions of their child’s teacher. Teachers can develop a warm, friendly, outgoing
manner that helps parents feel accepted, valued, and welcomed. Try staffing each
room with at least two adults during arrival and departure so that one adult is free
to greet and talk with parents. Use a tool such as a notebook with dividers so that
each child has a section. Use the notebook like a daily log, writing a brief descrip-
tion of each child’s day. Encourage parents to write back in response or use the
notebook for requests or to update you on family matters. Some teachers use little
notepads and attach them to children’s backpacks. is works well if your program
provides transportation and you don’t get a chance to see parents daily.
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 145
Complex schedules and multiple responsibilities may make it difficult for staff
to talk with each parent every day. Centers can send information home to keep
parents informed of program activities. Bulletin boards can inform parents of
classroom activities as well as multicultural events in the community. News letters
can feature articles about different families at the center, how to strengthen chil-
dren’s cultural identity, children’s developing awareness of diversity, ideas for
multicultural activities to do at home, and highlights from multicultural activities
that have recently taken place at the center. Some teachers are using technology
to communicate with families. A daily text or blog or social media post is another
way to communicate effectively with families.
Parent Conferences
is year I received an announcement regarding parent- teacher conferences for
my youngest child. e teacher sent home a form that stated exactly when and
where my child’s conference would take place. e information ended with the
command to “return this form immediately” in large, boldface capital letters.
Commands and demands like this do not foster positive family- teacher- school
relationships.
When you are planning conferences, invite the whole family, including the
child. If appropriate, ask the child to lead the conference or at least participate
in showing the family work samples and favorite places in the classroom and
talking about favorite times of the day, favorite books, and recent or current
studies. Together with the family and child, set goals for future growth. Confer-
ences should be interactive, joyful experiences. Ask lots of open- ended questions.
Schedule conferences to last thirty minutes so that you can have meaningful
conversations. Consider asking the following questions to get to know the family
better:
What was school like for you, or what was school like in your home country?
How was that different from what we do here at our program? How was it
different from what you have experienced in this country?
How did your family encourage you to succeed in school? How can we encour-
age and support your child?
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146 • ROOTS AND WINGS
Supporting Families as Learners and Teachers Families as Learners
Offer parent workshops on topics of interest to parents. Survey families to iden-
tify their interests. Choose times that work well for families. Try to offer a meal
and child care for siblings. Eliminate as many barriers to family participation as
possible. Invite local leaders and elders from the cultural groups that your pro-
gram serves to address relevant topics. Consider a workshop on the development
of prejudice, on dual- language learning, or on the impact of racism on children’s
development. Offer workshops that help parents raise children in a diverse
society.
Families as Teachers
Offer opportunities for parents to teach their children. Introduce parents to dia-
logic reading and how to choose children’s books. For example, give each family
a book, and set out the materials and invite each family to make a word box. A
word box is a recipe box decorated by the family to hold vocabulary cards. Over
time, as vocabulary words are added, the word box becomes the child’s personal
picture dictionary. Next, the family selects three to five vocabulary words from
the book and makes vocabulary picture cards and places them in the word box.
Another favorite activity of mine comes from the work of Sudia Paloma
Mc Caleb in her book Building Communities of Learners. McCaleb developed a pro-
cess in which parents and children write and illustrate books together. I have
successfully used this idea many times with college students as facilitators.
Provide book- making supplies, and invite parents and children to decide how
they want to structure the process. Do they both want to write and illustrate, or
do they want one person to write and one person to illustrate? Sometimes the
adult scribes for the child and then the child adds the illustrations. Once com-
pleted, laminate and bind each family’s book.
Yet another option is to focus on the writing process. Invite all family members,
and ask them to discuss the following questions first, then begin to write. Remind
them to create a rough draft first. Here are a few book examples with questions
to ask:
• Overcoming adversity book: What are some of the difficulties your family
faces? How do you get through the difficulties with your children? What did
you learn about overcoming adversity that you would like to pass on to your
children?
