The power of one school-wide event to create a culture of belonging

When children first walk through our school doors for pre-K or kindergarten, they bring a natural desire to learn and an effortless joy for school. They’re inquisitive and eager to engage. However, as a teacher and now as a leader, I’ve seen how students’ connection to school can sometimes gradually dissipate over the years. 

That’s why I’m deeply passionate about creating environments for students of all ages and backgrounds where they feel loved and supported. A truly nurturing environment empowers everyone’s voice and celebrates diverse perspectives and experiences.  

Creating a culture that honors diversity and protects student joy requires ongoing, day-in and day-out commitment, but I also believe that special, school-wide collaboration can play a powerful role.

Creating joy and connection through a December Diversity Festival 

As a powerful gesture toward affirming identity and belonging, I love holding a Diversity Festival during the first semester of school, celebrating cultures and bringing students and staff into collaborative work that can feed year-long connections. 

In a week-long Diversity Festival, each class selects a country to study. Students create displays and art to exhibit their learning in a gallery walk, and some teachers choose to collect artifacts to showcase elements of culture. Alongside classroom learning, we host a school-wide food festival, and some teachers, students and families perform dances and other traditions in an assembly. 

A small committee of staff, including our SEL coach, oversees the school-wide elements of the project, outlining daily engagement opportunities and tapping staff for various roles according to their strengths and interests. Our food festival is primarily student-led, and families often contribute by bringing in their cultural knowledge, showcasing their talents and joining us for gallery walks and celebrations. We receive a lot of positive feedback from families.

Holding this festival in winter allows us to draw on traditions related to the winter holidays. Students love sharing their family’s celebrations, and it’s so affirming to position students as educators, creating space for them to learn from one another. 

A one-week festival with a year-long impact

By incorporating the voices and ideas of staff, students and families, the festival, which we host in December, deepened connections. It helped send the message that we truly value all of the cultures represented in our school community. I’ve learned that when individuals are represented in their school community, they will feel more connected to it.

And December is still early enough in the year that the festival fuels relationship-building, especially between the school and families, and helps set the tone for more collaboration throughout the year. The festival becomes a launching point, creating points of connection that educators can explore with their students all year long. 

My own call to school leadership feels like a call to embrace true diversity – all the different attributes that students and staff bring to the teaching and learning endeavor. Every student should feel a sense of belonging at school. Belonging keeps our students feeling connected, motivated to learn and engaged in discovering their path in life through education.