Reflection: colorism as teasing

Most often I hear students engaging in basic categorization of themselves and their peers. "I'm white. You're black." But, over and over I am reminded of the ways in which society reinforces light skinned privilege. (If you need some information on colorism within the African American community, read this article for context.)

A few weeks ago I heard one of my students taunting another, "You're white." My first reaction was to feel frustrated. We have been talking about the ways that all of our browns are beautiful since the beginning of the year -- nearly nine months ago.

My next reaction was to pull them aside and talk about what they were saying and why. Turns out, the student was feeling frustrated and spoke from a place of hurt. We talked about how to handle when someone is bothering you, and about how all our skin is beautiful.

Neither of them could name a skin color other than black or white, but one student offered to get the skin colored pencils. We spent some time talking about each color and how to find a match. I did it for myself first and mentioned that I could never quite find a perfect match for my skin so I just narrowed it down and picked the closest one. On reflection, I wish I had had them draw a picture of themselves together with some positive skin labeling, but it's not too late. I could talk to them about it again today.

Just like when you teach Kindergartners any abstract concept -- a question versus a sentence, long and short vowel sounds -- you need to repeat yourself. Some children will need small groups. Others will need one-on-one time with you. Promise yourself that you will address race every time it comes up in your classroom for a month and see what happens.

Reflection: Studio Museum field trip

Last night I spoke to one of the educational directors at the Studio Museum about a field trip my class took that I was very disappointed with. She started the conversation by thanking me for sharing my feedback. Specifically, she said that her team has needed to address issues with the educator who gave our tour before and my email provided them with specific information that they could discuss with her. 

When I wrote the email, I worried about paraphrasing the educator or seeming too forward. Speaking to the educational director, I realized that the Studio Museum can't fix problems that they don't know about. Both the director and I have the same goal: to educate children about art from artists of African descent. We could work together on that goal. 

In June we will return to the museum for a second tour. I will be able to speak to our guide beforehand so that they know about what we have learned and what we are interested in learning. I'm excited to share with you!

Article Share: How To Talk to Your Kids About the Contributions of African American Women

Here's an excerpt of the article by Carey Wallace:

Elementary age kids often hear stories of figures like Harriet Tubman, who led enslaved people to freedom on the Underground Railroad, or Rosa Parks, whose refusal to give up her seat sparked the Montgomery bus boycott. [Tiya] Miles encourages her own elementary age kids to get curious about the brainpower those women must have had, with questions like, What kinds of skills must Harriet Tubman have had to help all those people escape? What skills did Rosa Parks use to fight for civil rights?

The impetus for the article is the recent call to have Harriet Tubman replace Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill. While I agree that the focus on skills of historical figures is important, I also find this article problematic in its brevity.

Elementary age children need to hear about Harriet Tubman and Rosa Parks ...and Coretta Scott King and Madam C.J. Walker and Michelle Obama and Bessie Coleman and Maya Angelou and Mae Jemison and Toni Morrison and and and and...

As educators of children of color our job is to ensure that they are filled with images of people who look like them in many different roles. We cannot stick to the historical figures that we learned ourselves. We cannot choose only the people who have been written about in children's books.

Instead, we must look for opportunities to infuse role models into all of our lessons. For example, when they learn about illustrators, talk to them about Faith Ringgold (pictured above). Each time you are going to introduce a new topic, whether it is bird watching, zoo keeping, schools, or restaurants, do a quick Google search with those keywords and "African American." If you are like me, you likely didn't learn about many African Americans in your own education. Even if you did, you might overlook someone by accident. Not knowing is not your fault; not finding out is. We are all busy, but this is urgent. If you have more time, start reading books that will contextualize these historical figures for you.

African American children are constantly inundated with white role models, culture, and images. Students are boxed in by the single story of African Americans -- as slaves, as activists, as musicians. None of these role models are lacking, but our students need more. Our job as educators is to help them develop a strong sense of self by providing them with so many examples of successful African Americans that they can see themselves as biologists, ornithologists, painters, journalists, senators, nurses, teachers, astronauts, entrepreneurs. We as educators need to find ways to help students dream their dreams and validate their dreams. Every day.

Field Trip: Studio Museum

After taking my students to the MoMA, I was thrilled that I would be able to go to the Studio Museum with them. When I was soliciting chaperones, one parent said, "Oh, I always thought that was a Target! I don't want to go there." Her reluctance highlighted to me that proximity does not equal accessibility. I think one area of improvement for the museum is outreach and I was excited to bring four parents with us on the trip. Unfortunately, our trip was disappointing, but there is a happy ending!

First we sat in the lobby as our tour guide talked mostly about the rules of the museum. Her unspoken implication seemed to be that our students wouldn't know how to behave in a museum. She never talked about why we are careful in museums. She never asked if we had been to a museum before.

Then, she took us into the basement where some of the permanent collection is housed. We looked at a sculpture, a photograph of an adolescent African American, and a Romare Bearden collage. For each work our tour guide had students sit on the floor in a lecture style formation. She talked and asked questions. We were not given any time to explore.

Afterwards, our "art workshop" consisted of construction paper, primary-colored markers, and instructions to draw "someone." Although some varying shades of brown were available, the choices were limited and many of my students reverted to showing their skin in primary or secondary colors (red, green, etc.).

In addition to the exceedingly low expectations that our guide had for students, she also committed a microaggression that made my heart sink. While we were looking at the photograph of a young African American, she tried to highlight that the artist was trying to give power to people of color by showing them in a museum (I think). Instead she said something like:

She certainly doesn't look like a celebrity. Right? 

First of all, what is a celebrity? And why should our children be striving for that? In one fell swoop she undermined all of those mornings that I have started the day by saying, "Hello Beautiful Children!" and I wanted to interrupt her, but I didn't.

Later when we returned I did write an email to the head of the education department. She swiftly replied with an apology, a refund, and an offer for us to come back for another workshop experience. The lesson in all of this is don't be afraid to advocate for your students. If you hear something that makes you uncomfortable, but you aren't sure exactly why, just say that you were uncomfortable. Our job as educators goes beyond teaching, especially with students of diverse backgrounds. Often your privilege (e.g., educational background) can be used to benefit your students.

Book Review: This is the Rope

This Is the Rope
by Jaqueline Woodson

This is the story of how a length of rope is passed on from grandmother to mother to daughter against the backdrop of the Great Migration. The story starts with the grandmother in the South. She moves with her family to Harlem and brings the rope with her.

The story is poetic and beautifully illustrated. My students loved looking at the pictures. However, they do not have a lot of knowledge of the Great Migration so they enjoyed the story more than they garnered the history lesson. I would recommend this book for first grade as a read aloud, unless you are studying the Great Migration, because the historical backdrop is abstract and alluded to which is hard for smaller children to notice.

If you are going to read it in kinder, I would recommend a 3-read cycle. First for enjoyment, second for literal comprehension, and third for abstract messages.