Know Your Students
Why is it important to learn how to pronounce students’ names correctly?
It shows respect, builds trust, and affirms their identity.
What does it mean to have an “inclusive” classroom?
Everyone feels welcomed, respected, and represented.
What’s one teaching strategy that allows students to work together and learn from each other?
Think-pair-share, cooperative learning, group discussions, group projects
What is a stereotype?
A generalized belief about a group of people that’s often incorrect or harmful.
This classic Will Smith theme song reminds us that students bring their whole selves—including their neighborhoods—to the classroom.
What is “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” theme song?
What are two ways teachers can learn more about their students’ backgrounds?
acceptable answers include:
Surveys and interviews, home visits, talking with families, interest inventories.
Name one classroom activity that helps build community among students.
Morning meetings, peer interviews, group projects, “culture circles.”, discussions, games, etc
Why is it helpful to include storytelling in your lessons?
Storytelling connects to many cultural traditions and helps make learning memorable.
Why is it a problem if a textbook only shows white historical figures?
It erases the contributions of people of color and promotes a biased version of history. It's racist
If a teacher includes hip-hop, storytelling, and student-chosen topics in a lesson, they’re not just cool—they're practicing THIS kind of pedagogy.
What is culturally responsive teaching?
What is one example of how a teacher can make their lesson more culturally responsive?
acceptable answers include
gamify it, storify it, or make it social
Why is it important to have diverse voices represented in classroom materials?
So students see themselves and others reflected and valued in the curriculum.
What is call-and-response in a lesson?
When a teacher says a phrase or question, and students respond together—common in Black cultural traditions and music.
What is “code-switching”?
Changing the way you speak or act depending on the setting—often to fit into dominant/racist cultural expectations.
This phrase, popularized by TikTok and Gen Z, reminds teachers that students can tell when you’re being fake or putting on a “teacher voice.”
“Be real”
Explain how a teacher might use a student’s interests to design a more engaging lesson.
an acceptable answer could be:
If a student loves music, include song lyrics in a reading lesson or create a beat to remember math formulas.
Describe a way teachers can make classroom rules culturally responsive.
Co-create rules with students based on mutual respect and understanding different norms.
How can using multiple types of media (videos, art, music) support culturally responsive teaching?
It reflects different learning styles and cultural expressions, making learning more engaging and accessible.
How can teachers avoid “deficit or negative thinking” about their students?
Focus on students’ strengths, not what they’re missing; believe in their potential.
You walk into a classroom where there's a Black Lives Matter poster, student-created art on the walls, a “word of the week” from different languages, and a class playlist bumping Afrobeats and reggaeton. This teacher is practicing what?
Culturally responsive teaching
How can knowing a student’s cultural background help a teacher respond to behavior in class?
Teachers can understand communication styles, values around authority, or family expectations that influence behavior.
How can classroom celebrations or rituals be made more culturally responsive and inclusive?
allowing students to share their own traditions; avoiding assumptions about which holidays everyone celebrates.
Instead of writing an essay on a book, how could students produce a culturally relevant project?
do a podcast or a spoken word poetry piece, OR a film
A teacher sees a student speaking their home language and tells them to “speak English only.” Why is this a biased response, and what’s a better alternative?
It disrespects the student’s identity and language. A better response would be to honor the home language and encourage bilingual pride while offering support for learning English.
What is the name of the educator who popularized the concept of culturally relevent/responsive teaching?
Gloria Ladson Billings