To test the effects of segregation, discrimination and prejudice on Black children, psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark conducted, “The Doll Test”, a test in which 2 identical dolls (one white, one black) were presented to children who were asked to choose which they preferred and to give reasons why.
The results were troubling. The majority of children chose the white doll and attributed many more positive characteristics to this doll compared to the Black doll.
That was in the 1940s. Let’s fast forward to how these internalized biases manifest in the Kindergarten classroom. Kindergartners are often tasked with illustrating themselves and others. If you pay attention, you may notice that many Black and Brown children draw and color themselves shades lighter than how their skin tones actually present. These types of biases are easily overlooked, but shouldn’t be.
REPRESENTATION MATTERS. Students must be able to see themselves in your classroom (and at home too)! By purchasing and using skin tone colored pencils, you can ensure that every child is able to see themselves and others through an authentic lens.
These pencils must be introduced thoughtfully, as a means of guided discovery.
1. Introduce them, name them and give them purpose by talking about why we use them and why it’s important. Naming is vital because it fosters ownership, love, and celebration of every child’s skin tones. You will start to hear your kids talking about themselves as “mahogany” or “ebony” and helping their friends discover that they are “cinnamon” or “fawn”.
2. Model the experimentation. Show children how to compare the shades of the pencils to the shade of their own skin by looking at their hands or arms and the pencils side by side.
3. Give students the opportunity to make a classroom palette of colors by comparing the shades to a friend’s skin tone, and scribbling that shade on a piece of card stock next to their friend’s name or initial.
To purchase:
http://m.lakeshorelearning.com/h5/pdp?href=%2Fproduct%2FproductDetBySkuCode.jsp?product_code%3DLC386
