Welcoming Families From Around the World

“You are working in an early childhood setting… You receive word that the child of a family who has recently emigrated from a country you now nothing about will join your group soon. You want to prepare yourself to welcome the child and her family… in order to support families who have immigrated you need to know more than surface facts about their country of origin.”

For this scenario, I have chose the country of Croatia, a small country located between Central and Eastern Europe. To help this family feel comfortable in their new surroundings, I have learned several things about the Croatian culture that may help begin a family-school relationship and help the child feel more at ease in the classroom.

Upon meeting the parents, handshakes and direct eye contact is the usual greeting, but I will be sure to use titles and surnames, as first names are generally reserved for family and close friends. I understand it may take time for the parents to feel comfortable “speaking up”, as diplomacy is respected and used, particularly when meeting new people, and so will take my cues from their comfort levels, and be patient.

In building a relationship with her family, I would want to find out if they are Catholic, like the majority of Croatians, or another religion, so I can be aware of celebrations and holidays.

I would invite parents and other family members to come in to share with the class about their culture, perhaps through folklore, music, or poem, as these methods are ways Croatians often preserve their cultures. This invitation would be open to any family member, as it is common for extended family to live together. If they had to leave extended family behind, perhaps we would do a letter-writing or art project that could be sent to relatives “back home” to tell them of her new school and home.

I would have the child be VIP during her first or second week in my classroom. This is a getting-to-know-you project in which she will create a poster with pictures of her family and things she likes to do. It is not a time-consuming project and can be created with items already in the home, or drawings. This will allow for communication about herself that is not reliant on English, in case she is not bilingual (although English is a common second language, I do not want to make assumptions).

In providing any take-home projects, I would be sure to find family-oriented projects, as weekends are often reserved to spend time with families, and this could be an opportunity for shared learning as well as quality time spent with family.

I hope these ways represent a culturally sensitive classroom, staff, and curriculum; and demonstrates a willingness to build a relationship between home and school while respecting boundaries and supporting such a large life transition.