All About Me

All About Me

I choose this theme to help children learn about themselves and their classmates.  This Activity will help children understand that everyone is unique and special. Children will also learn to recognize and celebrate one’s own physical features.

Activity Face Puzzles:

Materials: Color close up photograph of each child’s face, cardstock paper, glue and scissors.

Description: Take a close-up picture of the child’s face. Have pictures enlarged. Give each child their photo and talk about what they see. Teacher can have a photo as well. Teacher can introduce her photo to the children by saying, “look I have red hair, what color is your hair Brooklyn?” Continue this interaction until all children have had the chance to share. Have children take their pictures and glue them onto the cardstock paper. Explain to children that once the picture dries, it will be cut into pieces to make a puzzle. After the picture dries, teacher will cut the photos into sections of the eyes, nose, mouth and chin. Place each child’s puzzle into a small bag. Give each child the bag with their puzzle in it. Teacher can say, “I wonder what’s in your bag, I just gave you? Let children share before they open their bags. Once everyone has shared have the children open their bags and put their puzzles together. Teacher can use her puzzle and start a conversation by saying, “look I have blue eyes” as she shows her piece of puzzle with her eyes. Allow children to take their puzzles home or place them in the manipulative area in the classroom.

Variations: Make a puzzle of each child’s family. Make a puzzle using a picture of the whole class.

Books: I have included these two books that deal with hair and skin color as it relates to the activity of children recognizing their facial features as well as the color of their face and what type or color of their hair.

Bintou’s Braids: Bintou wants braids. Long, pretty braids, woven with gold coins and seashells, just like her older sister and the other women in her family. But she is too young for braids. Instead, all she has are four little tufts of hair; all she ever gets are cornrows. However, when Bintou saves the lives of her two young cousins and is offered a reward of her choosing, Bintou discovers that true beauty comes in many different forms. Rich, earthy illustrations and a heartwarming story capture the spirit of a West African village in this wise tale about a girl who learns she's perfect just the way she is.

Black is brown is tan is a story poem about being, a beautiful true song about a family delighting in each other and in the good things of the earth. Brown-skinned momma, the color of chocolate milk and coffee pumpkin pie, whose face gets ginger red when she puffs and yells the children into bed. White-skinned daddy, not white like milk or snow, lighter than brown, with pinks and tiny tans, whose face gets tomato red when he puffs and yells their children into bed. Children who are all the colors of the race, growing up happy in a house full of love. This is the way it is for them; this is the way they are, but the joy they feel extends to every reader of this book.

1.    This activity can be done with children ages three to kindergarten.  According to York, “racism is a social condition that affects our personal lives, as well as the society at large. During childhood, it affects our social and emotional development. Without even knowing it, racism shapes our personal and racial identity; it shapes our experience in American society. Children learn social roles and become members of American society through the process known as socialization” (p. 40).

2.    This activity is appropriate as it will introduce children to their differences as well as promote self-awareness through socialization. This theme will help children learn about each other and help children develop their racial identity. As York states, Children receive information about race through their social environment. This includes messages to racial appearance. These messages come from socializing agents such as parents, friends, school, and media (York, p.41). By doing this activity the teacher will be able to give children accurate information about race and teach children that the color of their skin does not define who they are.

3.    The three goals for anti-bias curriculum are: Recognize, appreciate, and respect the uniqueness, beauty, value, and contribution of each child. Increase children’s ability to interact, talk and play with people who are different from them. Foster positive self-esteem and positive self-concepts in children.

Conclusion: This theme and activity will help children learn about themselves as well as others. As the teacher takes each child’s photo she will promote a positive self-esteem as they smile or laugh into the camera. When the children are gluing their photos onto the cardstock the teacher will be prompting self-awareness as she talks about her picture, the children will talk about themselves. When the children are given their puzzle pieces they will be able to focus on their individual features such as their eye color, skin color and hair type or color. Putting puzzles together also promotes fine motor and cognitive development.