Reflection on my learning

My hope is that as I work with families and children who are from a different culture or background than myself, I can remain open and honest with them and me.  To continue to ask questions of them and myself when I do not understand something or feel frustrated at the roadblock I encounter.  My final hope is that my classroom will reflect not only the families I serve but the larger community we live in.   I hope to post pictures of the families I serve but also showing what other families may look like.  Read books and tell stories that come from different points of view, show other cultures and families.  I will try hard not to take the tourist approach in presenting these ideas.

My goal is paraphrased from this weeks readings: that one day we will not have to worry about purposely teaching use anti-bias curriculum.  That this style of teaching comes naturally to all as we reach out and learn about each other and what makes us the same but also different.

Thank you all for being there to support my learning and growing.  You have cause me to grow and rethink my position about the world and what it means to be diverse.  We are very close to the end of the program, as we continue to move forward I hope we will continue to support each other with questions, answers and reflection about our learning.      

Family, Friends and Community

Answering with silence

This was  a tough post to remember if I had been silent to either of my daughters when asked about someones appearance.  Then I remember about the lady who has the same skin condition that Micheal Jackson had where it mottled both with dark and light pigment. 

While at the checkout stand my oldest daughter saw the lady at the same time other child did both asked about her the other parent said nothing while I said "I do not know what is wrong. Shall we go together and ask?"  Wanting to find out what my daughter comfort level was she ask me a gain this time I said it a little louder for the other parent and child to hear, my daughter declined asking her but I let her know that when asked most people are willing to talk about what is wrong and help educate others.  I felt bad for the other child who kept staring at the lady, while my daughter had moved on to finding other things at the stand to ask for.  I have let my daughters know and the children I care for that it is okay to ask why is that person different than me. I will find an answer and tell them or we go and ask the person themselves. 

A few years later I happened to meet the lady my daughter was talking about and ask about her skin condition.  She is a very open and honest person with a very kind heart.  I do not remember her first name but her last name stuck with me because of the Micheal Jackson connection she made when talking about her skin, Mrs Jackson. Most of her siblings have the same condition but her children do not.