Diversity and Multicultural Integration in Head Start and Early Head Start - Part II

[Music]

Sharon Yandian: Welcome to Ready for Success: Diversity and Multicultural Integration in Head Start and Early Head Start, Part II. This is the culmination of our year-long Professional Development Series focused on children who are dual language learners and their families.

The webcasts and webinars in this series have covered a number of important topics: exemplary practices to support children who are dual language learners, language and literacy development, assessing children's progress in English and overall development, and diversity in multicultural integration.

We encourage you to go to the ECLKC to view these and other events. Today's webcast, our final webcast in the series, ties together all of the concepts we have discussed previously. We've had the opportunity to see video from some programs that are culturally and linguistically responsive to children and families who speak languages other than English.

We'll be showing you footage of several programs in California and New York. Some are in urban environments, and one is a Migrant and Seasonal Head Start program. You'll see how these programs use their knowledge and relationships with families to ensure that all of their systems and services are meaningful, appropriate, and effective. We should acknowledge that most of the video footage you'll see today is of classrooms working with three- to five- year-olds, but we're going to make every effort to make the connection for younger children as well.

Before we begin, for those of you who may not have had the opportunity to see our last webcast, I'd like to call your attention to our great new resource handbook, "Revisiting and Updating the Multicultural Principles for Head Start Programs Serving Children Ages Birth to Five." An information memorandum came out May 13th of this year announcing the publication of the handbook. Each center and grantee across the country should have received a copy, and it is also downloadable on the ECLKC.

It is both in English and Spanish for ease in your program to use with staff and with families. The resource handbook contains an updated version of the Head Start Multicultural Principles, which are relevant for any and all Head Start programs. Today you will truly experience these 10 principles in action in our video clips and in our conversation with our panelists.

I encourage you to access the handbook and to refer to it as you reflect on the content of today's webcast. And, of course, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the Program Preparedness Checklist. This is a great tool for self- assessment to help you examine how your program is doing in areas related to cultural and linguistic responsiveness and is available for download with this webcast. Our webcast today will be divided into three segments.

The first is Multicultural Environments in Action; the second, Parent and Family Engagement; and the third, Community Collaborations and Partnerships. But before we jump into those segments, we are so lucky to have a wonderful group of panelists with us today. Jhumur Mukerjee Saeed is an Early Literacy Content Specialist at the National Head Start Family Literacy Center, where she develops and conducts trainings for Head Start staff and creates resources such as the training, information, and practical strategies, or T.I.P.S. newsletter.

She has been involved with the Head Start Technical Assistance Network for the past eight years. Welcome. Nina Jaffe is an award winning author, folklorist, and storyteller who is on the graduate faculty at Bank Street College of Education in New York. Her titles for young readers include "The Golden Flower: A Taino Myth from Puerto Rico," now in Spanish language edition, and "The Way Meat Loves Salt," a Cinderella tale from the Jewish tradition.

In addition to serving as an advisor for student teachers in early childhood, bilingual, and special-education programs, Nina is a Founder and Director of F.E.A.S.T., Folklore Education and Storytelling for Teachers, a professional development project.

Sandra Martinez-Siranauala is an Early Childhood Educator at the Child Center of New York Head Start in Woodside, Queens, where she has been a head teacher since 2007. She was also a home visitor for Early Head Start. Sandra was born and raised in El Salvador and immigrated to the United States with her family at age 13. Amanda Ritanti is a Head Start parent and a member of the Parent Advisory Group at the Child Center of New York Head Start.

Amanda was born and raised in Jakarta, the capital of Java, Indonesia. In addition to Indonesian, Amanda also is fluent in Makassar, a local dialect, and has studied English since middle school. She immigrated to the United States in her early twenties and currently lives in Queens, New York, with her husband and two children. Of course, Graciela Italiano-Thomas.

You all know her if you've seen other events in this series. She's been with us since the beginning, and she's an expert in early childhood education and working with dual language learners, and will serve again today as our facilitator. So I welcome all the panelists. Graciela, would you like to get us started?

Graciela Italiano-Thomas: Thank you, Sharon. Welcome, panelists, welcome, audience, to the first segment of our webcast, "Multicultural Environments in Action." As Sharon mentioned, this webcast will feature three programs that exemplify some of the main principles and ideas we have been discussing throughout our series on supporting children who are learning in two languages to succeed in school and life. I had the pleasure to spend a day at each of the programs we will feature.

As you watch these clips, we'd like to ask you to reflect on how the classroom communities you see are culturally responsive and how that is reflected in the role of leadership, intentionality, and professional development, parent and family engagement, and partnerships with the greater community.

The first program you will see is the Child Center of New York, a program that serves the Woodside community in Queens, New York, the most diverse borough in the city. Let's hear Linda Rodriquez, Director of the Center, and Marie Mason, Educational Director, as they tell us a bit about their program. Let's watch.

[Video begins] Linda Rodriquez: We service the Woodside community, which is a very ethnically diverse population. We are really working with both immigrant families, new immigrant families, as well as established families within this community. We serve three- and four-year-olds. Our three-year-olds we service in a home-based model, where we work together with the parents and the child in the home, and the children come into our center for socialization, and then we also have children who are in our center-based program at four years old.

Marie Mason: Well, we believe that children learn best in an environment that's very responsive to their developmental needs, as well as their emotional well being. We believe that nurturing relationships and cultivating relationships between the parents and the teachers, and the children and the teachers, are very important because emotional wellness is very much connected to their learning potential. So with this belief, we do a lot of staff development around that.

I do a lot of supervision with staff around -- around that philosophy. And we are able to begin that in our home-based program because, in the home-based program, we do develop those relationships.

Linda: I think it really starts with respecting the families and respecting the fact that every family has a strength to share with us. And we try and create an environment that really supports that, that supports the child, that supports the family, that supports the language that they speak, the cultures that they come from.

And we also look at ensuring that our program is as diverse, in terms of our staffing, as our families within the community, so that there are familiar faces when families come in, where there are familiar languages when families come in, and it develops a sense of openness.

Marie: When a parent may come in and have a certain idea of what a classroom should be like, for example, or -- and we want to try to help the parents understand, you know, the developmentally appropriate practice, how children learn in a classroom through their play, because in some cultures, a classroom setting means that you're sitting still all the time, that you're doing worksheets, that -- you know, that's very academic.

And so we just have to educate our parents about that, and we have proof of it. When they come into the classroom and we talk about how the children are progressing, we have conferences with the parents, and they can see how the children have progressed in areas, and we do workshops for parents around this. So that -- that's one area where we might see a cultural difference, but through talking with them and educating them, they begin to see, you know, how this works.

Linda: Play is children's work. It's -- it's what we do. It's how children learn. [Video ends]

Graciela: Three of our panelists here today, whom Sharon just introduced, are connected to this program. Amanda is the mom of Rayhan, a little boy who attends the classroom. Sandra is the teacher in the classroom. And Nina is Sandra's advisor, and she is -- works at the Graduate School at Bank Street College of Education. Would you -- what else would you ladies like to tell us about the program?

Nina Jaffe: I would like to say that they truly are a socially and emotionally responsive setting. And what I've learned is, one of the ways that they do that is to have a connection, for example, with a social work school, so that social work interns are part of the staff. And in addition, they have a nutritionist on staff, there is a speech therapist on staff. So, all in all, it is both a professional and really family-oriented community, so that all the children can grow to their fullest capacity.

Graciela: Sandra.

Sandra Martinez-Siranauala: Okay. In our program, we also have a first home visit at the beginning of the year. We visit the children in the center -- in their houses to see how their environment is, and also to get to know a little bit about their background. We also have Curriculum Day, where we involve the parents to come to the school and they get to know a little bit about how the centers work and how the curriculum works in our school.

Amanda Ritanti: The program is so welcoming for the parents, and they serve our community in my area. So it's great for us, the parents.

Graciela: Great. Well, I also noticed in this classroom that the morning usually begins with songs. Nina, you were there that day, singing with the children. And we included some of this footage because it really shows how you exemplify multicultural responsiveness in action. Let's watch.

[Video begins] Class: [Singing] Sebastian is his name, his name is Sebastian. Around and around is the name of the game, around and around, and what's your name? Venn: Venn. Class: His name is Venn, his name is Venn. Around and around is the name of the game, around and around, and what's your name?

Nina: [Singing] Everyone comes from a different place. everyone has a different face. Everyone does different things, you see, but together we're one big family. We're going to learn a new way to say hello. In Swahili, Jambo means hello. In Swahili, Jambo means hello, in Swahili, Jambo means hello.

Child: And... Nina: From Hawaii. Who knows how to say hello if you're from Hawaii? Please tell me it's aloha. Do you think it is? Sebastian: Aloha!