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 147
• Family strengths book: What are some of your families’ strengths? How
would you like to see your child build on these strengths?
• Family future book: What hopes and dreams do you have for your family?
What would you like your family to look like in five years? Ten years?
Twenty years?
• Family togetherness book: What do you like about your family? What does
your family do for fun? How do you like to spend your time together? What
interests do members of your family share? What rituals and traditions help
your family stay close?
Connecting Families and Communities Early childhood programs can build connections between communities and fam-
ilies in many ways. For example, programs can serve as a community resource
finder for parents. Become knowledgeable about your local community resources,
especially culturally specific resources. Create a community resource file and
connect families to resources and services in the community. Make sure your
resource file includes culturally specific organizations, social service agencies, and
support networks that interact with families in culturally competent ways and
deliver culturally and linguistically responsive community services.
Early childhood teachers can also provide referrals based on families’ stated
concerns and needs. Program staff can provide information on the range of ser-
vices, contact names, and telephone numbers. You can even make the initial
contact, or accompany the family on its initial visit, and follow up with the family
to see how things are going.
Early childhood programs can help families start culturally specific support
groups, too. Such groups help families explore and strengthen their own cultural
identity and connect them to local cultural community resources.
Finally, early childhood programs can create opportunities for children and
families to interact with the community in creative ways. For example, my sons
attended a school that provided supports to American Indian families. We partic-
ipated in a family field trip to a science museum when the museum was hosting
a celebration of the contribution of American Indians to math and science. Ten
families boarded the school bus with local American Indian elders, who helped
interpret the experience. e American Indian support group also offered a boys’
drumming circle. American Indian elders came to the school and taught the
boys how to make drums, and each boy left with his own drum and an increased
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148 • ROOTS AND WINGS
understanding of drumming in his home culture. Another year, the elementary
school partnered with the American Indian support group to bring in a couple
from Montana who taught the children about the significance of tipis in the
lives of Plains Indians. e children spent two weeks with these elders, putting
up a full- size, authentic tipi. e experience culminated with an all- school and
community powwow. All these experiences were community- based cultural
opportunities that my family likely would not have participated in otherwise.
Empowering Families Families care about their children. ey want their children to succeed in school.
Offer opportunities that empower families to support their children’s development
and learning. Focus on how families can turn daily routines, such as cooking
dinner and playing at the neighborhood park, into learning opportunities that
support their children’s growth.
Families as Decision Makers
Families may feel alienated from early childhood programs or reserved about
participating in them. is often results from past experiences in interacting with
schools. Involving families in decision making empowers them. To do this, your
program may need to make structural changes. You can establish family advisory
boards with legitimate power regarding policy, staffing, facilities, curriculum,
tuition, budget, and strategic planning. You can use subcommittees to tackle spe-
cific program- related projects, extending decision making to even more families.
Subcommittees need not be limited to existing board members. Rather, open
them up to families at large as a way to achieve more diverse parent involvement
in decision making.
Families as Advocates
Families informally advocate for their children when they engage in conversa-
tion with teachers and program leaders. It is through conversations that parents
reveal their wants, needs, hopes, and dreams for their children. At this interper-
sonal level, parents may ask that you pay special attention to keeping sand out
of their children’s hair, that you try to keep their children from getting paint on
their clothes, and so forth. is is advocacy— and we as early childhood teachers
need to listen to and dialogue with families about whatever is important to them.
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 149
Another form of advocacy addresses concerns about the program, neighbor-
hood, school district, or state or federal policies. is is formal advocacy. It
involves communication, problem solving, fundraising, and seeking solutions.
