I am the Chair of Curriculum!!!!!!!!!

January 9, 2012

Dear Fellow Community Members,

Greetings, my name is Angela Morales, and I have just been appointed to the Chair of Curriculum position in the Happy Town School District.  I am writing to you simply to introduce myself and inform you of some of the changes I plan on implementing to enhance our traditional learning environment.  I have been a teacher at the elementary level in this school district for the past seven years.  My goal is to ensure that every student has an equal opportunity to succeed under my guidance.  It is our duty as educators to give our children the knowledge, attitude and skills needed to survive in a culturally diverse world.  It is my personal goal to provide a learning environment where children receive exposure to several different cultures so they have the knowledge to interact and communicate with diverse cultures and races in our society.  It is my belief that children must be taught respect for all cultures starting from an early age.

My top priority is to further expand our mindset of multicultural education.  Beginning in kindergarten and continuing throughout all grades, our curriculum will include lessons that pertain to the many cultures of the students in the classrooms.  Examples of some topics I plan on including are the arts of different cultures such as music, literature, food, holidays, and even clothing of each different culture.  These different cultures will be represented in classroom décor, in hallways, and even with food items on the lunch menus.  As the children reach the fifth and sixth grade levels and higher, they will be participating in other activities including book reports and research projects on a given culture.  We will also be incorporating different cultures into our annual holiday performances.  I feel that it is imperative to teach our children about the many different cultures that make up our world today.  My ultimate goal for this innovation is providing a school where there is less bullying, less racial tension, and increase in classroom performance for all students.

There are several books on this topic which I plan on making part of the curriculum.  One of my favorite websites I used for choosing the books for my library is http://www.multiculturalchildrenslit.com/  please feel free to take a look at it for yourself. For example, there is a book titled “The Rough-Face Girl” by Rafe Martin, which is a Native American Cinderella story. This is a book that will flourish in the elementary schools! There are also annual workshops for staff to attend. It is important for school staff to become more educated as well on such an important topic. 

This innovation will begin being implemented in the upcoming 2012-2013 school year.  I am very confident that each classroom will embrace our new way of thinking and hope you do the same. Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions or require any additional information. I am looking forward to a prosperous school year with all of you!

Sincerely,

Angela Morales

Chair of Curriculum

(555)555-5555

Angela@Ludmila.com