How Am I Supposed to Talk about That? Enacting Anti-Racist Pedagogy in Early Childhood Classrooms
Edition: 2
Copyright: 2019
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Every day in early childhood and elementary classrooms, teachers facilitate instruction, plan lessons, and implement activities from a pseudo “raceless” framework. For many of these teachers there is an implicit and unconscious dedication to keeping race and racism out of the discourse on early childhood teaching and learning. Nonetheless, the topic of race and racism in the elementary classroom is ever present especially in classrooms where there is interaction between and among individuals of different ethnicities and race. In fact, race and racism is a thread in the fabric of American lore and teachers, principals, bus drivers, cafeteria workers, custodians, and counselors must explicitly talk about race and racism in an effort to navigate the pitfalls of unconscious racism. How am I Supposed to Talk About That?: Enacting Anti-Racist Pedagogy in Early Childhood Classrooms joins others in a call to support a better disposition for teachers in their understanding of the impact of race and racism in the class.
Terry Husband’s timely work supports research that dismantles the tenaciously erroneous idea that young children lack the capacity to handle issues of race and racism. Husband rightly contends that the lack of discussion on race and racism is not an indication of the incapacity of young children, but rather an issue of resistance to race and racism discourse on the behalf of early childhood teachers. In an effort to decrease resistance, How am I Supposed to Talk About That? addresses the theory of race and racism and practical applications for teaching and learning about racism in early childhood settings. The combination of research and reflective questions is an innovative approach to engaging teachers in critical discourse about race. Particularly the discussion/reflection questions evoke critical reflection and conscious action, which is an essential attribute of effective teachers of 21st century students.
Acknowledgments
Foreword
Chapter 1 Introduction
Vignette: Ms. Jackson and Ms. Smith
Overview of the Chapters
What’s Distinct about This Book?
What’s New about This Edition?
How Should I Use This Book?
Defining Race
Reflection/Discussion Questions
Chapter 2 Why Teach Children about Race and Racism?
Shifting Demographics
Colorblind Ideologies
Implicit Race Biases
Eurocentric Curriculum
Positive Racial Identity Development
Sociopolitical Climate in the United States
Parents
Social Agency
Common Reasons for Not Discussing Race
Reflection/Discussion Questions
Chapter 3 What Are Some Approaches to Teaching Children about Race?
Heroes and Holidays
Theories of Multicultural Education
Theories of Anti-Racist Education
Intersectional Justice
Reflection/Discussion Questions
Chapter 4 How Do I Develop an Anti-Racist Curriculum?
Walking Backwards
Cautions and Considerations
Anti-Racist Curriculum Development Activity
Chapter 5 How Can I Use Children’s Literature and Other Texts to Teach Children about Race, Racism, and Racial Justice?
Selecting Other Appropriate Texts
Developing Critical Racial Literacy
Using Critical Comprehension Strategies to Develop Critical Racial Comprehension
Using Multicultural Children’s Literature
Finding Multicultural Children’s Books
Question to Consider When Selecting Books
Main Idea
Character Traits
Fact versus Opinion
Summary
Enacting Race and Racism through Process Drama
Cautions and Considerations
Racialized Children’s Text Annotation Activity
Chapter 6 How Can I Use Writing to Teach Children about Race and Racism?
Tenets of Critical Writing Pedagogy
Critical Writer’s Workshop
Using Critical Writing to Represent Racialized Thinking and Learning
Writing about Race Activity
Chapter 7 How Can I Use New Literacies to Teach Children about Race and Racism?
21st Century Literacies
Cautions and Considerations
Digital Storytelling Activity
Chapter 8 Recommendations for the Future
Recommendations for Early Childhood Teachers
Recommendations for Early Teacher Educators
Recommendations for Researchers
Final Thoughts
References