Hellobee Boards

I remember reading this on HB awhile back. I definitely think parents should be open about race even if that is just applying acknowledging people's ethnicities and different physical attributes. As one bee put it, kids like to categorize everything. When we turn a blind eye to one of the most obvious things to categorize are left confused.

However, I don't want my kid to grow up with a chip on his shoulder. Some questions will arise and the answers will in part due to race. Doesn't mean it will always be that way, but it still is. I don't want my child to be defeated by his race or accept mistreatment because of it. On the flip side I don't want children who are privileged because of their race alone to bask in that and try to keep the status quo- unconsciously or not.

If we all strive for a tolerant, equal society we need to be open about what makes us different and unique. Specifically what those differences are and celebrate them.

Thanks for sharing. I think @Mr. Bee wrote a post about the book, Nurture Shock, that this article references. I'll have to see if I can find it.

@Mrs. Jacks: Maybe that's what I was thinking about! I knew I had read a post about it on here somewhere.

http://www.hellobee.com/2012/06/04/we%E2%80%99re-failing-our-kids-when-it-comes-to-race/

Here's the other one I was thinking about.

@mrbee: I know! It just goes to show that you need to validate from all directions. At least I know we were doing right in supporting our other daughter's heritage. Now to balance it out!

Thanks for the link! I'm bookmarking it for the upcoming school year - our principal has mentioned she wants an emphasis on multicultural acceptance and understanding. The article is spot on with what I know about young children's developmental stages and how they categorize their world.

The part about "shushing" children when they ask/talk about racial differences reminded me of something that happened in my classroom. I have 2nd graders and one came rushing over in a tizzy. "J asked I why is skin is brown! You've got to come! You can't just ask someone why their skin is brown!!" I, who is from Indian had told J "Well, I'm from India and that's the color of skin there." It was great. The 4 of us had a conversation about skin color and how it's different and sometimes people get upset when you ask about skin color, but it's really okay. I wish I had been even *more* explicit now.

p.s. i nurtureshock!

@mewtill: I love that kids are curious and unafraid to ask questions. For them its purely understanding their world.

@mrbee: I'm going to have remember different is just different. It's my job to not to bring extra baggage to the table.

Thanks for sharing. I shared it on facebook! Such a good reminder!!

@Mrs. Pen: Don't be embarrassed - I think the article points out how our good intentions have a surprising effect. For me, as a white person, I've been taught not to talk about skin color because it's offensive and rude & that's a hard habit to break.