Art Gallery: What I Have Learned

One hope you have when you think about working with children and families from diverse backgrounds is to truly stop and get to know each child and their family. Help them set goals for themselves and to reach those goals one step at a time. Everyone is different and has different needs, therefore everyone should have those individual needs seen to.

One goal you would like to set for the early childhood field related to diversity, equity, and social justice is eliminating bias from the classroom completely. Have a welcoming environment for all cultures, race, and religion. Have the children explore about the different cultures in the world and have them appreciate those differences. Also, encourage the children to openly talk about their thoughts and concerns. Stopping bias early can make a huge difference in a child's life and in society.

I would like to take this time to thank each and everyone of you for your support throughout this class. Each one of you brought such different insights into the discussion board and blog postings. I have learned so much from you all and I wish you all good luck in the future. I hope to see you in future classes. Thanks so much for everything!

Week 7: Creating Art

I'm not very good at writing poems, but I wanted to give it a try.

I look in the mirror and who do I see,

a girl who is different as can be.

Glasses, freckles, a girl shy as can be,

who is this girl staring back at me.

Chubby and ugly and not popular it seems,

who is this girl staring back at me.

Taunting and teasing and tagged as a "loser"

who is this girl staring back at me.

People rushing to judgements and classifying others for who they are,

who is this girl staring back at me.

An outcast and loner wanting to fir in,

who is this girl staring back at me.

Can we not forget race, looks,and religion and accept others for who they are. God created us all just the same. Different isn't bad, it make you special and unique. People should be proud and speak with ease. 

Who is this girl staring back at me, a unique individual and proud to be me.

People today place so much on how people look, speak, their race, that they don't take the time to get to know the real person inside. Everyone is not the same and that is for a reason. Children should be taught to be proud of their differences and embrace those difference because its peoples uniqueness that makes differences in the world and a beautiful place.

Week 6: "We Don't Say Those Words in Class!"

I remember being out with one of my little cousins and we were at out shopping that day. We were walking across the parking lot and a tall black man walked by and she point and said, "look how dark that man is!" and it was kind of loud, so I really don't know if anyone else heard her, but I told her not to point at people and say things like that because it wasn't very nice. I told her people are different and that is fine. I believe my response to my cousin my have made her feel like she done something wrong, but yet at the same time curious about the part when I said, "everybody is different and that is fine."
I believe in situations such as these parents and educators should take the time and talk to the children, read books, and show them pictures of how everyone is different in their own unique way. This can be from hair color and texture, eye color and shapes, and  skin color. This is a great teachable moment to make children realize that being different isn't a bad thing, but something they should respect and be proud of because God created us all the same.