Multicultural Curriculum Development Project

MULTICULTURAL CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT PROJECT - PHASE ONE (K-Grade 5)

“The implementation and delivery of multicultural programming from Kindergarten to Grade 5 inclusive of both official languages and seeking your support in making multiculturalism come alive in each of our classrooms.

Delivery of this curriculum would include the development of classroom lesson plans, incorporate school-wide activities that support cross-curricular outcomes expanding from social studies, science, literature, music, art, guidance and personal development as well as provide enriching extracurricular activities.

This specific programming would further allow us to reach students in the shape of an Annual Multicultural Fair extending to the greater community as well as the development of possible other partnerships with community schools.

It would be crucial, and a welcome addition to new and existing students and their families to have a direct link to a cultural association and furthermore, have an extremely positive impact on our delivery of Canadian Heritage programs already celebrated such as the Day To Eliminate Racial Discrimination. Further, this type of programming would enhance our cultural awareness, and most importantly address the inclusion of all students.

A further celebration could be in the form of an Evening of the Arts, showcasing our unique talents and the multicultural arts and symbolically represent our diversity as a community.

Our dream for multicultural programming extends far beyond our classrooms and is of a global nature. We imagine the ability to purchase necessary technologies that would allow us to bring multiculturalism alive in our classrooms on a national and international level through the venue of web-cam connections and smart board technology around the globe. This would provide an invaluable skill set for students to experience and communicate, collaborate and interact, and most importantly would serve as a defining teachable moment to explore and identify who we are as individuals, as a nation and as a country. The ability for students to directly link to a much larger multicultural experience, to share our multicultural talents, and uniqueness, around the world would most definitely serve as a means to bridge the gap to establish commonalities and differences that bond each of us as a world community.

The possibilities of this project could re-define the instructional opportunities to each and develop fundamental virtues such as acceptance and understanding, responsibility and peace, problem solving and solidify dreams.” McMackin MEd., & Brown BA., BEd., Saint John, New Brunswick to the Multicultural Association of Saint John Inc.

The Multicultural Association of Saint John Inc. is a non-profit, non-partisan, non-denomination multicultural association in Saint John, New Brunswick. Our mandate is to advance and promote multiculturalism, its goals and objectives at all levels of our community and region through the on-going development and implementation of multicultural education and multicultural events for our community, as they relate to New Brunswick's Policy on Multiculturalism, and supported by the Multicultural Act of Canada and the Canadian Human Rights Act.

Support from the Aviva Development Program would be dedicated exclusively towards the costs of the equipment, supplies and project coordination expenses, for this very innovative and important multi-faceted, multicultural curriculum development project and its implementation beginning January 1, 2010 to April 1, 2011.

Your consideration of support for this much-needed educational initiative provides an opportunity for the Aviva Community Fund to become a part of an wonderful and much needed multicultural education initiative in support of our children, community and in particular all our children regardless of age, background or circumstances.

Kind regards,

Melana Iverson BA Volunteer Executive Director, Multicultural Association of Saint John Inc. Program Coordinator, Multicultural Association of Saint John Inc., Multicultural Program Program Coordinator, Multicultural Curriculum Development Project

Multicultural Association of Saint John Inc. 55 Canterbury Street Suite #11 Saint John, N.B. Canada

Multicultural Association of Saint John Inc. PO BOX 965 Saint John, N.B. Canada E2L 4E3 Ph. (506) 849-8778 Email daba@rogers.com