Week 4 Blog

An example of a microaggression that I can remember happened last week in my classroom. My assistant was on vacation so a substitute was placed in their with me. It was lunch time and the children where having burritos for lunch, there is only one Hispanic child this year in my class. The teacher started to fix plates and pass the lunch to each child when she got to the Hispanic child she made the comment," I bet you eat better burritos then this at home." I don't think she intended to be disrespectful in any way. Having a better understanding of what microaggression's are I think that it is important for us as educators to be sensitive and think about what we are saying before we say it. What may be funny to us may be hurtful and offensive to others. Hearing what the teacher said made me instantly think how I would feel if that where said to me, I would feel like an outcast like my culture or the way things are done in my home where not the right things to do. Before this class I had never heard of microaggression's knowing what I know I will be more aware of what I say or do when dealing with the families and children that I work with.

Week 3 Blog

For this blog assignment I was able to talk to three individuals that where different in everyway. First I talked to a parent in my classroom who is Indian and she said," Culture to me is the traditions that are passed down from generation to generation. Diversity is when different individuals of different gender, ages, race, or cultures come together." The second individual I talked with is my neighbor who is Vietnamese and he said," Culture is what we are born into it is what our family does together, it is what my family is made of."  Diversity is different people." The last person that I was able to talk to was one of my Caucasian co-coworker and she said," culture is something that is individualized for a specific race of people. Diversity is different groups of people of different nationalities."

Hearing what others think of culture and diversity made me think that for the most part each individual had the same definition in a way. Each one talked about culture being specific to a race or nationality of people. On the topic of diversity each had the same words in the definition which was different people. I think that there is no right or wrong answer when it comes to defining culture and diversity because each person has their own views and we as individuals should always respect others.

Week 2 Blog

If  I had to choose three items to take wit me to my new country they would be my family bible, African elephant, and moccasins. These items are what represents my families identity. The family Bible is a representation of my families strong religious affiliation, my grandmother bought all of her children the exact same bible with a picture of her parents inside. Each bible has their name engraved on the front and their children's names where eventually added as they where born. The second item also represents my families identity, I would take the African Elephants that my cousins sent to me from Africa. Elephants that have their trunks in the air are said to be good luck, so my cousins sent them over to me as a sign of good luck. The third and final thing that I would bring is the moccasins that my grandmother gave to me. My grandmother was full blooded Seminole Indian and she resided in Florida. My mother was pregnant with me when my grandmother gave her the moccasins, I never got to meet her but my mother told me the story when I was old enough to understand.


Upon arrival I would be upset if they told me I only could keep one of the items, because they all mean a great deal to me. I would feel that my identity was being stolen or taken from me because each of the items are what I identify with as part of my culture. They are what my family is made of and only being able to keep one would feel devastating to me.

The insight that I have gained from doing this exercise is that my family is very diverse and unique in its own right. My families culture runs deep and I am proud that I have a family that is diverse and unique at the same time.