Families may want a new playground or traffic signs alerting motorists to slow
down near the child care facility. Families may become involved in seeking fund-
ing for a new child care center in a low- income housing project or in advocating
that citizens pass a referendum that would provide funds for expanded early
childhood services. Families may engage in advocacy to block proposals that
would harm their children, such as proposed cuts to Head Start funding or pro-
posed legislation that requires English- only instruction in their state.
rough both informal and formal advocacy, parents develop leadership skills
and gain confidence in challenging existing power structures. ey build these
skills in early childhood settings and refine them as their children move through
the school system.
HOLIDAYS AND CELEBRATIONS
Many holidays and celebrations have cultural or religious roots. ey express
the values, beliefs, and practices of a particular group of people. Celebrating
cultural holidays helps strengthen cultural connections and family ties. Some-
times holidays commemorate significant historical events or people. Holidays
and celebrations may seem like a good way to begin culturally relevant anti- bias
education. But in fact there is a lot of disagreement surrounding holidays. One
holiday can mean different things to different groups of people. For example,
anksgiving is often a time of celebration for European Americans. Yet it is a day
of mourning for many in the American Indian communities.
Because of such differences, families should play an integral role in setting a
holiday policy. Parents can form a holidays and celebrations committee to decide
which holidays, if any, will be celebrated in the program and how they will be
celebrated. e following key questions need to be answered:
What is the purpose of observing holidays and other celebrations in our
program?
What role will holidays have in our curriculum?
How will we decide which holidays to celebrate?
How will we celebrate holidays in the classroom?
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150 • ROOTS AND WINGS
e committee may decide to send out a questionnaire to poll all the families.
Julie Bisson includes an excellent sample family questionnaire about holidays
in her book Celebrate! An Anti- Bias Guide to Including Holidays in Early Childhood
Programs.
Parents may also enjoy planning and participating in celebrations, such as the
birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., Cinco de Mayo, or the Hmong New Year. Par-
ent involvement in holidays and celebrations promotes a stronger home- school
connection, because parents see that the program recognizes and includes their
culture and family. Often parents are the best source of holiday activity ideas and
resources. Parents can visit the classroom and share how they celebrate a par-
ticular holiday in their home. ey can bring artifacts and photographs to show
the children. is is also the most developmentally appropriate and culturally
relevant approach because it connects holidays and celebrations to the daily lives
of real people. Bisson offers some additional suggestions for involving parents in
holidays and celebrations:
• Encourage families to share information about their holidays and how they
celebrate.
• Ask for ideas about what activities would be appropriate to provide for
children.
• Welcome family members who would like to come in and lead an activity,
such as cooking a holiday dish with the children or helping decorate the
classroom.
• Request materials that you can use as sources for classroom activities, such
as recipes, music recordings, or written words to special holiday songs.
• Invite families to loan materials to the program for sharing during circle
time. Decorations, children’s books, holiday cards, candleholders, and other
holiday- related items from families enrich your classroom celebrations.
• Communicate to families ahead of time about what you are planning to do
in the classroom, so parents or guardians can let you know if they have any-
thing to contribute or any concerns. (Bisson 2017)
When Families Don’t Observe Holidays What can you do when families don’t celebrate a particular holiday? Holidays and
whether to celebrate them brings up strong feelings for both teachers and par-
ents. I have known many teachers who became outraged with Jehovah’s Witness
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 151
families whose children could not participate in the class holiday and birthday
celebrations. e teachers couldn’t understand why the families had to have their
children in the program and why they as teachers should be responsible for figur-
ing out what to do with one child during events planned for the entire class.
In situations like this, it is important not to lapse into blaming or punishing
the child or the family for their cultural or religious beliefs. Many Jehovah’s Wit-
ness families, for instance, don’t perceive their children as missing out by not
celebrating birthdays or other holidays. Often Jehovah’s Witness communities are
tight- knit and have many community celebrations, parties, and sleepovers that are
not tied to birthdays or holidays. Members of these communities may feel sorry
for children who don’t live in such a warm, connected community of families.
Some families may choose to keep their children at home to avoid potential
conflicts around holidays. But other families may not have this option. Whatever
decision a program makes about how to handle this delicate issue, it should be
made with respect for all the families.
