a few thoughts

First check out this image

Just a few thoughts to unpack it.

I've taken at least 3 college courses, a handful of workshops and dozens of inservice trainings on diversity in the classroom. Primarily that as educators it is necessary for us to go out of our way to be sure everyone (big picture everyone, not just the kiddos in our room) is represented in the room. Represented in the books we read, the music we listen to and the posters that adorn our walls.

Why?

Cause this is reflects how the children see themselves. They need to look around the room and see images that reflect their home life, their parents, their holiday celebrations. I have a family in my room who speak Arabic at home. Mom was tickled to notice a poster in our room that is in Arabic. (I wish I could say this was intentional, but just a happy accident.) She was surprised to notice it, but immediately took a picture to bring home to show her husband. That made her (and her son) feel like this was a place especially for them.

Its the same thing that makes me smile when I see a license plate from Texas, or hear a good ol country song from my childhood. This same feeling is what we want to create everyday in the lives of the children in our classroom. A safe, warm, comfy place that is all for them. Especially for each one of them. Cause thats how they make sense of the world. They compare it to what they already know.

So back to the picture. This little boy, standing in the middle of the oval office (in what has to be an intimidating environment) meets this man he has never met before. He looks at him, compares him to what he already knows and asks, "Does your hair look like mine?" The little boy sees that this big powerful man that everyone listens to, is kinda just like him. The little boy thinks, if someone just like me can be this big and powerful- then so can I. And he realizes this at the age of 5.

Imagine how far he can go...