Nina: Is it aloha? I'm going with Sebastian. [Singing] In Hawaii, aloha means hello -- we're going to sing, let's just sing -- in Hawaii, aloha means hello. In Hawaii, aloha means hello, in Hawaii, aloha means hello. Aloha means hello in Hawaii. [Video ends]

Graciela: This is so great. Sandra, tell us how you got started with all these languages and songs in different languages in your classroom.

Sandra: Well, when Nina first came to our classroom, she realized that we have different children from different places, so she came up with the idea, "Let's use -- let's try to incorporate their language in our classroom." So at the beginning, I was a little bit anxious about the whole thing, and I -- I -- I didn't know if I could do it. But -- so we decided to start with the Spanish since the Spanish is my first language. So we started, and the children love it.

It was fun. So I say, "Okay. So let's move on to Bengali." Since at the beginning, it was hard for me to involve the parents in this project, so I used one of my coworkers that speaks Bengali, and she helped me how to pronounce "Good morning" in Bengali, and she helped me how to write it down. So then we started with Bengali, and we keep moving on with different languages in the classroom.

Graciela: Wonderful. Thank you. Nina, you want to add something to that?

Nina: Well, yes. It's one thing to have a conversation with -- with a student or a colleague in terms of professional development. It's another thing to leave and see how Sandra, in her own sense of knowing the children, knowing the community, and your own artfulness as a teacher, knew which child to begin with, and also knew when to incorporate this new information, which I think is so important and powerful, that you included it in the routine that the children were already comfortable with, the circle time.

Graciela: Right.

Sharon: And, you know -- I mean, you make it look very easy, Sandra. And I think that one of the things that we want, you know, our viewers to know is that it takes time, and it takes the risk. As you said, you were anxious at the beginning.

I thought I wanted to comment, Nina, on the video, also, that the children were coming up with Swahili and Hawaii, and so you have created an environment, you know, and I thought, Well, why is she using Swahili? Is there -- aren't there any, you know...," Or, for example, "Is there anyone from Hawaii here?" and she told me no, but that the children were coming up with that.

So it's a very multicultural classroom, and clearly fostering the -- the children's interest is something that gets at, you know, I think what you hope to accomplish.

Graciela: Great. We also have the voices of parents in this -- in this webcast. And we have Mr. And Mrs. Rodriguez now, in a clip, and they are the parents of a little boy, Venn, who is also in the classroom, and they are telling us why they chose this environment for their child. Let's listen.

[Video begins] Mr. Rodriguez: We looked for a school for our child, and then this is the -- the last -- the last school that we inquired, and then we registered him, and then... Mrs. Rodriguez: At the age of two-and-a-half. Mr.

Rodriguez: At the age of two-and-a-half, and then in the waiting list.

And then as we go around here before, we -- we see -- we say that it's a nice place for our child to be here. That's why we stick to this place. Graciela: Why? What did you see? Mrs. Rodriguez: The environment, and the school structure is very important for the atmosphere of our child. Mr. Rodriguez: The environment, and then the -- the classroom, the -

- the facilities, the kitchen, the bathroom, everything.[Video ends]

Graciela: So, how did you intentionally welcome parents in such a way that you've created this environment? Because I know some parents are reluctant to have their home language used in the classroom. Amanda? Amanda: Sandra said, "Well, come into this classroom," and asking me about how to write "Good morning" to everybody, and so, as -- as a parent,...

Graciela: There. Amanda: ...I'm so glad that I can teach the kids my language.

Graciela: Great. But that is not so with every parent, is it, Sandra? Sandra: Yeah. Graciela: Amanda is kind of a special parent here. Have you had other experiences? Sandra: Yeah. There are cases where there are parents that are very anxious, and they don't -- they don't want to confuse their children by using another language. They prefer not to use their native language in the classroom.

Graciela: Mm-hmm. Jhumur, you want -- you -- you want to add -- you have personal experiences here. Jhumur Mukerjee Saeed: Absolutely. Both as a parent and as a professional, I -- I have seen or I have experienced the anxiety as a parent, especially when a professional, at times, may mention to a parent or question the -- the practice of the parent using the home language in the home -- continuing with the home language in the home.

And the parent has the belief, very much like Amanda, that it's very important to continue with the home language, starting when the baby comes home and continuing as the baby becomes a toddler into pre-school. However, when a pediatrician, in my experience, asks that question, "Are you sure you're doing the right thing?"

"Are you sure you're doing the right thing by speaking your home language to your child at home?" For a moment there, I was anxious. It happened to me when a professional, or a teacher, asked me the same question. So what I want to say, or emphasize, is that it's very important to have that support from teachers, from educators, because really parents count on them for that support. Because as a professional, in my professional work with the National Head Start Family Literacy Center, we emphasize that ongoing -- that continuity of support of the home language.

But as a parent, when you feel that anxiousness -- I'm acknowledging that anxiousness -- but also to tell parents that continuing with the home language is ultimately beneficial for the child during the years in Head Start and for their life.

Sharon: I was going to say, you know, we have taught -- thank you, Jhumur, I think you said that very eloquently. We've talked about this in previous webcasts, I think. The only thing I would want to emphasize, also, is how important it is for the teacher to be very secure and clear about what the role of the home language is, how it's used?

You know, first -- also respecting the parents in terms of their wishes and desires but helping them understand what we know from research, which is that the home language actually supports the English learning as well as -- as, you know, Amanda had mentioned how important it is to be able to be able to speak, you know, with your child or grandparents or what have you. So it's this research, knowing what the research says and being able to actually say it, you know, in more than one way at many different times when the families are ready to -- to hear it.

Graciela: In this next clip, we see Sandra leading a song in the classroom in Indonesian, a song that Amanda taught her and the children. So let's watch.

[Video begins] Sandra: Today we're going to pass it around. Which one do you want me to pass, the ladybug or the fly? Children: The ladybug! Sandra: The ladybug. Ok. So we'll pass the ladybug. Child: The fly!

Sandra: We will pass the ladybug today. Maybe tomorrow we'll pass the fly. Okay? So -- and today, we're going to be singing in what language? Do you guys remember? Children: English. Sandra: Mmm-mm. Children: Indonesian.

Sandra: And who speaks Indonesian in here? Children: Rayhan! Sandra: Rayhan, and who else? Children: Natalie. Sandra: Raynham and...Natalie. Okay? So we're going to sing now. Okay? Sandra and Children: [Singing in Indonesian] [Video ends]

Graciela: So we see here that you came to the classroom, you taught the children songs in Indonesian, you taught Sandra a song. What made you feel so welcome?

Amanda: Sandra is the teacher of my kids -- of my son. So, we, like -- like, every day, I -- I took my son to the school. So I met her, and we're talking about how is Rayhan doing, or my son doing, how's his English. Because -- because in my house, we -- I teach him Indonesian as my language to him. So I just want to know how he's doing that

for English because that's the first time he gets English, in that school.

Graciela: Great. Thank you, Amanda. In this classroom, you -- you know, all languages are welcome. The home languages of the children are welcome. And the language of the classroom, you know, gets constructed by the children as being English. Let's watch in -- in this next clip, where you are in the circle time, and let's see what happens.

[Video begins] Child: The -- the... Sandra: Forgot? Adult: Can he say it in Spanish? Sandra: Want to say it in Spanish? Go ahead. Say it in Spanish.

Child: The mosca, they go to the garbage and they eat the food that's in the garbage. Sandra: Yeah, the mosca, they like to... [Video ends]

Graciela: So let's talk about what happened here. I think this was a beautiful moment. What happened? What did you do there, Sandra?

Sandra: Well, the child said a word in Spanish, and he didn't have the word in English. So I just helped him, I support him to say the word in English, that he had it, they had the -- the word, but he couldn't actually say it in English.

Graciela: Right. And it's beautiful how he -- after you give him the space and you ask him, "Did you forget? Do you want to say it in Spanish?" He just says, "La mosca," and goes right on in English, because he had the sentence in English, but it was that one word that he needed support of in his home language. Do you -- any of you want to add to this?

Sharon: Well, no. I mean, I just think that it's really important that Sandra understands whether it was, you know -- this happened to be the case of the Spanish speaker with "Mosca," but to be very in tune with children, because, you know

-- and to be very accepting and open. You know, there are other cases where the child would just stop talking, and then the teacher would move on. But you paused, you know. You recognized that he needed that word to be able to continue, and I think that that's a very important skill to have.

Graciela: Right. Thank you for that. You want to say something, Sandra?