MANAGING CULTURAL CONFLICTS
When I was the director of a white, suburban, middle- class child care center, I
enrolled a rather large three- year- old boy whose family had just come from Israel
to spend one year in the United States. e little boy arrived for his first day of
school with a baby bottle full of chocolate milk in one hand and a pacifier in the
other. e teachers were appalled by such parenting practices, and the teachers
of the three- year- olds were determined to stick to their rule of no bottles and no
pacifiers. After all, this was a preschool room, not a toddler room. e little boy
screamed, kicked, and cried as soon as he entered the room. He did this every
day all day for almost a month. He became the topic of conversation in the staff
lounge, the center kitchen, the playground, and the hallway.
Every staff person had a different complaint about this child. He cried too
much. He was too immature. He wasn’t ready for child care. His parents were lazy,
for they had not weaned him from the bottle or pacifier. His parents were spoiling
him. His parents must be ignorant— didn’t they know about baby bottle syn-
drome? One teacher was afraid that soon all the three- year- olds would be begging
for— no, demanding— their own bottles of chocolate milk. e more staff members
complained, the less interested they became in a solution. ey thought this little
boy and his parents were bad. It was a negative situation, and the staff wanted
me to ask the boy to leave the program. ey found it hard to recognize that the
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152 • ROOTS AND WINGS
conflict came from a cultural difference in child rearing. e boy’s parents were
competent parents from a different culture than that of all the staff members. e
parents had different beliefs, behaviors, and values about bringing up their child.
is did not mean that they were wrong. In this case, the staff ’s own culturally
based beliefs, behaviors, and values about child rearing got in the way of their
understanding and serving this child and his family.
From the training I do today, I know that this happens all the time. Cultural
clashes occur in early childhood programs. While we cannot solve every disagree-
ment, we can use a problem- solving approach to manage the situation. To deal
with cultural dilemmas such as this, I offer the following suggestions.
Analyze the Situation and Identify the Cultural Dilemma Ask yourself, “What is the child’s experience at home?” and “How is the child’s
experience related to a cultural practice or value?” In the case of the family from
Israel, the teachers and parents had different goals for the child based on cultural
beliefs about child development— specifically, when a child is a baby and when a
child is a child. From the parents’ culturally based perspective, their son was still
a baby. From the teacher’s culturally based perspective, the boy was a preschooler.
Don’t Blame the Child e child is not bad, evil, spoiled, or developmentally delayed. Contrary to how it
may seem, the child is not out to get you. e child may be acting in a culturally
appropriate way. e little boy in my story was an absolute delight to his parents.
Get Information Go to the child’s file, and read through the enrollment forms. Call the parent and
set up a time to talk. Find out what the behavior means to the parent, what the
parent would do in this situation, and what has been done in the past.
Realize at Children Are Doing eir Best Children respond to new situations in the ways they know how to respond.
eir only expectation is to receive care that is similar to what they have always
known. Big changes are scary, frustrating, and angering. e boy in my story
found himself separated from his parents and in the company of people who
spoke a different language. He was totally overwhelmed. at bottle was his only
form of security.
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 153
Respond to Children and Parents as Individuals Culturally relevant caregiving and education require a willingness to bend,
change, and revise to meet individual needs. It may mean breaking the rules,
making exceptions to the rules, or changing the rules to provide complementary
care and culturally appropriate education. For example, if a family carries their
baby in a sling, hold the infant more than you usually might. Serve meals to a
child who is accustomed to being served by adults. Use drills and direct teaching
methods with a child whose family culture calls for learning through brief, highly
charged encounters.
High- quality early childhood programs make themselves an integral part of the
community. To serve your community, you have to get to know it and establish a
sense of accountability to it. Programs designed around the local community and
cultures naturally become relevant to the populations they serve. High- quality
programs also work hand in hand with the families they serve. ey strive to
form culturally sensitive relationships and to involve parents in all levels of the
program. A high level of community and family involvement leads to a culturally
relevant anti- bias curriculum that feels natural.
