Raising Globally Aware Children

Promoting Open-minded and Accepting Views

In the wake of the horrific events that have recently happened in France and Australia, it is time to start doing my part on preventing such acts via promoting acceptance, open-mindedness and peace towards foreign countries, people, customs and cultures. The media here in the US often tends to paint a very sinister view on all things foreign, but in real life there is more good than evil in most places on earth. Through education and exposure our children can learn to be more open-minded than our own generations. 

Since I have always been interested and curious towards foreign lands and people, I have taken a practical approach in trying to instill these values into my own children. I always imagined that I would take my children all over the world right from the start, but of course reality has hit me since and our family has not gone to many places. But that has not stopped me. I am on a mission to make sure that my kids know that people from all over the world want the same things. Above all everyone wants to be happy and everyone needs food, shelter and love to survive. And that people are much more similar than different even if they grew up on the other side of the globe of each other. The best part about knowing people from around the globe is to be able to learn from them. There are so many wonderful and endearing things about each country and culture and we can choose to enhance our own lives by including some of those customs, foods or celebrations into our routines.

My children and I have had some fun while learning about foreign countries. Often I let the kids pick a country at random, although they seem to prefer to pick countries that they have heard about through stories, friends and other connections. It is easier to start from countries that you are familiar with as well. This is how we go on about it :

1. Find the country on a map and foster friendships with people from that country. We have a world map on a wall that the kids pass every time they go into their rooms. We look at the oceans, lakes, mountains and neighboring countries. We talk about the continent. Then we open our Great Picture Atlas for Children and look at typical animals, produce, products and places within that country. My kids get excited when they find something familiar from the country. It helps to also have a connection to the country through a friend. If I know someone from the country or someone who has spent some time in the country, I try and make sure that we spend some time with them. A shared experience is the most memorable one for my children.

2. Go on a scavenger hunt around the house and find all the items that you have from that country. Place the items on a special basket or a shelf. Talk about how you ended up getting the items and what they mean to you. At our house the special basket or shelf could be full of books, souvenirs, toys, games and photographs in the end, as we keep finding more after a few days.

3. Go to the library and pick up books about the country, its people and customs. I typically look for books online in the library catalog and order them in advance, but if I have not had a chance to do that, then I ask for help from the librarians. We look for books on the country's geography, culture and customs, people and famous people, arts and crafts, cook books, children's story books with a connection to that country, etc... The librarians are always excited to help, as they think that it is neat that we go to such lengths to teach the kids something new. It is always wonderful if we can find some music from that country as well. 

3. Research the country online. We go to Kidrex.org (a child friendly search engine) and find websites, videos and music from that country. Typically I do a fair amount of searching on my own and find the best sites and videos before I go online with the kids, but my daughter is now becoming a pretty good researcher so she is starting to take over. We find and save meaningful pictures of animals, people, products, places, famous people, etc. from the country (I use Google images for this) and print them out.

4. After studying the country online and from the books, make a poster. We cut out the printed pictures and paste them onto a big sheet of paper. The kids write labels for the pictures and hang the poster on the wall. 

5. Make a craft inspired by the country. I find ideas both online and through craft books.

6. Find and visit places and/or events that tie you to the country. Museums often have exhibits from foreign lands. International communities organize cultural events. Gardens often have plants from many countries and orchestras play music from all over the world. Ethnic Food Stores are also fantastic places to explore with children.

7. Try learn a few words in a foreign language from the country. The kids have a great time trying to learn a few words in the language(s) from the country they are studying. I look for little video clips that help us pronounce the words. Warning, lots of giggles are in line if you find words that sound silly for your children.

8. Celebrate and share things that you have learned with an ethnic meal. If I feel very energetic and enthusiastic I might get the whole family involved in cooking an ethnic meal from the country. We decorate the dining room with items from the country and with the crafts and poster that the kids made. We invite friends with a connection to the country over for a meal. If I do not have the time, I keep the cooking part simple and just make one dish with the kids. Sometimes I also take the easy way out and take the family out to a restaurant for an ethnic meal.

Here is also a list of local places in San Diego that can be helpful during your studies:

• House of Pacific Relations International Cottages in Balboa Park. You can visit cottages from many countries on Sundays between noon and 4:00 pm. You can talk with the hosts and find out more about the countries and often you can taste a few treats from the specific countries as well. At 2:00 pm on Sundays there is a lawn program. East host country of the international cottages takes turns organizing a lawn program, which usually includes music and performances from that country. The schedule is posted on the International Cottages Facebook page.
• Many museums in Balboa Park have exhibitions from foreign lands. As an example, the Natural History Museum, Museum of Man and The San Diego Museum of Art currently have exhibits on Egyptian items such a mummies. The Museum of Man even has a great Egyptian themed play room for children. Mingei International Museum often has exhibits from different countries, although the focus right now is on American Folk Art. 
• There are beautiful gardens in San Diego that all have plants from foreign countries. For example, San Diego Botanic Gardens has African and Central American Gardens. There is a Japanese Friendship Garden and an Australian Garden in Balboa Park. 
• Lots of ethnic community events happen year round in the San Diego area. I find out about them through the San Diego Family Magazine's calendar. 
• Look for concerts with international themes. For example, the San Diego Symphony often performs master pieces from all over the world. Sometimes there are even concerts and performances by international groups specifically designed for children. I also find out about those via the San Diego Family Magazine.
• San Diego Zoo is full of animals from around the globe. 

After all this studying, I encourage my kids to share what they have learned with others. I also personally love to talk with people about the insights I have gained while trying to teach my kids. I embrace friendships with people from all over the world. If my kids see me do that, then they will learn to be open-minded and accepting without even knowing it.  It's time we all become peace keepers and global citizens. Through education and celebrations it can be a lot of fun!

Let me know if I inspired you to try something new with your children! I would love to hear about your experiences! From here, I will launch into covering foreign lands. I will cover Australia first as Australia Day is coming up on January 26th. Then China, as Chinese New Years is coming up in February. And from there other countries as well. I will share good resources for educating children. I hope that you join me on this international journey!