Start Seeing Diversity Blog “We Don’t Say Those Words in Class

The things that I have learned from working with small children are they say the first thing that comes to their minds.  As a parent, we sometime wonder where our children get the information that come in their thoughts and how their minds process information. In fact, it is sometimes amazing to see and hear the things coming from the mouths of such small thinkers. I was in Wal-Mart when a man came in on an electric cart. I was standing down the same isle by a lady with a small child in the cart, and I could hear the baby telling his mother. “Look at the man and started to point mama “that man is going to break that cart.” He is setting in that wheel chair, and he is too big.  I think the lady was a little embarrass by the child remark and she try to cover the baby mouth with her hand. This is a three year old, and I do not think that the little child understands what is meant or if the remarks were bias, but the lady did not want anyone to hear the remarks that the little child was saying (Derman-Sparks, & Edwards, J. (2010).

We know child say things out often not understand what is going on or because of bias that them have heard, and something out of seeking to find our about something that she do not understand like knowledge. Some bias remarks from small children are because of curiosity, and some question or behavior may come from underlying stereotyped idea, discomfort, or rejection about human difference.  I do not think that the answer is to have the covered the child mouth. Covering the child mouth sent another message that he or she may have to answer to later. The correct answer to this would be to tell the child that remarks like this are wrong and to explain later to the child why this is wrong.  Do not wait too long because waiting too long the child will not remember the event.  Correcting bias is one way to help children understand why it is wrong (Pelo, A. (2008). I could not correct the lady and her child because they were stranger,but my thought were to tell her not to cover ideas and thought just correct the way she is doing it. And

Reference:

 Derman-Sparks, & Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-Bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington D.C. National Association for the Education of Young Children( NAEYC).

Pelo, A. (2008). Rethinking early childhood education. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Rethinking Schools Publication.