QUESTIONS TO PONDER
› Alone or with a group, answer each of the following questions to identify your
own culturally based beliefs, behaviors, and values:
What are traditional foods that you or someone else in your family
prepares?
What celebrations, ceremonies, rituals, or holidays do you celebrate with
your family?
What were some words of wisdom, sayings, or advice that your parents or
grandparents passed on to you?
How do adults and children interact with one another?
What are some examples of acceptable child behavior?
When would you say no to a child or discipline a child?
What are some examples of acceptable discipline for a child?
When does a baby become a child?
What are some child- rearing practices of others that are shocking, appall-
ing, or frightening to you?
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154 • ROOTS AND WINGS
To whom or where would you go for advice about children or parenting?
To whom or where would you go for help with a family problem?
› Review your answers to the previous questions. What is the purpose of these
practices or beliefs? In other words, what are the underlying values? Next,
consider the following questions:
Who do you want to be in the lives of families?
What is your story? How have your life experiences brought you to this
place where you want to work respectfully and effectively with families
from other cultures?
How has your work with communities of color helped you develop empathy
with and respect for family strengths?
What about working with culturally diverse families and communities has
inspired you or has made the biggest impact on you and your work with
children?
TRY THIS TOMORROW
› Here is a simple way to begin thinking about the families within your program.
Create a diversity chart. On a large piece of paper, list your answers to the fol-
lowing questions:
What is the racial mix of the families participating in your program?
What is the cultural mix of the families participating in your program?
What languages are spoken by the families in your program?
What family styles are represented in your program (single- parent, blended,
foster, LGBTQ , extended)?
What is the socioeconomic mix of the families participating in your
program?
Do the families participating in your program have any special needs?
› Review and analyze the list you have made. To what extent do the families in
your program reflect the larger community? To what extent do the staff mem-
bers reflect the families in your program? To what extent does your program
(caregiving methods, classroom materials, curriculum, and teaching methods)
reflect the families in the program? Answering this set of questions can give
you some idea of where your program is serving families well and where you
might start to make changes.
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FAMILY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY • 155
DIG DEEPER
› California Department of Education. 2011. “Family Engagement Framework:
A Tool For California School Districts.” WestEd. www.wested.org/online_pubs
/cpei/family- engagement- framework.pdf.
› Maryland Family Engagement Coalition. N.d. “e Early Childhood Family
Engagement Framework: Maryland’s Vision for Engaging Families with Young
Children.” Maryland State Department of Education. www.montgomerycountymd
.gov/HHS-Program/Resources/Files/CYF%20Docs/ECAC/MDFamEngageFinal.pdf.
› National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). “Engaging
Diverse Families.” NAEYC. www.naeyc.org/familyengagement.
› Van Voorhis, Frances L., Michelle Maier, Joyce L. Epstein, and Chrishana M.
Lloyd. 2013. “e Impact of Family Involvement on the Education of Children
Ages 3 to 8: A Focus on Literacy and Math Achievement Outcomes and
Social-Emotional Skills.” MDRC. www.mdrc.org/publication/impact- family
- involvement- education- children- ages- 3- 8.
VIDEOS
› Colorado Department of Education. N.d. “Using Text Messaging to Strengthen
Family School Relationships.” www2.cde.state.co.us/media/resultsmatter
/RMSeries/UsingTextMessagingToStrengthenFamily- SchoolRelationships.asp.
› Colorado Department of Education. N.d. “Videos from Parents Enhancing
Engagement.” www2.cde.state.co.us/media/resultsmatter/RMSeries
/VideosFromParentsEnhancingFamilyEngagement.asp.
› Penn State University Extension. “Cultural Understanding.” Penn State Univer-
sity Extension Better Kid Care. www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWuX3oOvepk.
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