Sandra: Yes. Yes. Like, one of the reasons, also, why I try to support my kids in the Spanish is because when I first started -- started in school in the United States, I was told not to speak English, so I -- Spanish, I'm sorry. So I wanted to support my children in their native language because I think that that will help them to, you know, to get stronger in English and feel more comfortable in their native language, as well as English.

Nina: I would just also like to add that in terms of the concerns, will children learn English if they are not speaking English at home or if they are not having a chance to practice English all the time in the classroom? That this classroom really shows how children do teach each other, and in so many interactions, children whose home language is Indonesian, Bengali, Spanish, and even Filipino dialects use English to build those wonderful bridges.

Sharon: Right. And they use their home language to be able to access the curriculum, to be able to use -- they use it as a resource. Graciela: To convey meaning. Sharon: Absolutely.

Graciela: And I found out by being in the classroom that one day, that there are children, more than one, that speak several languages at home, as it is the case with these next two clips. We're going to see Rafad, who is Mohammed's mom, telling us about Mohammed and -- and what languages they speak at home. And then we're going to see Sandra reading to Mohammed, and I want you to pay attention to the languages that are used in this exchange. So let's watch the next two clips.

[Video begins] Graciela: What language do you speak at home? Rafad: Urdu and Hindi. Graciela: And Hindi. And Mohammed is learning both?

Rafad: Yes, he do. Graciela: And then he's learning English here. Rafad: He is better than me in English. He learned

here in the school. [Video ends]

[Video begins] Sandra: How do you think the child feels? Mohammed: Sad. Sandra: You think he feels sad? [Reading in Spanish: His dad said, "I'm afraid it won't sprout."] Now what happened? Mohammed: Even the Papi got upset.

Sandra: The Papi got upset? Why? Mohammed: Because he -- he -- he take off -- he ripped -- ripped off -- he opened the -- the carrot seeds, and then he take out, and then now he's angry. Sandra: Oh... [Video ends]

Graciela: So, just to make sure that everybody understands, Mohammed's mom told us that they speak Urdu and Hindi at home and that he's learning English in the center, which he -- I can attest he speaks quite well. But then we saw Sandra reading to Mohammed in Spanish and asking him questions in English, and he's responding perfectly, having understood very well what you read to him in Spanish. Right?

Sandra: Yes. He actually was the one who brought the book to me, so in Spanish. So I started to read the book in Spanish. I asked him, "Do you want me to read it in Spanish or English?" And he's like, "Okay. Let's read it in Spanish," since the book was in Spanish. So we read the book, and then he responded pretty -- he responded pretty well to the questions.

I asked him questions because I wanted to know, to see if he was getting the meaning of the book, if he really understanding what was going on in the book.

Jhumur: Just as we heard from Rafad about Mohammed, and the fact that in his home he's learning Urdu and Hindi, which are similar languages, but in my son's case, and in the case of many children in Head Start and in the early childhood education world, children have multiple languages, and that's a reality in the home.

So in my son's case, he has Hindi, Urdu, and Bengali. And also the other aspect of language exposure for many children is that they go into child care or care situations very early on where they're exposed to maybe a third or a fourth language -- a second, third, or fourth language. So my son was exposed to English at a very early age. And so just to highlight the fact that children do, when we talk about dual language or being exposed to multiple languages, that is the reality for a lot of children.

Graciela: Great. Thank you for that. I also want to say to the audience that this obviously was taped a -- a last -- couple of weeks ago, so it's towards the end of the year. It took a while to create these routines. But you use transition songs beautifully.

I saw you doing this in Spanish with "La lechuza," which -- it means the owl in several Latin American countries. And the song is the tune of "Fr�re Jacques," which we all know -- [Sings] Fr�re Jacques. And the -- the words are "La lechuza says," the owl says, "put your books away." And -- and Sandra is using this in this next clip to transition so that they put the books away and -- and get ready to do something else. Let's watch.

[Video begins] Class: [Singing in Spanish] The owl says, the owl says "put your books away, put your books away," that's what she says, what she says. [Video ends]

Graciela: So, Sandra, will you explain how you use these songs and how you support the -- the languages in these -- in these different ways?

Sandra: Yeah. At the beginning of the year, we started the song because the kids were having a hard time following the routine. So nobody was listening. Everybody was all over the place. I -- and I didn't want to scream. I didn't want to yell.

So what I started doing is, "Okay, so they don't want to listen to me, so I'm going to start speaking in Spanish." So I started speaking in Spanish, and everybody, like, started to sit down to try to understand what I was exactly saying. And after that, it's like they just love it, and I just modify the song. It depends on what I want the children to -- to do in the classroom.

Graciela: Great. You also -- I mean, these children are comfortable. They have space in the classroom. They know the routine. They know -- you know, they -- they understand the different languages that are being used. And as -- as Linda and -- and Marie told us at the beginning, play is children's work, and the way you transition to the centers, it's very clear that they have a choice, and they take very seriously.

Let's watch as you do this in the classroom, and then as they go to the centers, where they actually stayed for quite a long time, playing in the different activities.

[Video begins] Sandra: Tell me anything about the ladybug. Child 1: Um, that the legs are also red and black. Sandra: The legs. Uh-huh. Okay. What else?

Child 1: And the antennas are black. Sandra: They have antennas, and they are black. Very good, Juan. Where are you going to go play? Juan: In the science area. Sandra: In the science -- "I..."

Juan: I want to play in the science area. [Laughter] Okay. A cucaracha. A grasshopper. A fly. Aah! Child 2: [Laughing] Juan: A rhino beetle, And -- and -- and... Child 2: A spider.

Juan: Is this a spider, Carolina? Carolina, is this a spider? Carolina, is this a spider? Carolina: Yes, it's a type of spider. [Video ends]

Graciela: This was absolutely beautiful. Sandra, tell us a little bit about how you made this transition and then, you know how you set up the centers for them to play.

Sandra: Yeah. We usually divide them into small groups for -- and we allow them... In this type of video, we have a ladybug, and they describe -- they say two things about the ladybug, and then they actually take seriously about where are they going to go play in the centers. They also fel very comfortable when they are in the centers to come to the teachers and ask them questions to expand their knowledge.

Graciela: And we saw la cucaracha, and you know I heard other words in Spanish in -- in -- in the different centers. So they are very comfortable using all of the languages that are available to them. Sharon: Right. And you're also making -

- taking the opportunity to use that transition for multiple purposes, in terms of getting them to do -- to use descriptive language.

Nina: The thread of curriculum is also so important, so that children not only have routines that they can depend on in this class, but their own interests are built into the curriculum, not only during circle time, but also in the play centers. And that importance of integrating the curriculum throughout, I think, is also exemplified here.

Graciela: You've set up the next clip perfectly, because we see Natalie playing in the sand center, and, really, we see what she's learned.

[Video begins] Natalie: Planting. Teacher: Planting? What? Natalie: I'm brushing it. Teacher: Oh, you're brushing it? What are you spreading? What is that? What do you have inside? Natalie: Seeds.

Teacher: Seeds, yeah. Natalie: Water. Teacher: Yeah. Natalie: Soil. Teacher: Soil. Good.

Natalie: And it grows. Teacher: What else did you need? You put it where? Natalie: Sun. In a window. [Video ends]

Graciela: In the other centers, the water center and the home-living center, we have two clips that -- that we're going to watch. I -- I have to tell you, these children were there for over an hour. And in the water center, they had little floating toys that had octopus, seahorses, sharks, different kinds of fish, and they were able to name them all and make stories about them. So I'm just sharing a little bit of a clip with -- with you because it is really wonderful.

[Video begins] Child: Hey, Andr�a. Andr�a: What? Child: One time I went to the beach, and I saw a giant whale!

Andr�a : Awesome! Child: And he catched me inside his mouth.

Natalie: Awesome! I want to go with you. child: I sliced him off. Andr�a: I want to go with you. Child: But he was still alive. Andr�a: I want with you.

Child: It's very far. Andr�a: It's very far? [Video ends]

Graciela: Sandra, share with us how you set up the classroom for them to be so interested and comfortable.

Sandra: Well, since every month we have a different team, and, as you noticed in the videos clip, we have the insects team this month. So I set up the classroom by placing different things that are related to insects in every area so the children can connect their ideas and be interested. Also, in the living -- in the home center, I tried -- I had more stuff in the home center, more toys, but I try to take them out so I can expand on the -- so the children could expand in their imagination and put more open-ended items to help them.

Graciela: Great. Yes. They were rummaging through and finding costumes. Jhumur?

Jhumur: One of the things that Sandra said about the children's interests and adding things about the insects into the different classroom areas, what I wanted to point out is how important it is to remember the child, their interests, but also that each child has individual likes, dislikes, strengths. And to build on that,...

