As students transition from the first semester to the second, Naze Sahebzamani’s ninth grade classes have been making the switch from US Government to World History.

In World History, students shift from studying American society to studying cultures from around the world. Sahebzamani finds that the best way to ease that change is through food.

On their first day in the class, students brought meals that represented their own backgrounds and shared them with the rest of the class.

“Because we’re going to be going over so many different cultures, it’s a fun way for them to be able to experience those cultures without being intimidated,” Sahebzamani said. “The easiest way to experience a different culture is food. So they get to eat and enjoy themselves, and at the same time, learn about different cultures they may have never tried before.”

While the activity was meant to make foreign ideas more approachable, Jackson Elliot (’19) found that the exercise in diversity taught him most not about culture, but about his fellow classmates.

“It was really cool experience to see everybody sort of come together and be represented by the food that they brought,” Elliot said. “You can’t really know what someone’s ethnicity is until you see it represented through their food.”

Sahebzamani believes culture goes beyond a history class or a semester exam; rather, the knowledge students gained about other cultures will help them long after high school graduation.

“I think learning about each other is very important. You learn about other people’s perception, you learn about other people’s cultures and customs and its not just for World History,” Sahebzamani said. “I wanted them to be able to open their minds to different cultures and ways of life.”