Culturally Cinderella

Abstract

Education in the United States has been severely lacking in one particular area: Culture. Although many teachers feel that their students’ cultural education can be concentrated into one month of lessons, they are actually doing their students a disservice. Not only do students need to be taught about other cultures, they also need to feel that their culture is included within the standard curriculum. Culturally Cinderella is a compilation of lessons, activities, teaching aids, and research primarily focusing on the book Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters by John Steptoe. All components highlight the African culture, which will enable black students to learn about their history, and provide a responsive approach to teaching non-black students about the African civilization. Culturally Cinderella includes the following components: A book talk for Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters; a read aloud of Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters; an author analysis of John Steptoe; a three-part, multi-curricular lesson with accompanying examples; a video article on why cultural relevancy is important; and a reflective paper on how the project was created.