...the reason I use this as an example is that sometimes we -- we assume that because a child is from a certain culture or has a home language besides English, that, as professionals, sometimes there are assumptions, and to stay away from those assumptions. To illustrate this, my son, who -- Whenever he moves from one class to another, or one care facility to another, tends to a) choose the home-living center.

That's his choice, because I think that's his strength, and he demonstrates his strengths in the home-living center. But, also, he tends to be very quiet in the first month, couple of months. And I have had teachers approach me and question whether it is a fact that we speak a different language at home. And I have to emphasize that -- or point out that he's actually been in care since he was an infant, so he has been in similar situations, but that is his personality and that's very much him.

So to remember that culture is just one component, one element that contributes to children's development, and this is brought out very beautifully in the Multicultural Principles that was mentioned early on in the broadcast.

Nina: And just to build on that, thinking about development, I'm thinking, for example, of -- let's think about Raynham. In the beginning of the year, did any -- Sandra, were -- you were not speaking Indonesian at that time. And you described once his response the day that you sang some words in Indonesian.

Sandra: Yes. He -- Amanda came into the classroom and sang the song in Indonesian. So the next day, the other children were trying to, you know, sing the song, but the children didn't know how to pronounce it, so they were, like, humming. [Humming] So Rayhan felt comfortable enough to sit and started teaching every child the song in the classroom and how to pronounce it.

Graciela: And he must have felt so validated, so... Sandra: Yes.

Graciela: Yes. That's great. Coming back to the topic that you were talking about, and -- and children and socialization, I found it very interesting that this center, The -- The -- The Child Center of New York, has a three-year- old program that they use the whole year to prepare the three-year-olds to come into the center.

They are visited at home every week by a teacher, and then every other week, they come to the center with their families for a socialization activity. And we're going to watch now Venn's parents again telling us how this worked for them and Venn, and then we're going to see the three-year-old Family Socialization Day.

[Video begins] Mr. Rodriguez: This one, we only accept also three-years-old, but it's a home-based, unlike the other schools. Mrs. Rodriguez: In preparation for the kids to go to -- to socialize with other kids. It's very important for -- for him at the early age -- early stage to be with somebody who is a stranger to him. Mr. Rodriguez: But anyway, we try to practice him to socialize with other people except from the school.

Mrs. Rodriguez : Atmosphere. Mr. Rodriguez: With other -- with our friends and our relatives. We try to make him comfortable with the atmospheres, with other children or, like, grownups. [Video ends]

[Video begins] Teacher: Okay. Katarina, what are you making with yours? Uh oh. Tell me about yours. Hmm, let's see. It's for water, too? Does water come out of that spout? Remember the story we read this week? The itsy-bitsy spider and the spout? It looks like the spout, the water spout.

Child: Read the book to me. Teacher: I know, honey, but I didn't come to your house this week. But I'll read it to you next week, okay? Teacher and Children: [Singing] Here we are together, my family and me, with... Parent 1: Katarina.

Teacher: ...Katarina and... - Parent 2: Corolla. Teacher: ...and... Parent 3: Monica.

Teacher: ...and... Parent 4: Josephine. Teacher: ...here we are together, my family and me. Child: Muddy. Teacher 2: She's all muddy. She was playing in the... Child 2: Mud.

Teacher 2: In the mud, and she got all dirty. She needs to take a...bath. Uh oh. What's he doing? Child: Taking a bath. Teacher 2: He's taking a bath. He's got lots of -- what has he got? Child: Bubbles!

Teacher 2: Lots of bubbles. Adult 1: Athena's not here. She's not here. She's not here. Adult 2: She decided at the last -

- something -- Something came up, and she couldn't make it. [Inaudible] Adult 1: Is that -- is that me? Oh, that's you. Who is this one? [Video ends]

Graciela: This home-center connection is so important, like we saw in these clips. Sandra, I know that you do something also that makes that -- that connection very strong for the children. Would you share that with us?

Sandra: Yes. We have the "Bear Curriculum" that is based on social and emotional response. The children get -- every child in the classroom get to have a teddy bear, and they all look for names. And it actually helps them to express their feelings, to be able to -- to say what they like, and also help them to -- nd serious -- and serious separation, anxiety separation. And also at the end of the year, in -- in June, when they all leave, they get to take the -- the teddy bear, and

-- and it works as a transition to kindergarten.

Graciela: Great. How did that work for you, Amanda, when -- when he -- when Rayhan brought the teddy bear home? Amanda: I made clothes for him, for -- for the teddy bear, and I make him -- I made him to help me.

Sharon: You know, not all parents would take the teddy bear and take the time to sew clothes. You know, that's another thing where you understand. Obviously, you know, you appreciated what -- what was the role of the teddy bear. So that's -- that's really beautiful.

Graciela: Well, we now have concluded our first segment, and, as always, I am going to review for you our main concepts, or take aways. The classroom community grows out of all the children's languages and cultures. Creating multicultural environments is an ongoing, intentional process of learning about and understanding the individual children and families.

Including children's culture and language in the learning environment builds their identity and promotes positive child outcomes. Again, thank you, ladies. It's been a pleasure being with you. And stay tuned for Segment II, Parent and Family Engagement. We'll be right back. [Music]

Welcome back to our segment on Parent and Family Engagement. In this segment, we will be seeing footage from Abriendo Puertas, Opening Doors, a culturally responsive parent and family engagement program. Abriendo Puertas is

an evidence-based parenting leadership and advocacy training program for low income, primarily Spanish-speaking parents of children from birth to five years of age.

I had the pleasure of visiting a Head Start center in South-Central L.A. and a Migrant Head Start and Seasonal Program in -- in Santa Maria, California, which is roughly between L.A. and San Luis Obispo, to see the Abriendo Puertas program in action. This program was developed by the nonprofit organization Families in Schools. Let's hear from Sandra Gutierrez, it's Executive Director, about the unique features of this program. Let's watch her.

[Video begins] Sandra Gutierrez: Where Abriendo Puertas started, why it was created, why it was born. It was created to meet the need that Latino parents have to support their children from an early age. It was created to meet the aspirations that they share with us about wanting their kids to have a better life than the one that they've had, to have better educational opportunities than they've had.

And it was created by and for Latino parents with kids zero to five for that purpose: so that they can have those dreams, those aspirations become a reality. It provides them tools, resources, and activities that they can do each and every day at home that will create better opportunities for their kids. Currently, we're in 52 cities, including four school districts, all in California, and we have plans to go to Florida with Migrant Head Start and to Nuevo Mexico, as well, this year.

So the program is growing. One of the unique features of Abriendo Puertas is that we are based in popular education. We follow a popular education methodology. So we take parents from the beginning of reflection through analysis of what's happening in their community, and analysis of their own development and what they're offering their kids to the point of action and advocacy so they create better conditions for their kids. So it's a very circular process in that we see the transformation from the first session through the last session, the graduation of the parents.

We see these wonderful transformations in the parents and in their confidence and their commitment to being their kids' best advocates. What I'd like everybody to know about Abriendo Puertas, Opening Doors, is some of it's unique features, it's cultural relevance. Each session is conducted beginning with a "dicho." That's very -- a way, in the Latino community, that generation from generation passes on wisdom through these "dichos."

So we use these "dichos" to frame each session, To help the parents remember the session, and it also frames it and reminds them of -- of how they were raised and reflect on what they want to do for their children differently or similarly to how they were raised. [Video Ends]

Graciela: The importance of this program is that it engages the parents from their strengths and values, what they bring to the children and the center. As you're watching the clips, we would like you to reflect on how you create situations in your own environment that allow parents to get involved at a deeper level.

Now, before you see this next clip, it might be helpful to explain that the program consists of 10 lessons, one per week, and any parent can come. The lessons are framed around "dichos," which in Spanish means proverb, or idiom. This is a way of helping parents learn big concepts through popular sayings that they already know. Let's hear from one of the moms who is attending the program in L.A. at the -- at the -- at the Parks-Huerta Center.

[Video begins] [Video in Spanish] Participant Mom: I think children learn more from what one does than from what one says. So it's more important, I mean, to teach them with facts than with words, because one tells them what to do, but then we do something differently. And then they say, "Why do you tell me this and then do that?" [Video ends]

Graciela: This is a mom really just using their -- her own wisdom, saying, you know, "Our children learn from -- from what they see us do, not from what we say." And that is rooted in folk wisdom and -- and popular knowledge. You, as a folklorist, have something to say about this, don't you?

Nina: You know, Graciela, this wonderful program really reminds us how important it is that all families have cultural traditions and wisdom and values. They may not be always reflected in mainstream media, but they are there. And Head Start centers are places where parents have a chance to share the true wisdom and knowledge that they bring to

their children and to the community.

