Building Culturally Responsive Classrooms: A Guide for K-6 Teachers

"Concha Delgado Gaitan has provided a wonderful resource to all educators. The topics used to structure the chapters provide the reader with an orderly consideration of the school as a cultural entity itself. Most important, each chapter provides the reader with clear theoretical applications in a hands-on manner that is meaningful and easy to use." --Randall B. Lindsey, Professor Emeritus, California State University, Los Angeles Principal Associate, The Robins Group "Concha Delgado Gaitan brings a wealth of personal experience and years of research to Building Culturally Responsive Classrooms. It is thought provoking and challenges us to get to know and understand how culture affects students in order to foster the best working and learning environment." --Judy M. Alva, Elementary Vice Principal Lodi Unified School District, CA Allow your classroom setting and instruction to reflect the rich diversity and values of your students! Teachers today are faced with the enormous responsibility of respecting students′ various cultures while creating learning settings that challenge them academically. Concha Delgado Gaitan shows how teachers honoring real culture can transform the context and content within their classroom and become culturally responsive to all their students. This invaluable resource covers the topics of classroom discipline, classroom arrangement, and parent and community involvement in order to create a culturally inclusive learning setting. In addition, Gaitan explains how teachers can use instructional strategies that are culturally responsive to teach literacy, mathematics, science, and more. Each accessible, user-friendly chapter contains: A personal reflection from a teacher The latest research and best practices A rich case example Guiding questions, reflective questions, and classroom applications Based on the author′s firsthand research, this handbook is ideal for individual teachers, mentoring pairs, and study groups.

Table of Contents:
Preface Acknowledgments About the Author 1. Introduction Part I: Context: Configuring the Classroom for Academic Equity 2. Engaging With Children′s Values Around Cooperation and Competition 3. Culturally Responsive Classroom Discipline 4. Accelerating Exceptional Students From All Linguistic and Cultural Groups 5. Including Students With Special Needs in the Culturally Responsive Classroom 6. Culturally Responsive Classroom Management 7. Supporting Children′s Cultural Adjustment 8. Connecting Home and School Part II: Content: Learning Subject Matter Through Culture in the Classroom 9. Teaching Cultural Diversity 10. Becoming Proficient in English 11. Building Literacy 12. Creating Equity in Math and Science 13. Fostering a Gender Equity 14. Crafting an Interdisciplinary Curriculum 15: Conclusion: Responding Culturally in Teaching References Index

About the Author :
Concha Delgado Gaitan, PhD, is an award-winning ethnographic researcher and professor of sociocultural studies in education. She received the George and Louise Spindler award for her contributions to the field of Anthropology and Education from the Council of Anthropology and Education of the American Anthropological Association. Her early career as a teacher and school principal informs her later work as a practicing anthropologist in communities and professor at the University of California, Davis. Concha has also worked in the field of public health education in Latino communities, combining that interest with her dedication to issues of social justice and education. She is a national and international speaker as well as a consultant on the numerous topics that inspire her work. Among her many scholarly publications are her books where she presents her work as an ethnographer working with disenfranchised families and communities toward their empowerment and extending practical lessons to educators: (1) The Power of Community, (2) Protean Literacy, (3) Crossing Cultural Borders, (4) Literacy for Empowerment, (5) School and Society, (6) Involving Latino Families in the School, (7) Building Culturally Responsive Classrooms, and this most current one (8) Creating a College Culture for Latino Students. In a different book, Prickly Cactus, she turns the lenses inward to look at the role of family and community in her life during a time of major health crisis. Concha works and lives in the San Francisco Bay area with her husband Dudley Thompson. For more information, please go to www.conchadelgadogaitan.com  or contact Concha at concha@conchadg.com.

Review :
"[This book] presents issues that influence educators serving students whose perspectives and experiences differ from their own and offers innovative and appropriate strategies to create learning environments that promote respect and equity for all students. [It] addresses the challenges of many special populations, including those of at-risk, gifted and talented, learning disabled, English language acquisitions, and more." "Dr. Delgado Gaitan has provided a wonderful resource to all educators. The topics used to structure the chapters provide the reader with an orderly consideration of the school as a cultural entity itself. Most importantly, each chapter provides the reader with clear theoretical applications in a hands-on manner that is meaningful and easy to use."   "Dr. Gaitan brings a wealth of personal experience and years of research to Building Culturally Responsive Classrooms. It is thought provoking and challenges us to get to know and understand how culture affects students in order to foster the best working and learning environment." "The reflection and application section are excellent and are an excellent springboard to discussion and debriefing among the staff." "This book will be valuable in both teacher preparation programs and in-service professional development as a tool to help teachers grapple with the practical complexities of culture in their work with children and families."