Crossroads Cafe School Involvement Handbook--TVCC

UNIT 11—NO VACANCY

Story:  Rosa decides she needs to move to a new apartment, so she fills out an application at Katherine’s apartment building.  The manager tells her the apartment is rented, but then she shows it to another family.  All of the employees of Crossroads Café work together in order to prove that the manager is discriminating against people of color.

Diversity:  Is diversity celebrated in your local schools?  Look at various aspects of the school system.  If possible, use pictures from local newspapers or school district newsletters.  Are minorities represented in the school faculty and staff?  Look at sports teams, cheerleaders, homecoming court, student officers, and students of the month.  Are certain groups over- or under-represented? 

Your New Language:  Teach words and phrases used for clarification, such as:  You mean…?  What does that mean?  What did you say?  I don’t understand.  Can you repeat that please?  Practice using these phrases in class.
 

Home activity:  Discuss a school paper or homework assignment with a child.  Practice using clarification words and phrases during the discussion.

We’re Different; We’re the Same, (Sesame Street Picturebacks), by Bobbi Jane Kates
The Colors of Us, by Karen Katz
All the Colors of the Earth, by Sleila Hamanaka
(about diversity)