Graciela: You're so right. And I was so fortunate that day that I visited this program in -- in South-Central L.A. They were talking about hopes and dreams for their children, and how to develop a plan to really support their children from

-- from this moment on to get there, because every parent wants better life for their children than they've had, and let's

-- let's watch.

They were doing a tree activity, where the roots are the values, the trunk are the parents and the grandparents, and the fruits of the tree are the children and how we want them to flourish. Let's hear how the teachers set it up.

Nina: Great. [Video begins] [Video in Spanish] Teacher: So here we have Vivian, and Vivian is the product fruit of your work. And you support Vivian, right? And what goal let's talk about a goal for Vivian. Vivian's Mom: That she becomes a professional.

Teacher: A professional, right? So you mean that you want her to graduate from high school? Vivian's Mom: That she attains the highest level she can.

Teacher: The highest so you want her to graduate from college? So when you say that you want your child to be a professional, that's the big long road. How will we cross travel that long road? First, your child needs to graduate from college well, first from high school, right? College... [Video ends]

Graciela: Yeah. You saw how she did that activity. You wanted to add something, Jhumur?

Jhumur: Yes. Watching the activity, it really reminds me of in Head Start programs, which is a common practice, part of our Head Start Performance Standards, the family goal-setting process, and such an important and critical element of Head Start. And part of that is also identifying goals that families have for their children, and this is one illustration of how a program does it. So just wanted to bring that forth.

Graciela: Great. And how does this connect to the program in -- in -- in -- at the Child Center Of New York?

Nina: Well, the idea of family literacy also relates to the idea of cultural literacy and that the literacy and the literature of the parents may be in the oral tradition, as well as books. Things like songs, proverbs, riddles, all of these are ways that adults have always helped their children grow and build dreams for themselves. Actually, my grandmother used to say...

[Speaking Yiddish] "A child's wisdom is also wisdom." And so we have here today Amanda, who has some wisdom from Indonesian family lore to share with us.

Amanda: Okat. Sure. [Singing in Indonesian] Sharon: Beautiful.

Nina: So beautiful. Do any of us here speak Indonesian? Not -- not yet. Not yet. But -- so we're sort of in the role of teachers with children whose language they may not speak. But the songs and proverbs are almost like cultural sound bites. If we can learn just enough, it helps us bridge. So can you help us learn this song and tell everyone in our audience what it means?

Amanda: Sure. That song is mean -- is... "Satu, Satu," is meaning one, one. I love my mom. "Dua, dua" is two. I love my -- I love my father, too. And "tiga, tiga," I love my brother and sister. And "satu, dua, tiga," one, two, three, I love everybody. So that song is like -- like love, love to your parents, your family.

Sharon: And do you sing in -- in your tradition, do you sing that to infants, as well as teaching it to -- for preschoolers to sing, as well? Amanda: Yes. Mm hmm. Graciela: Yes. And, of course, love is always a value that comes through when we start talking with parents about values for the children: love, happiness, that they be good human beings.

Those are the values where parents go first.

And so, thank you very much, Amanda. That was beautiful. In this next clip, we actually have a -- a mom whose child, Christopher, wants to be a doctor. And then we have a grandfather sharing with -- with us what his hopes and dreams are for his grandchildren, of whom he has many. And a young mom talking about a conversation with her daughter when they were watching television and happened to see a graduation ceremony.

So we're going to watch all of them together. Let's just watch and see how this -- this -- this wisdom that we're talking about rooted in children's song, in folk songs, and, generally, in popular culture comes through as we work with parents and children from different cultures.

[Video begins] [Video in Spanish] Mother 1: My Christopher wants to be a doctor. And for this, we need to instill the values in him. And like you said, punctuality in school, not too late, not too early every day. And with that, studying, and with us motivating him at home, we hope that he will become a doctor.

For my second child -- he's still a baby -- my plan is to enroll him from when he's three years old, maybe even before, because they now start earlier, and so that I'm not very -- won't feel too sad that he will leave me since he's three years old, like I felt with the first one, because I know that that helps them a great deal. So right now, that's my plan for him.

And to keep on instilling the same values in him as in my Christopher. A few days ago -- right now in Room 2, they're learning their address, their phone number, and last week, I remember, I said, "Okay, Christopher, What's your phone number?" And he said, "Oh, 323..." And he said the whole number, and it he made me feel very happy because he hadn't been able to say it by himself. I made him a happy face, and he didn't want to take it off. Ha. He was very happy with his happy face.

Teacher: I'd like to invite the grandfather to see if he can share any thoughts or goals that you have for your grandchildren. Is it a boy or a girl? Do you have a grandson or a granddaughter? Grandfather: Well, both. Teacher: You have both here?

Grandfather: Yes, boys and girls, grandsons and granddaughters. Teacher: Boys and girls, grandsons and granddaughters? Do you want to share a little bit? Because I understand that you represent the trunk, because you support your fruits and from -- for many generations. Grandfather: Well, yes, I have to cooperate in a big way while the parents are at work, I help bring them here. And yes, to try to that make the effort is to teach them something at home.

Teacher: And what a nice experience to have the support of their grandparents, right? It's a very nice experience for your grandchildren. Grandfather: Yes. Teacher: What dreams do you have for your grandchildren? What do you hope for them? Grandfather: I would like that, yes. That they reach get to the top, right?

Teacher: And what is the top? We're going to specifically talk about what the top is. Grandfather: Well, to be professionals. Yes, to be the most that they can be. I don't know what that will be for each of them because they're different. Teacher: Individual dreams.

Grandfather: Yes. Teacher: So the top is that they become professionals, that they graduate from high school, and that they graduate from college, right? Grandfather: Yes, that they continue. Teacher: And how would you feel when that day comes for your grandchildren?

Grandfather: Well, even though it is -- [Laughs] -- it is very impossible for me to reach that get there, but yes, it'd be a great honor. Teacher: It'd be a great honor to everyone. Grandfather: Yes, sure.

Mother 2: I tell my children actually, last night I was talking to my daughter and she says, "Mom..." Well, we were watching a program about a -- a college graduation. And so she said, "Mom, they look so nice with the outfits they wear." Yeah, so I told her, "You'll be one of them." And she said, "Ooh, that's a long way." "Yes, but it's not impossible," I said. "With effort we'll be what you want to be."

And she said, "I know, but you have to work a lot." And I said, "Yes, but you also have to make and the effort to be

what you want to be." And she said, "Yes." And I know that we parents have to support them and reward their effort, because that's what we do with our children.

When they're good during the week, they get good grades, we take them out to eat, or like she says something simple, but it's very big for them. So we have to motivate our children in everything, Talk to them, motivate them. Teacher: And what are your dreams for... [Video ends]

Graciela: Wasn't that wonderful how those -- those -- that mom shared that Christopher wants to be a doctor and how her young one was so happy to come home and share that he knew his entire address and phone number and how she gave him a -- a happy face?

And also, I thought the grandfather was great. You know, just kind of even -- even questioning: "I'm not even sure I'm going to get there,"or "I'm going to be there when my children -- my grandchildren become professionals." Which was his dream, "But it'll be an honor for me if I am there." All of these are the values that we live by day by day. And, yes?

Sharon: I thought it was also important that, you know, Christopher wants to be a doctor -- this is what the mom told us -- but that -- that they understand together that to begin that, you know, she needs to be supporting him in the way he needs to be, you know, in the motivation, and that they need to arrive at school on time, you know, at the Head Start program. All of those things add up to setting that foundation for the success, and, you know, if he still wants to be a doctor when he's 10 and 12, then, you know, that's in place.

Graciela : He might be a lawyer by then. Sharon: He might be.

Graciela: Who knows? And -- and then that very theme is picked up very nicely in the third clip, when the mom and daughter are talking about a graduation, and the daughter says, "How beautiful they look." And the mom says, "Well, you can get there." And the daughter says, "Yeah, but you're going to have to work very hard for me to get there." So it is a mutual, you know, support system.

And the daughter in this case understands that, that there will be a lot of sacrifices. And I think that's the theme here that comes through in -- in -- in -- that came through for me as I was watching these classes and these wonderful people sharing, that every generation makes sacrifices for the next generation to have a better life, to have more opportunities, and that's why we're here. We're here because you're parents. We're here because we're Head Start teachers. And we're really working for the next generation to have better -- better opportunities, a better life and a better world.

Nina: One of the important parts of multicultural education practices in -- in various programs is for the parents, not only their own traditions to be honored, but how can parents be brought in to the kind of learning and education that occurs in a Head Start program? So Sandra, you had some experience with that and how the New York Center handles and works with educating parents in their community.

