We Don't Say Those Words in Class!

I have a whole world of differences in my classroom.  I have students who are very verbal and students who do not communicate verbally.  All my students notice each others differences and always point out differences amongst each other.  The biggest learning curve for them is last year when we got a student who had Autism but was also blind (her eyes were removed when she was three and has glass eyes, that come out every once in a while).  It was very hard for them to understand when she would come to school without her eyes in.  They would say things like "AHH! She can't see" (even though we have already talked about how she cannot see with her glass eyes).  I have had countless discussions with my students about this little girl.  We talk about how we use our senses for different things and that she is not using her eyes like we do.  We use our eyes to learn about things and she may use her mouth or hands to learn about things.  We also do some exercises to see what it is like to be blind and try to walk around out hallways blindfolded.  

I also have another student who does not use verbal communication to communicate, but he does make some vowel sounds and hums.  Previous we talk about how he doesn't words to talk with with his friends and teachers, but he might point to pictures or make a choice between two objects. Recently, he has learned all of our song tunes and hums them with the rest of the class.  The whole class was so excited the first time he sung at circle time they screamed" ____ is really singing, he is talking to us!" Melted my heart, they understood that though it wasn't exactly the same it was his way of singing with the whole group! :)  

I remember vividly when I was younger the first time I saw a little person.  I was at the old spaghetti factory, I think I was maybe four.  I was staring and my brothers told my mom.  My mom started to talk with me about how some people are born differently and that some people are born with dwarfism.  They are just like us but shorter.  I can remember thinking "oh okay"  and that is the end of my memory. 

I am sure if it wasn't for my mother being very aware of the surroundings I could have gotten a different impression.  My parents where so aware of difference, since they were both special education teachers. But because of my parents responses throughout my whole life it empowered me to take action myself (Laureate Education Inc., 2012).

From my experiences, it is best to be honest with your students/children.  Do not ignore what they are asking about because they can begin to form bias.  I think that addressing what students have said with little lessons is also a good idea, like doing a picture sort (Laureate Education Inc., 2012). Derman-Sparks & Ramsey suggest using teachable moments (Pelo, 2008, p. 44).  Often I might hear a child saying something and pretend to make a mental note to discuss it later, when honestly I might forget about it.  I also like the suggestion of "spark children's empathy about the hurt that stereotypes can cause" (Pelo, 2008, p. 47). Some of my students struggle with any sort of perspective taking, so empathy towards another person is usually the last thing on their minds.  However, my ticket into helping them is they don't want to see you or friends with a sad face.  So they might not be able to read the emotions on my face but they can very much read a sad face.  With this being said it does take time away from our daily routine but I have to use the moments when they are happening and not come back later, because I know they have forgotten about it.   

Resources

Laureate Education Inc., (2012). Start Seeing Diversity: Physical Ability and

      Characteristics. Retrieved from Walden University [video].

 

Pelo, A. (Ed.). (2008). Rethinking early childhood education. Milwaukee, WI: Rethinking

 Schools.