Learning Heritage, Diversity & Inclusion with Kids from Pre School

Monday was one of those days to remember forever. One of those days to be really grateful for. And it is for a couple of different reasons.

• It was International day at Day Care for my little one. For the first time after the pandemic parents were allowed to attend in person. It was the first time after more than 2 years that we could go inside the school and it was the first time after the pandemic that we were able to see our youngest live in class. And she did awesome!
• International day at Day Care is special. It is the celebration of the world, its diversity and wonders in general and of one country in particular. Countries change year after year and are different for each class. For us this year, it was Italy. And Italy is special because it is where my father was born and where he emigrated from when he was 2 years old, when Europe was impacted by WWII and Latin America appeared to offer a better future. Celebrating Italy holding its flag next to my daughter holding the US flag, where she was born, and thinking of Argentina in between, the country were my wife and I were born and got to know each other, got married and started our beautiful family is special and represents a world’s celebration, at least 3 of its many continents.
• International day and this class are a celebration of diversity and inclusion. Multiple skin colors, ages, gender, nationalities, all coming together to celebrate the world, to embrace the different cultures, origins, languages, traditions and more. It is so profound and amazing that you have to stop and think about it to really understand what it is. And here we are all the parents watching how normal this is for our kids. A little one with roots in Argentina playing with other ones with roots in India, China, Eastern Europe, US, Africa, Italy, Spain and other places. They don’t question each other heritage or traditions, they feel they are equal, they play and try to make their class, together with their teacher’s help, a better place.

In a world with so much conflict and inequality, where we struggle to come together and collaborate for the greater good, where companies have to work so hard to have representation of the communities that we serve within the workforce, where women have to fight continuously to be treated fairly, this is a day to remember, this is a day to watch and learn, this is a day to be humble and see how much these kids can teach us.

To finish this post, I would like to share a summary of one of the songs the class sang today, The world is a rainbow:

• The world is a rainbow that’s filled with many colors; You see them all around. With many kinds of people; it takes all kinds of people to make the world go round. Now you be you and I’ ll be me. That’s the way we were meant to be. With many kinds of people; and when we work together it’s such a sight to see. The world is beautiful when we live in harmony.

It would be so amazing to spread this around, this is how the world should be every day, every where including the corporate world. It looks so simple and so easy for this kids. Sometimes, it looks so complicated for adults…

I hope you like this as much as I did and that you find some inspiration for your day :)

Thank you Apple Montessori Schools and all teachers for such an event. You are making an impact, keep going, don’t settle! Thank you so much!