Community isn’t just about getting along; it’s about finding the magic that motivates kids to want to learn—together. This article explores the importance of an inclusive community in the classroom and four creative ways to accomplish it.
A community can be defined as a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common. Inclusivity is the practice of providing equal access to opportunities and resources for people who might otherwise be excluded or marginalized.
One year I had a student whose favorite thing to do at recess was to sit in the sand. He would laugh and wave to the kids when they ran past but preferred to play alone. One day when I blew the whistle to line up, he started to cry. This happened several days in a row; I tried talking to him, made him the official line leader, and would let him know when it was time to line up before I blew the whistle so he could get a head start, but nothing helped. I needed to do something and quickly, so I decided to give him his own whistle. The next day (and several days after) he blew the whistle for the kids to come in from recess. Problem solved; he was so happy! Community and inclusion; he was included and part of the community.
Without inclusivity, there is no community.
The reason an inclusive community is so important is because for all children to feel safe, take risks, and learn, they need to feel like part of a community. This environment is established beginning the first day of school and continues throughout the year, all the way up to and including the last day of school.
Building a community allows you, the educator, to teach more effectively and efficiently so that all children can participate in enrichment activities that further their curiosity and expand their imagination. Inclusive communities have fewer behavior challenges where students can focus on deep learning and creativity.
The following are four activities that build community through inclusivity. Each activity description includes tips for implementation and connects to several curriculum standards. Adapt the activities as needed for your grade level and classroom.
Children who learn how to build trust amongst each other, their teachers, and other adults are more successful in life, and they feel a sense of belonging. The following activity allows children to see how their choices effect those around them.
Grab a tub of attachable cubes and demonstrate how trust is built, starting with one cube, and adding a cube each time a child shows how they’ve made a positive choice. (I demonstrate by making up a story using examples of positive choices that highlight life skills such as the ones listed below.) Your first trust tower can be made for the whole class. Several times throughout the day, join another cube to the tower as the children exhibit life skills such as perseverance and cooperation, self-control, and kindness toward themselves and others. When the trust is broken, take a cube away, but tell them they can rebuild the trust through more positive actions and choices. As children understand the concept, have them build their own trust tower based on their actions and on feedback from you and others.
This activity is linked to math standards, including counting, adding, subtracting, and developing number sense.
An important element of community-building is providing opportunities for children to discover and articulate the similarities between themselves and others.
One way to accomplish this is with a shoe graph. Have one child at a time remove their left shoe and place it on an empty graph. (I tape a large piece of butcher paper to the floor, then use it later to cover tables for an art project.) Each child has the option of putting their shoe with another shoe AND tell why they are similar, or they can start a new row AND explain why.
(For example: Velcro, shoelaces, sandals, light-up, color, theme-related, characters, tennis shoes, dressy shoes, and so on) Tip: You may want to try this activity before recess to avoid sand, and it helps if you have an extra set of hands available to help the children put their shoes back on!
This activity is linked to math standards including graphing, counting, more than, less than, grouping, and distinguishing between left and right.
Children working together on group projects is another great way to build community and it encourages children to try things using multiple approaches including visual, kinesthetic, logic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and so on.
Pick up a few sheets of white poster board from the dollar store. Divide each into four sections, leaving a place at the top for a title. Label each of the four sections: Characters, Plot, Setting, Ending.
On Friday, choose four of the picture books you’ve used to teach science or math that week and create book reports by diving children into groups of four and assigning them each a book. The children write the book title at the top, then they use markers or crayons to fill in the four boxes. Some children will love drawing pictures, others will enjoy writing words, or reading through the book to help their storybook team. They each write their name at the top. The goal is to encourage each child to participate in some way. You may have to assign roles (recorder, illustrator, reporter, reader) and demonstrate before the class begins this project.
It's important to celebrate students’ work after they complete the activity by having each group present their poster and describe their storyboard to the class. Hang the posters on the wall at eye level and encourage sharing throughout the rest of the day by making time for a five-minute story walk or while lining up for lunch. Collect the posters each week until you have enough for each child to take one home. Mix up the groups each week so students have an opportunity to work with every classmate.
This activity is linked to reading standards including story sequencing, shared project work, participation in discussion with peers and adults, applying phonetic knowledge when writing, and integrating reading skills to present ideas.
This activity can be completed with a small or large group of children. It works well with children the same age, or with older learning buddies.
First, assign each child a partner and give each pair one piece of paper and one crayon. The children take turns holding the crayon together: one holds the top and the other holds the bottom. Begin to play music. When the music starts, students will create a picture together without talking. Play the music for just a minute, then have students stop and swap positions holding the crayon. Play the music again for one minute. Creating a picture together allows children to take creative risks and encourages collaboration by expanding the creative process.
This activity is linked to art standards including generating and conceptualizing artistic work and organizing and developing artistic ideas and work.
Implementing these tangible, hands-on, real-life activities far exceed any results you’ll ever see from a worksheet on building an inclusive community. Children of all abilities can participate. Bonus: Share all these activities with parents to show the progress their children are making throughout the year to expand your inclusive community from the classroom to home, too.