Educating middle school students about the positive aspects of different cultures is a great way to break down the barriers of prejudice. The Multicultural Project will allow students to work in small groups to research a unique culture, prepare a presentation and create a tri-fold visual aid.
In many parts of the country, there are areas where there is only one racial or ethnic group. This tends to leave the children of that area culturally deprived or unaware of how other cultures live. Or, there is prejudice based on the unkown. Show students other interesting cultures through this project.
Process: Teachers need to divide students into teams of three. Each person in the team will complete an individual research paper and help create the visual aid.
1. The students will research a given country/culture of their choice. Or, the teacher can give a list of cultures/countries from which to choose.
2. The students will work in a group to prepare a presentation demonstrating what information they have found that distinguishes that culture or country.
3. The students will present and explain their presentation at the Multicultural Fair.
Organizing the Research Papers
A research paper from each person of the three-person team will be completed in the proper MLA format. Papers need to be a minimum of two pages and follow the MLA format, including a proper Works Cited page. The individual topics of each person should be split up on the culture/country. Individual paper topics are as follows:
* Demographics, map where country or culture is mainly located, language, communication and technology used and basic history of country or culture
* Food, clothing, transportation and shelter/housing
* Religion, holidays, music, dance, art and writing/literature
Organizing the Presentations
Students will present a county/culture of their choice, which will include a tri-fold display and include the following:
* The name of country
* The demographics, topography of the country and basic history
* Some of the celebrations of the culture, which may include religion, homes, dances, holidays, toys, clothing, food, etc.
* The languages, transportation systems, and resources of the country
* Students may include other things that they learn and find of interest
The presentation will include a tri-fold board to display information at the fair. Suggestions for criteria for a rubric are as follows:
* Neatness, use of color and pictures and artifacts (can be hand made from photos), creativity
* Accuracy of information and display of research resources
* The speech/presentation (eye contact. voice level and speed, gestures and use of visual aids) The information for speeches will come from the research papers.
*Each group should bring in a traditional food to share with the class.
*Extra credit can be given for groups creating authentic clothing.
Tip: To create a Multicultural Fair, ask the librarian if the displays can be set up in the library for a week. This is a great project to have set up during parent-teacher conferences.