Culturally Responsive Teaching Through the Lens of Art: Building Identity, Belonging, & Connection
DATE: Saturday, Oct 24, 2026
TIME: 10:30am - Noon
PLACE: Virtual (registered participants will receive the meeting link closer to the workshop date)
WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION:
How can art help students better understand themselves while building meaningful connections with people from different cultures?
In this workshop, I'll share my "I AM" project, developed through an Artists in the Schools residency with English Learner students at R. L. Stevenson Middle School and the "Be My Neighbor" community project with First Christian Church of Honolulu, where local youth and a mission team from Ohio came together through art.
I'll share how the project grew, the questions that guided our conversations, and how art became a starting point for students to explore their own identity, culture, family, language, and experiences. I'll also talk about what surprised me along the way, the challenges I encountered, and how those moments shaped my teaching.
Participants will experience a shortened version of the activity, reflect on their own identity, and exchange ideas with one another. Together, we'll explore simple ways to create art experiences that invite students to share who they are, learn from one another, and build a stronger sense of belonging.
My hope is that participants leave not with a lesson to copy, but with ideas they can adapt to fit their own students, communities, and teaching style.
PRESENTER BIO:
Zoe Liu is a visual artist, teaching artist, and founder of Art Tent Studio in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. Originally from Hong Kong, she is passionate about creating meaningful art experiences that help students build confidence, explore their identity, and connect with others through creativity. Zoe has taught with the Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts' Artists in the Schools program, the Honolulu Museum of Art School, and schools and community organizations across Hawaiʻi. Her work focuses on culturally responsive, inquiry-based art education that encourages students to observe, reflect, create, and share their unique stories.
Register Here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf7FSWWcAgN0jzMSo2QsfWOoWDEDS0sdgTDG5EE3ok-MUQZ8A/viewform