Sandra: In our -- in our program, we have -- the way that we teach the parents, we educate the parents, is by Curriculum Day. We have Curriculum Day, and we explain them how it works, how the -- how play is so important for the children. And we also, during the parent-teacher conference meetings, we also have, like -- like a curriculum sheet, and we explain them at the level that the child should be on this age.

Most of the time, the parents are not sure because in our countries back home, they only see it and learn and start reading at this time. And it's hard for them to understand that we have to start from -- from the bottom to get to the reading part. But everything is started through play. Children learn through play.

Graciela: Yes, Jhumur? Jhumur: Yes, and I was going to say, and it ties so beautifully with family literacy as well, you know, because it is encouraging families to gain an understanding of the importance of play in education. So once they see the value, then when they are provided activities to do at home, they do it with conviction and belief.

Graciela: That's great. You ladies have given me a perfect ending to the next -- the next clip that we have, which is,

you know, the -- the -- the moms in -- in -- in the Center, Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Center in Santa Maria, California. And these are folks who actually work in the field, harvesting, and, you know, I don't know. For those of you who don't know, Migrant and Seasonal Head Start serves children birth to five. So they deal with infants and toddlers, as well.

These moms are doing a different lesson of the same program, Abriendo Puertas, and they are, in this next clip, just -- just discussing the different proverbs, the different "dichos," and we're going to see a couple of moms describe a couple of "dichos" to us.

And the reason this is -- this connects with what you were just saying is that later on we'll see these moms in the classroom with their teacher, with their kids, speaking in their language and doing different kinds of activities that they are, you know, being -- taking part of in these classes of the Abriendo Puertas program. So let's watch these moms with the "dichos."

[Video begins] [Video in Spanish] Teacher: ...In the chapters that we have studied every week, so maybe someone has one they'd like to share to start with. One of the "dichos." Here. Which one is yours do you have? Mother 1: Mine was, "Every head is a world." Teacher: Ah, great. "Every head is a world."

Mother 1: We all think differently. We think of supporting the program, and that's why we come. And if we all thought the same way, all the moms would have come. Teacher: [Laughs] How interesting. Does anyone else have another comment about her "dicho?" So, when we think about or when we talk to our children about something that we want

to prevent, what can we do with the mother than say, "No, don't do that?"

Mother2: Try talking to them. Mother 3: Try talking to them. Mother 2: Find a way... Mother 4: So they can see that we're their example role model. They're looking at us, and the way we are is the way they're going to be.

Teacher: Exactly. Mother 4: And try to have them focus on us and do the right thing. Teacher: That's a very important point. Mother 4: So that they're the same or better.

Teacher: Yes, because we're their example. We're like a mirror to them. They will be the way that we are. So, it's very interesting, but that's the way it works in life. I can say it because my daughters are all grown up now, and I've seen it. And we tried to warn them, but we can't do it all. Who else? Estella.

Estella: I got, "You can't give what you don't have." Teacher: Oh, yes.

Estella: It's as if I wanted to give more to my son, I'd like to give him money. Well, but I don't have money. The only thing I have to give him is that -- to make sure he eats well, and that he's a good kid. And like a teacher here in the center says, "The best thing we can give our children is an education, because that can open doors for them, they can have a better future and a better job." And that's why it's the best thing we can leave them, because money -- money runs out.

Teacher: Exactly. Estella: And that's the best. It's the best that we could want for our kids. Teacher: Thank you. Estella: That's what I think. [Video ends]

Graciela: You saw those "dichos" speak for themselves, and how involved the moms are, and how important the -- the themes come up, like money and those kinds of things.

Jhumur: What I wanted to point out was about professionals, as well, as we navigate the different cultures of working with families, working with children. For example, some of us are more accustomed to nonverbal communication, you know, especially with children. Nina: Yes.

Jhumur: The -- the look, as we call it, using -- using our eyes or certain gestures. And that's not common, and to understand that, we have to learn as well, and the way we learn foreign with children, we have to learn foreign with parents. Nina: Right.

Sharon: You know what I think, the other thing that it just reminds me of is, you know, we're talking about families, you know, in this case it was -- that are working all day. They're tired. They're frustrated. They get home. And so to help them understand, and I need this oftentimes, too, to be reminded, their communication and how that comes across to the child, what that feels like, and how that really can impact their development.

I guess the other thing I want to mention is, we've been talking a lot about this particular program, and I really -- you know, and its focus on Latinos. I do want to challenge our programs to think about what we've been talking about in terms of communication styles and others into the other cultures in their programs and -- and thinking about drawing on resources of parents and others in the community to develop their own programs that would be reflective and responsive.

Graciela: Because this is developed for and by parents, with parents, so you can actually, you know, like in your program already, you have the parents involved. So you could begin discussing how you could -- because these are difficult topics to bridge. It can be tricky to talk with parents about parenting style in different cultures.

Nina: But I'd just like to speak to that because the need is so great. There are so many groups of children, and depending on where we live in the country, the language and linguistic differences will really be very different.

And so at Bank Street, that's one of the reasons why we began to establish this project called F.E.A.S.T., Folklore Education and Storytelling for Teachers, which is really a way of building an archive so that the cultural languages that teachers are learning in their own settings can be gathered together in one place, and we don't have to all the time start from the beginning.

Sharon: That's great. I -- the only other -- the other thing I wanted to mention, kind of in relation to that, is I have seen programs using proverbs from many different languages. And they actually put them up into classrooms in the centers, so when parents are there, you know... Obviously, they need to kind of connect and be appropriate, and you don't just, you know, stick them on the wall. Well, they are really also for the -- for staff and parents as a way to remind us, you know, around -- about our work with children and -- and, you know, our aspirations, so...

Graciela: The other part of this program is that then we were able -- I was able to be in the classroom with the moms when they went to be with their children and to see them actually putting some of this in action with -- with their children, which is what we are going to see next. And I want to point out before we watch the clips that there were -- there were several moms in this group that spoke Mixteco besides Spanish. And when during the discussion, they actually said that they speak Mixteco at home, which is an indigenous language in -- in -- in -- in Mexico.

And so you -- we will see, even though it's a very soft -- a very softly spoken family, but we will hear a -- a mom -- two moms with three daughters speaking in Mixteco. So let's watch.

[Video begins] [Video in Spanish/Mixteco] Mother 1: [Speaking in English] Where this goes? You tell me. Child 1: [Speaking in English] There! Mother 1: [Speaking in English] All right. What color is this? Mother 2: "The button came off and Corduroy fell off the mattress, hitting himself on a big floor lamp. Kaboom, the lamp went down."

Child 2: [Speaking in English] Banana? Mother 1: [Speaking in English] No. Is that the same color? That's the same color. What color is that? Mother 3: Tomatoes. Child 3: Lettuce. Mother 3: Lettuce. And this one?

Child 3: This is a -- a watermelon. Watermelon. Mother 3: Watermelon. Mother 4: [Speaking in English] How many do you have? How many?

Child 4: [Speaking in Englsih] One, two. Mother 4: [Speaking in English] Two. Child 4: [Speaking in English] And three. Mother 4: [Speaking in English] And three. Mother 5: A big one. A big one, Oliver. Do we make this one big?

This one, too. This is a little one. Mother 6: Where is it? Child 5: Here! And what else? Mother 6: And the apple?

Where is it? Child 5: Here. Adult: Little and bigger. Look how it's changing. How strong. Very good.

Like this. Look. Does your mom make tortillas? Yes? Do you like them? Child 6: Puts the key. Mother 7: He locked it with the key. Look, here he tied it up, right? Let's see... And here? Ha! [Video ends]

Graciela: We see these moms really, you know, living the Head Start Principle. The parents are the first educators. Would the rest of you like to add to this?

Jhumur: Definitely. Because I think with this example, and many that we see across -- in the programs of our audience, that it is not only our belief, but we really, really encourage and provide resources and trainings for parents to become the primary educators of their children.

Honestly, they are already the educators, but it is for -- for them to completely gain that understanding and believe -- believe in that tenet, a very important tenet of family literacy, that they are their primary educators. And not just while their children are infants and toddlers, while they're in Head Start, but it's that continuity through the education of that child, that lifetime education of that child, to be there, to advocate, to be the leaders that they are.

And -- and this program does it wonderfully, as we have seen. And -- and it's true the interactions, the interactive activities with their children, they do that, but there are many other ways that Head Start provides these opportunities. So it is to encourage parents to continue in that role. Graciela: Great. Great. And how does -- how does this happen at the Child Center of New York?

