“No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.” – Nelson Mandela

The children in any given classroom in America come from all walks of life. These may include different races, religions, cultures, and financial backgrounds. They may have two parents, one parent, divorced parents, step parents, mixed parents, two moms, two dads, or be adopted. It has never been more crucial than now to teach our children about these differences and how to respect and accept all people.

Below I have outlined four tips that will help guide you through some of these conversations along with 20 books that touch on diversity.

Teach Children It Is OK to Ask Questions

Far too many times, children are taught that by asking questions they are being rude. It’s time to allow children to ask their questions, because every question asked is a potential learning opportunity to learn about something that is different than what they are. Children are curious by nature and that is an amazing thing, and they should never be told not to ask their questions. If a child is asking about a particular topic, then it most likely means they are ready to have a conversation around said topic. I think as adults, we are also worried we may say the wrong thing, so we discourage children asking questions in order to avoid answering. Diversity is a great thing, and we need to teach that to our children, and so many of these conversations will be brought up by them. Go with it and educate them.

Help Children Share the Things that Make Them Unique….Out Loud

Whether it be skin or hair color, family/cultural food, or the church service they go to, help children learn and understand that what makes everyone different is a good thing. Feeling like you are different from everyone else can be very scary for kids (even adults!) so teach them that it is ok to be different. And on the other side of that, teach children that just because a group of them look alike doesn’t mean they are better than the other kids. There is no “right” way to look. Help them verbalize these things out loud and be proud of who they are and recognize their friends’ unique traits as well.

Celebrate Different Cultures

One of the things that I absolutely love about the daycare the twins go to is that they have a “Celebrating Cultures” event and parade every year (fingers crossed it doesn’t get cancelled this year.) Each classroom is a different country and culture and you walk through each classroom exploring different foods, words, and activities from that culture. It is a great learning experience for children. The school itself is very diverse and has black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Indian, Kenyan, Iranian students and/or teachers.

To encourage more of a year long learning event, I would suggest studying a different country every month at home. I recently heard Jenna Bush Hager say that she and her family do “food tastings” and think this would be great for trying new foods from different countries. Once a month you could prepare a meal that children in another country or even in another part of your own country would eat. Use the dinner as a way to learn and appreciate other cultures. Here is a good book to read with this idea.

Be the Role Model

It starts with you. At home, at the grocery store, on social media, at school, at work, in the car – your children watch you and absorb everything. When you get in an argument with your spouse, they are watching. When you get in a spat with a friend, they are watching. When you disagree with something on the news, they are watching. They are watching to see how you are going to react. They may not know what they are watching, but they are picking up on your habits, language, actions, and feelings. Set the example for them. Teach them to love their neighbor regardless of skin color, gender, or religion. Show them that you see people for who they are, and for what their heart is made of. Be kind to other and show respect to others.

Bottom line, children are growing up in a much different world than we did. There may be some of the same wrongdoings happening now as there was back then, but they are being brought to light in a much greater medium. Social media and live streaming have put a spotlight on everything, and children are seeing and learning more at a much younger age. We have to talk to our children about race and diversity. We can no longer ignore it and hope it just “goes away” because that time has passed and it will not just go away.

20 Books that Teach Diversity

Below you will find a collage of 20 books that touch on different topics of diversity. These books are an incredible resource when talking about race and diversity. As I mentioned above, many times we, as adults, are scared to say the wrong thing, so try starting with a book. These are all children’s books for the younger kiddos, but there are great many books out there for older kids.

Side note: the widget is kind of weird and you will need to make sure to click on the book cover and not the black circle that says “PIN.” The PIN will still show, but as long as you don’t click in the circle, it should take you to the Amazon page for the book. You can always e-mail me or send a dm if you are having problems accessing these books. If you click on the PIN, it will take you to Pinterest to pin it.

Well friends, if I can leave you with one thing, it’s that this starts at home. We owe this to our children to be better and do better for them.

Cheers – MP