I can remember a time when I was grocery shopping and had my
grandchildren with me. My grandson William saw a man from Burma and he asked
why the man was wearing a long sheet. I quickly bent down and told him to
please not say that to someone. I told the gentleman that I was sorry for what
he said. Than he did something that totally surprised me, he explained to him
why he wears clothes like this sometimes. He told him that was how men in his
country sometimes wear these garments. My grandson looked at him and said that
he was sorry and thanked him for telling him that. 
As
an anti-bias educator I would talk to them about the different cultures and how
people dress and do things differently than we do. We
are all the same; we are all different understanding more about feeling proud
of their own culture and learn respect for others” ( Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010,
p. 67). I would do this by picking a different culture to teach about monthly
so they could get a good understanding. I would also do this about people with
disabilities.
Dear Mary,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the person took the time to explain a little bit about his culture to your grandson. That's the best way to learn! When we listen to other people's experiences we get a taste of what his/her culture is like. The truth is that children start to learn about the world during their early childhood, and they do so by questioning everything. "Young children are naturally curious about differences and one of the ways they make sense of their world is to sort things into different categories and focus on one thing at a time…" (KidsMatter, n.d., p.2).
Reference:
KidsMatter (n.d.). Why culture matters for children's development and wellbeing. Australian Early Childhood Mental Health Initiative. Retrieved from: https://www.kidsmatter.edu.au/sites/default/files/public/KM%20C1_Cultural%20Diversity_Culture%20Matters%20for%20Development.pdf
Dear Mary,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog and like your pictures as well. It's important as educators to teach children to not make fun or mean comments to people they view as different, listen to others when they speak, value other people's opinions,be sensitive to other people's feelings and try to learn something from the other person("Respect - Respecting Others - Lesson Plans - Character Education," n.d.). I believe you did the right thing in teaching your grandson to have a respectful manner.
Reference:
Respect - Respecting Others - Lesson Plans - Character Education. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.goodcharacter.com/BCBC/RespectingOthers.html
Mary,
ReplyDeleteLife experiences are shaped by responses from ourselves and others. Without intention, we react in a way to shut down the questions. We are looking to make sure that no one is embarrassed and that we do not have to answer questions where someone could hear us. In a perfect world, we would have able to explain everything that our children are looking for answers for. An anti-bias world, with time, could be our future, depending on our reactions and use of teachable moments!