Creating Affirming Environments

“Anti-bias work is essentially optimistic work about the future of our children” . In a anti-bias setting, I believe that it is important to highlight the different diversity in the classroom. If there are no evident diversity, create and share the most common diversity in the classroom. The work of anti-bias education is integration of working together with the families to understand their diversity rather than make assumptions.

Setting:

• Classroom will be an open, safe and welcoming environment for everyone. 
• The classroom will present as a setting where parents are comfortable to ask for resources from teachers and to clarify any misunderstanding. The setting will make parents and families feel safe and welcome to leave their children and know that they do not need to worry too much. 
• The environment will be accessible for everyone regardless of their needs. 
• The setting will be an easy access for families and children with disabilities such as wheelchairs. 
• Classroom will provide diverse books and activities that children and families can engage in
• Diverse books and activities can help families and children understand and be exposed to other cultures and diversities.
• The classroom will present posters and other graphic arts of diversity. 
• Posters and arts that are diverse can help families understand images in different ways and learn diverse language. For example graphic images of tools and equipment around the classroom is stated in English and Spanish. 

These setting are set to increase diversity in the environment and setting. As :anti-bias work provides teachers a way to examine and transform their understanding of children’s lives and also do self-reflective work to more deeply understand their own lives”. We try and present a setting where we can stop and think of how we want it to be presented to ourselves as diverse family. If I was from a diverse family, how would I want the classroom setting to be like, to represent and to be presented.