Page 34 - Diversity in Action
P. 34

Silva Bratož, Anja Pirih, Anita Sila, and Mojca Žefran


                  that varies by language (e.g., Ramona Chiacchierona in Italian, Marcelina Par-
                  lanchina in Spanish, or Jegulja Klepetulja in Slovenian, meaning ‘chatty eel’).
                  Chatty Betty is a language expert with her own YouTube channel, where she
                  explores topics like saying ‘thank you’ in various languages and highlighting
                  similarities among related languages. Children also encounter different lan-
                  guagesthrough songsandrhymesthat featurelanguagesamplesconnected
                  to the countries visited by the imaginary language train.
                    Studies by Bratož and Sila (2022), Jolić Kozina et al. (2024), and Žefran et
                  al. (2025) have revealed that children respond to exposure to different lan-
                  guages with curiosity and creativity, noticing similarities and differences, ex-
                  pressing pride in their linguistic knowledge, and playfully mixing languages.


                  Exposure to Cultural Diversity
                  Exposure to cultural diversity naturally incorporates language learning. A key
                  aspect of this exposure is providing children with opportunities to engage
                  with cultural traits through various experiences such as food, music, dance,
                  art, clothing, sports, storytelling, photos, and videos. Teachers can introduce
                  culturalelementsfromdifferentcountriesbyfocusingonspecifictopics,such
                  as dance and music (Austria), sports (Slovenia), or food (Italy). The DivCon
                  model operates as an open framework, using these topics as starting points
                  forexploringdifferent culturesandlanguages.Thisapproach emphasisesen-
                  gaging children through music, movement, and the analysis of visuals like
                  photos and videos.
                    As children ‘travel’ to different countries, they are introduced to various
                  cultural features and practices, which naturally incorporate language expo-
                  sure. A key aspect of exploring cultural diversity is providing children with
                  opportunities to engage with cultural traits through diverse experiences
                  such as food, music, dance, art, clothing, sports, storytelling, photos, and
                  videos. For instance, an activity based on the rhyme ‘Waltz and Polka’ intro-
                  duces children to Austrian culture by combining singing and dancing to the
                  rhythms of the waltz and polka:


                       ‘Waltz and Polka’              And now Polka!
                       Ein, zwei, drei,               One and two,
                       Ein, zwei, drei.               two and two.
                       Dance with me.                 Polka, me and you.
                       Ein, zwei, drei,               One and two,
                       Ein, zwei, drei.               two and two.
                       Dance with me.                 Polka, me and you.


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