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Ever hear a comment come out of the mouth of a young child that seems incredibly rude and uncaring, yet they say it with complete innocence and candor?
And then you're left to deal with the aftermath. What can you possibly say to make this situation better? How can you respond gracefully? Should you correct or reprimand the child? Should you apologize? examples:
Wow! Missy's Mom has a big butt!
Kids can't have 2 Dads!
Is George's Mom a boy or a girl?
Why are you in a wheelchair?
Why is his skin ugly?
Before you answer their questions think about your core beliefs about inclusion. Then respond..
Though the child's choice of words put you in a difficult situation, it's your response that matters. Chances are, the child is just curious and doesn't mean any harm. So what do you say? That's a really tough question.
Recently I learned some words that teach the right kinds of attitudes about the differences young children notice in other human beings. These words foster antibias experiences in very young children.
Anti-bias experiences in early childhood are those that support respecting and embracing differences and acting against bias and unfairness. Anti-bias teaching requires critical thinking and problem solving by both children and adults.
The phrases that help go something like this:
Missy's mom might be a different size than you're used to. Good people come in all different shapes and sizes. (Sometimes, if the situation feels right, I might add something like, "Missy's Mom spends a lot of time volunteering at the neighborhood community center where we play sometimes, remember?)
This can be adapted to many different situations successfully!
Good people can dress in many different ways.
Good people have all different kinds of abilities.
Good families can look different than your family and enjoy many of the same things.
Good people come from many different places and cultures and they don't always look, talk or smell the same way as you do.
Grandma skin looks different than baby skin doesn't it? I wouldn't call it ugly, just different.
Here's a link to my article on "I messages" and how they can be used to set boundaries.
When you choose words like these, you're helping children learn to accept human beings for who they are instead of how they look. This is at the core of an anti-bias attitude of acceptance and inclusion.
Anti-bias experiences in early childhood are those that support respecting and embracing differences and acting against bias and unfairness. Anti-bias teaching requires critical thinking and problem solving by both children and adults.
Anti-bias, anti-bully and anti- blame experiences can be nurtured consciously in very young children and they matter. Both power and peace can be found through non-violent communication.
reflection: think about 3 situations you've experienced or can imagine experiencing where a young child makes a cringe-worthy comment. How do you respond?
Nanci J Bradley is an early childhood and family educator, author, teacher, family aerobics instructor, and an all-around fun-loving person. She believes in the power of sleep, healthy eating, lifelong learning, and most of all, PLAY! She studied early childhood ed at Triton College and received her BS in education in 1986 from NIU. She received her MA in human development from Pacific Oaks College in 2011. She lives and teaches in Madison WI.
references
Derman-Sparks, Louise. Anti-Bias Curriculum: Tools for Empowering Young Children. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 2001.
Derman-Sparks, Louise, et al. Anti-Bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 2020.
Hammond, Zaretta, and Yvette Jackson. Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students. Corwin, a SAGE Company, 2015.
Iruka, Iheoma U., et al. Don't Look Away Embracing Anti-Bias Classrooms. Gryphon House, 2021.
Anti-Bias Curriculum for the Preschool Classroom. Redleaf Press, 2021.