Black history month has had me thinking about culture and how I am keeping the girls connected to their Nigerian culture and African heritage. It can be so easy to forget where we came from and and also since the girls have never been back to Nigeria, it makes it even harder but its so important to keep them connected in any way possible. So I wanted to share a few ways to keep your kids connected to culture:
- Eating the traditional food, this is so important to help in teaching them about back home and keeping them connected. We try to eat some traditional Nigerian food at least once a week, the girls have actually been eating traditional food since they were babies and we have kept it up till today.
- Watching Traditional movies and shows, shout out to YouTube for the hook up on Nigerian movies and shows. We have even been lucky to find some kid shows so they can kind of get an idea of what life is like back home, and by watching the movies and shows it can start dialogues and conversations.
- Speaking and teaching the language, lets be honest we have been completely sucking at this but I intend to do better honestly. I think by teaching them the local dialect young, they have better connection and bond. And its just nice so when they are around family they don’t feel like the odd man out, not understanding or speaking the language.
- Music, its no lie that music is the universal language. I actually listen to more Afrobeats music than anything and I am pretty sure Simi can sing most of them now lol But its a fun way to stay connected, we have fun little dance parties too.
- Staying connected with extended family and friends. This is so important to create that community around your kids, they not only get to learn about their culture from you , but also from friends and family.
It can be quite a challenge when raising multi-cultural kids, especially when so far from your motherland, but its all about being persistent and steady. If you are raising multi-cultural kids, I would love to know what are some things you are implementing to keep them connected and aware of their cultural background?
Unknown says
Great tips! I wish you would Speak your language with them more though. We encourage our families at school to only speak the their native at home.