Begin by explaining to students that each and every person in the classroom is different in some way. Ask each student to share one fact about himself that he likes, and to not repeat a sentiment that someone has already spoken. After each person shares the positive information, explain that each person has his own strengths, and these make people diverse. Diversity is a positive thing because some people are good at certain things, while others have strengths in other areas. By working together, people can accomplish more than one person could on his own.
Continue by explaining that while people may look or act different, that does not mean that anyone is better or worse than anybody else. People are allowed to acknowledge their differences, but understand that all are equal and deserve respect.
Students will likely have notions about other cultures, whether positive or negative. A way to create positive notions about other cultures is to share positive aspects about students' cultures.
To do this, ask each student to bring in a food from his culture to share with the class. Have each student quickly explain the food she brought in and why it is important to her culture. Then, allow the students to enjoy and discuss the food.
You can also have students dress in cultural attire, bring in a picture from their country of origin or discuss their cultural backgrounds.
Ask each student to discuss a time when he felt excluded from a group. As each student speaks, write down the main point of the story, such as the fact that someone was excluded for being different or that someone was left out for not being part of a clique. After the discussions are complete, ask the students to share the similarities that they noticed among the stories. Supplement their findings with your own.
Explain that by not accepting someone because he is different than you, you are not being sensitive to the diversity between the two of you. By not accepting and being open to diversity, a person is missing out on a potential great new friend.
Break students up into groups. Provide each group with a piece of poster board, several different types of magazines, scissors and glue. Ask the students to create collages that show how people of different backgrounds relate to each other. Discuss the outcomes as a class.
This exercise can be interesting because it will bring out the students' thoughts on diversity. For example, students may portray groups of ethnically diverse women together with images of makeup, or young and elderly people with classic books. It is also interesting because it may show areas in which students are not aware of diversity. Students may portray similarities among people of different ethnic backgrounds and ages, but not portray anything about socioeconomic or religious differences. This will lead to a discussion about kinds of diversity that were not addressed, and why these things must also be recognized as facets of diversity.