Diversity and Inclusion What Would You Do? Cards — Think, Choose, Act
A new classmate stands in the bus aisle, scanning for a seat.
This resource is in the full SEL Resource Library. See what’s included or start with 10 free resources. Have an account? Log in.
About this resource
A new classmate stands in the bus aisle, scanning for a seat. These diversity and inclusion what would you do scenarios give Grades 2–5 forty moments like that one, each with three think questions and three action cards to weigh. Students choose what they would do and explain why, building the Social Awareness side of SEL: noticing who is on the outside and making room.
What students practice
- Welcoming a new student and showing them the ropes
- Celebrating differences in looks, families and languages
- Changing a game so everyone can play
- Learning about a classmate’s traditions with curiosity
- Speaking up kindly when someone is left out
What’s inside
- 40 scenario cards, eight in each subtopic: Welcoming a New Student, Celebrating What Makes Us Different, Including Someone Who Does Things Differently, Learning About Each Other’s Traditions and Speaking Up for Inclusion
- 120 action cards: for every scenario, one most helpful choice, one partly helpful choice and one impulsive choice
- 40 full-page reflection sheets, one per scenario, ending in a “Your Turn!” space
- A teacher guide with five classroom uses; 77 pages
A look inside
- The First Bus Ride: Amara climbs on for the first time, and the seat next to you is empty. Her three action cards are Make Room and Greet, Point to the Back and Look Out the Window.
- Tag on the Grass: Jalen, who uses a wheelchair, asks to join tag, but his wheels get stuck in the soft grass.
- Picking Kickball Teams: your co-captain Zuri whispers, “Don’t pick Kieran. He runs too slow.”
How to use these diversity and inclusion what would you do cards
- Open morning meeting with Sesame Cookies to Share and let partners think-pair-share its three questions before anyone sees the actions.
- Have small groups sort one scenario’s action cards into Best Choice, Okay Choice and Not the Best Choice, then defend the order, a quick way to turn the set into decision making activities.
- Act out Lior at the Party, freeze the scene and ask each player what they are thinking right now.
Grade fit
Sixteen scenes happen at school, thirteen in the community (a street fair, day camp, a farmers market) and eleven at home, all places elementary students know. In Grades 2–3, talk the cards through or act them out first; by Grades 4–5, students can lead the debate and write scenarios of their own.
Digital version
The interactive digital version shares as one link: students answer the think questions (or just read them in the quick format), choose an action card and say why, on any device with no student logins. At the end they download an answer sheet to hand in.
Pairs well with
Keep the conversation going with Diversity and Inclusion Scenario Cards, or find more inclusion activities in Diversity and Inclusion Role Play Scenarios.
Questions teachers ask
Does the set include students with disabilities or different needs?
Yes. The Including Someone Who Does Things Differently subtopic has eight scenarios, such as Jalen, whose wheelchair gets stuck on the grass, and Lior, who covers his ears during a loud party game.
Do the cards name specific holidays or religions?
No. The traditions scenarios stay general, like a classmate’s family cookies for their new year celebration or a wedding dance step, so students practice curiosity and respect without stereotypes.
More for Social Awareness
See all in the library →
Every resource, one library.
572 SEL resources for elementary classrooms — printables, digital activities and answer sheets, and every new one we add.