Sandra: Well, we now have programs at the beginning of the year. We provide books to the parents. The name of one of the books is "How to Talk to Children -- How to Talk to Children So They -- So They Will Listen to You." So -- so that's a book that gives a lot of strategies to the parents who have to resolve conflicts when it comes to discipline. We also give another book which talks about kinds of activities that they can do at home to increase their child's knowledge in, you know, in the environment around them.

Graciela: Great. Nina: Isn't there also a mothers group at the center? Amanda: Yes. We have a mother's support group that, like, discuss about family and help -- help us build our family and sharing about our -- our kids and teach us to -- to handle everything about our family.

Graciela: And we have one last clip by -- where we will see Whitcomb Hayslip, who is the Assistant Superintendent for Early Childhood Education for the Los Angeles Unified School District, talking with us about how they use the Abriendo Puertas program. Let's listen.

[Video begins] Whitcomb Hayslip: The Abriendo Puertas program, which I know that you are were a part of today, has just been a real gift to us. And so we are so grateful to families in schools, because they have -- they have -- they have been able to -- to acquire some funds to do the research to develop this fabulous program which really acknowledges who our families are based upon some of the -- some of the -- some of the cultural values that we know are so evident in our Los Angeles Spanish-speaking families.

And so to take them, work with them in a joyous program, where we begin to say, "Value your child, value the interactive language, and be an active advocate for your child, not just in pre-school, but all the way through our system."[Video ends]

Graciela: And this concludes Segment II of our webcast today. And as always, I'm going to kind of summarize for you the key points that -- that we've made in this conversation, and our takeaways are: using the cultural values, strengths, and experiences of families engages them at a very personal level and further establishes them as their child's primary educators;

...in incorporating the cultures and languages the families know best, programs can effectively strengthen parent leadership and advocacy skills. Stay tuned. We're coming right back with our Segment III on Community Collaborations and Partnerships. We'll be right back. [Music]

Hello. Welcome back to Segment III: Community Collaborations and Partnerships. In this segment, we'll be seeing footage from the Goddard Riverside Head Start Center, a center which serves the Latino population on the upper west side in New York City, and a partnership they have had with the American Museum of Natural History for over 12 years. It's a wonderful example of a partnership with a community organization that supports multiculturalism and diversity in the classroom.

We know that not everyone has access to a big -- big museum like this one, but as you're watching, we invite you to reflect on what organizations or institutions might exist in your own community that you could build meaningful relationships with. To begin, we'll hear from one of the teachers who is involved in this partnership. She is a Museum Educator, Jean, who did the meeting for us that day. Let's watch.

[Video begins] Jean: So the program with Goddard Riverside Head Start has been going on now for its 12th year, and we're very happy about that. It started out with both classes coming once a week. All the teachers come, and all the parents come. And what it grew into after 12 years is now we do teacher trainings, and we invite families to come to the museum for special events.

We go there. We visit there on-site at their Head Start, and then occasionally they come here for more casual visits. Historically, Goddard Riverside Head Start, because it's on the Upper West side, has been a community, I would say, mostly of Hispanic families. English is not their first language. And what we like to do with them, especially because of the age of the children, is really try to introduce them to animals and nature.

A lot of city children don't have that exposure. And so this gives us an opportunity to do that here because we have the beautiful museum halls, but because of our classroom, we also have a lot of live animals. [Video ends]

Jhumur: When you're a program, say, in the Midwest, and you look at this example that's based off a program in New York in collaboration with a museum in New York, you wonder, you know, "What -- what are the possibilities for us? " As an example, I'll use north Texas, where there's a culture of train, railroad, and so, you know, linking with...

Say, for example, in Dallas, Texas -- in Grapevine, Texas, there's a wonderful antique railroad, a rail that runs -- a train that runs between Grapevine, Texas and a stockyard. And so to tap into a resource that is in the community, collaborate with them, and that is also building on the culture of the community that you live in, the children and the families are part of.

Graciela: Great. Sandra, you had an example from the Center of New York? Sandra: Yes. In our program, we get to go to the library. Since we don't get to go to the museum, we go to the library twice a month, and we encourage the parents to come with us. Usually the children go there, read books, and then they take the books at home and do an activity with the parents.

Graciela: Do you prepare them before you go to the library? Sandra: Yes. They know. We speak with the parents before so we -- because they need to give us the library cards to go there, and the children know in advance when we are going to the library.

Graciela: In this next clip, Hilda, who is a teacher with the Head Start program, who is from Ecuador, will share with us how she felt about the program at first, and then how she prepares the children to come to the museum. Let's listen.

[Video begins] Hilda: Well, when we started this 12 years ago, and I was a little bit apprehensive because I thought it was -- like, I didn't know what to teach the kids as science. But with all the trainings that we had, I feel like we have a great adventure, a great opportunity, and right now, I feel very secure to teach science to my kids.

[Speaking in Spanish] So when we come to the museum, the children also receive training. We prepare them ahead of time, we show them pictures, we tell them how to walk because we come by train, the security safety measures we need to have with them. Parents are also very helpful.

They also come with us, so every month we have a meeting with the parents, and we talk to them about the topic that the children are studying. That way, the parents reinforce what the kids have learned at the museum, at school, and at home. So they have a communication with their children. And also...

We, the teachers have training each month. So we come to the museum, we talk about the new topics we'll be teaching to the kids. The museum's staff trains us, so we feel prepared to be able to communicate with the parents as well as with the children. [Video ends]

Graciela: Wasn't that great, what she said?

Nina: This is such a wonderful example of a way a Head Start center really uses all the parts of the environment to build not only children's experience and expanding their cultural knowledge, but really to delve deep into curriculum areas as well. It's a way that a certain very important kind of, I would say, literacy building and school readiness is encouraged and is reinforced through experiencing these different kinds of environments with this wonderful scaffolding.

Graciela: Great. And this is exactly what I watched while they were doing the rug meeting, which is sort of a circle time. And the children spoke several different languages, and we see in this very next clip how Israel, whose father we'll hear from later, is being supported in his home language by the teacher Hilda. Let's watch.

[Video begins] Teacher: What are some other insects? Israel: Eggs. Teacher: Right. We're going to talk about that, but can you tell me another kind of insect? Yeah?

Hilda: [Speaking in Spanish] Another insect that it's not a butterfly. Do you know another insect? Israel: Crickets. Teacher: Crickets is an insect.[Video ends]

Sharon: You know, this is great. It reminded me, Sandra, of what we saw in Segment I. You know, you had Hilda behind Israel supporting him, not doing a simultaneous translation, but when she realized that he didn't understand the question but he was very eager to participate, she stated the question in a language he could understand, and then he was able to instantly access the -- the curriculum, what was happening. That was really beautiful. And you saw, actually, she was quite proud herself and very satisfied, you know.

Graciela: And that is exactly why, when I later talked with Hilda, I asked her how she prepares to support them in their different home languages, and let's watch what she says here because not all of her children speak Spanish as -- as their home language.

[Video begins] [Video in Spanish] Hilda: In all my years of experience, there have always been children from different countries who speak different languages, and what I mainly try to do is that the child feels comfortable in the classroom, and I try to learn a few words in their language So they understand a little bit what we're talking about.

This year I have a girl who speaks Urdu. So every time we have a museum topic, I ask the mom or the grandma or the dad how they say for example, now that we're studying butterflies, How do you say "butterflies?" So I've learned that they say "Titly in Ghe part." That the butterfly has four wings. And the girl understands and smiles. I can see her reaction when I speak to her in her language. [Video ends]

Jhumur: And in this example, what I love is she uses the -- on the clip, I -- I heard her use the word "titly," which is butterfly in Urdu. And it really connects again with Segment I, of what we talked about in Segment I, about educators bringing in the home language, them really learning the home language, supporting it, but also how important it is for the child.

What a joy the child feels when they have that connection, they see that connection between the home and the school, and -- and really is that motivating factor for the child to continue, because it is their identity, it is their identity in the home, and it's being celebrated at the program.

Graciela: Absolutely right. Amanda: Yes. Example, when my son first started school, because we teach him to speak Indonesian at home, so I -- I taught Sandra how to say when he wants to go to the bathroom. Graciela: Oh, yes. Yes, because how else would you have known?

Sharon: Yeah, that's wonderful. I'm sure you taught her several phrases. That's a wonderful example. I love that. You know, we had on an earlier -- in the -- in one of our other series where a program had developed phrase books, and they kept growing it, and, you know, they had 50 and 60 words or more when they did have multiple languages so that

-- and they were spelled, you know, phonetically when they could be spelled phonetically so that the teachers could use them, just as you suggested, Amanda. That's great.

Graciela: Well, continuing with our visit at -- at the museum, these children, after this rug time where they prepare, they go on safari, and they get to literally go through the museum where -- and we're going to see them, and this day, we were lucky. They were going to the butterfly conservatory, or vivarium. Let's watch as they go there and how they feel and what they experience while they are there with the butterflies.

