Understanding Differences in Others
Children must appreciate themselves first before they can respect others. When you encourage your child to be proud of what makes her special, you help her develop positive self-esteem. The more positive she feels about herself, the more confidence she'll have to try out new situations and new skills. She will also be better prepared to cope with disappointment and frustration.
As your child is developing her identity, it will help to:
- Invite friends and neighbors to share their customs and traditions with your child.
- Ask friends and neighbors to share their important religious events or cultural celebrations.
- Share information and ideas in various ways. Use books, photographs, illustrations, music, songs, speech, and physical movement.
Activities
Create self-portraits. Draw faces or full-body portraits with your child and her friends. As the children look at each other's drawings, help them notice similarities ("we all have eyes") and differences ("our eyes are different shapes and colors").
Share family photos. Encourage your child to share family photos with his friends. Talk about what he sees in his own photos as well as those of others. Help him assemble a photo collage, and let him see how he is a part of a unique family.
Learn new languages. Offer your child and friends opportunities to speak, see, touch (braille), and hear their native languages. Introduce simple words, label objects, and sing songs in the languages the children or their families speak.
Acknowledge differences and similarities. When watching television with your child, point out characters and situations, and ask questions. For example, if a character uses a wheelchair, ask how that character is similar to and different from your child.