[Video begins] Museum Guide: So these doors help keep the butterflies in the vivarium. Okay? So we have to... Teacher: Oh, there's the blue morpho. See the blue morpho? Is she okay? He's flying right around her.

Speaker 1: How beautiful. Teacher: Yeah. Salt. Oh, right. And he's drying his wings. Speaker 2: Look at this one here with the light.

Guard: I'd like everybody to turn around so I can look and make sure you have no butterflies on you. Can you just turn around? Okay. You know why I have the net? Because sometimes they like to escape, the butterflies, on you. And you know where I find them? Sometimes on the dinosaur's head. Yeah. Sometimes they do that. Yeah. Right. Okay, you guys are all ready to go. [Video ends]

Nina: Another benefit of a trip like this is children get to have a chance to hear English, for example, spoken by adults who they're not familiar with. And that guard was so wonderful and seemed to know exactly how to talk about butterflies to the children, but it gave them a chance to practice as well as learn everything they were about science.

Graciela: Great.

Sharon: Yeah. No, that's wonderful. I mean, I think it also reminds me, even when you bring it back to your own program, that the learning that's happening for children goes -- extends way beyond the classroom, you know, whether you're infants and toddlers in the settings or pre-school, that all of the other people in the center or in the program, you know, should look for ways to be meaningfully involved, just like the guard did in terms of relating to the children.

Graciela: Obviously he had been trained to have these visitors in the butterfly museum. The -- the next tape is when they come back to the classroom. This was -- it took about 15 minutes to be with the butterflies, and then we walked to the museum again, back to the science room, where there are actually live animals, and they get to choose what they want to explore. So this is what we're going to see next. Let's watch.

[Video begins] Teacher: He's a jumper. And maybe he'll jump right into Caitlin's hand. It's okay. You can put your hand ut. Teacher: What's he feel like? Caitlin: It feels like he's walking there. It feels like he's walking. He feels like he's scared. Is it a boy or girl? Teacher: You know, I don't know if it's a boy or a girl. I'm not sure. Hi, Jordan.

Jordan: Ooh, I have a -- I have a movie about one. Child 1: Can I have it? Caitlin: Wait. Teacher: We will all take turns. We'll all take turns. Jordan: Oh, that's... Does it -- it could bite?

Caitlin: No, it doesn't bite. These are very -- tickles! Child 1: Oh, it tickles! It tickles a lot. Jordan: He doesn't bite. Teacher: Well, you know, he doesn't bite, but he has a mouth, and you always have to respect him. Did you see how he hopped on you, Caitlin?

Caitlin: He's so soft. Don't touch his head. He looks oh, my gosh! Teacher: See, I told you he was going to jump. Jordan: Can I hold him? Teacher: Let's let Jordan have a turn, okay? You okay, Jordan, with this? Jordon: That so

tickles.

Didi: [Speaking in Spanish] Look at the one on the top. Anthony: Hey, Didi. Didi: Yeah. Adult: Ok, Anthony, can you give Jordan a turn now, please? You can come down. Gracias, Anthony. You're next, Alexis.

Teacher 2: You have 10 titis? Huh? You have 10 aunties? [Speaking in Spanish] Look, there's -- there's more here. Ready? Ready, Viviana? Adult: Kaya, where's the butterfly I gave you? Teacher 2: Okay. That's it. That's it. [Speaking in Spanish] Does it like this? Look, like this. Okay? Here you go. Here. If it gets stuck, use your finger like this.

Viviana: I'm finished. Teacher 2: [Speaking in Spanish] Okay. Ready? Tell me your story. Child 2: Can I have that, use it as glitter, please? Teacher 2: Wow, Viviana. You have two. Viviana: A lot nice!

Teacher 2: I like gardens. Wow. Yes. A beautiful garden. Viviana: Lots of flowers in the garden. Teacher 2: Flowers here. Flowers here. A butterfly. What is this, Viviana? Viviana: Bug. Teacher 2: A bug? What kind of bug?

Viviana: Really, it's a -- it's really -- it's really a tiny bug. Tiny bug. Teacher 2: A tiny bug. Ok. Viviana: Tiny bug. Tiny bug. Tiny bug. Tiny bug. Teacher 2: Excellent. No. I don't know. I don't think so. Okay. This is here. We've got to somehow connect this to this. Let me just take a peek at this. [Video ends]

Jhumur: In this example, we see the children and listen to the children use some wonderful words, some juicy words, some interesting words that are not maybe necessarily typical for four-year-olds. But what's very important is, as they're exploring, that these words are meaningful to them, because they are experiencing these words as they touch and feel and discuss and talk about the actual object, in this case a gecko or a chinchilla.

So it's -- it's very critical because it's a very important component of language and literacy development, these meaningful experiences.

Nina: Yes, definitely. The experiential base is really such a crucible for all sorts of literacy, both verbal and written, to evolve because first children have to know about the world so that they'll be excited to read and write about it. Sharon: Excellent.

Graciela: Great. And before I left this wonderful day at the museum, I had the opportunity to talk with several -- several of the parents that were there with the children and a grandmother. And let's just look at these next clips of parents and grandparents telling us what they see in their children as they go through this program of collaboration between the Head Start and the museum.

[Video begins] [Video in Spanish] Mother: Well, this program is wonderful. As a mother, I've learned to... Well, going back to what we were talking about before, for example, that we come from Mexico, I'm Mexican. I've had more contact with animals that here you have in captivity.

It's a fantastic experience to touch them and see them free in the countryside. Unfortunately, our children don't have the opportunity to see that there. So here they teach them to take care of them. They're taught that if you treat animals kindly, they're not aggressive. They're taught to love and take care of nature because it's amazing and beautiful.

And the children are learning all that stuff -- those things. They're learning that if they see a hurt pigeon on the ground they learn to say, "Mom, let's help it to fly. Let's put it in a place where it won't get hurt anymore." And it's something that bonds the parents and the children, because once we come here with them, and then it's, "Mommy, let's talk about this."

There's a topic we have something to talk about with them at home. We're there. We're together all the time. We talk about what we see here, which is not only about animals. It's we talk about planets... Different topics, Different things.

Rosalio Rojas: I'm Rosalio Rojas. I'm from Mexico. I grew up in the countryside. I had a lot of contact with animals, but I've learned in this museum and in other places here about different kinds of animals. Like, here they teach us

about reptiles, mammals, birds, fish, everything.

This museum has perhaps helped us to have more time to share with our children, which is very important at this time because I think that here time is very limited to be together, but here at school, I have four kids who have come here, from the eldest to the youngest, one who's here now. And I think that it helps them a lot to have that knowledge of what culture is, what nature is, to be able to, in the future, be better human beings, teach someone else who may not know about what we're seeing now, right?

I think this program is very good. I wish there would be many more programs so that those who don't know these things can learn a lot and maybe be a better world in the future.

Grandmother: Of five children, they all come to the programs at different times, and I'm truly grateful for these programs. They learn so much, they enrich mostly their vocabulary and understanding, and at the same time, they pretend to talk -- to conserve the fauna and flora. Or, if they watch TV, they always say...

..."Ah, we saw that in our class. We saw that at the museum." So it means that they're very interested in this. There's a motivation. So of course, we support them. After that, we understand them better. There are things that even if we're adults, they know them better than us because of what they've learned.

So I say if this program exists, let it always be there. I'm grateful, and the truth is that children excel, they enrich themselves, and at the same time they say, "When I'm older, I want to do that." So their interest is already there for science, for nature, for rocks, for space, for the universe, because they've already seen all that those things here.

And now children are not quiet. The schools that they'll attend in the future say, "It was good that they were where they were." So thank you for everything and don't let these programs disappear. They always have to be there. And I think that if we can help with anything, I'm available. [Video ends]

Graciela: Wasn't that wonderful? We can't say no more. I think this is a case where less is more than more. So this is the conclusion of our last program in the series. Thank you, all of you, for having been our panelists today. We've had a great time discussing all of these wonderful topics with you and sharing these clips, and now, as always, I will review with you our key concepts for this segment.

Programs can build meaningful partnerships with organizations and institutions in their own local areas. A true partnership between a Head Start program and a community organization is about mutual support and learning from each other over a period of time. Including families in community partnerships enhances the child's learning experience.

Again, thank you. This concludes our webcast on Diversity and Multicultural Integration in Head Start and Early Head Start, Part II, and our series, "Ready for Success: "Supporting Children Who Are Dual Language Learners in Head Start and Early Head Start." Thank you all, and good-bye to our Head Start community.

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