How to Talk to Kids About Race & Ethnicity
Kids start to notice race as early as 3 months old, but according to Sesame Workshop (the experts behind Sesame Street) a majority of parents aren’t talking to them about it. There are a few possible explanations for this: many parents underestimate how early their kids are able to perceive racial differences, while others believe that the topic is just taboo for family discussions. Whatever the reason behind avoiding these talks may be, the truth is that candid conversations with our families about race & ethnicity are key to raising kind, respectful kids.
When we skip out on these talks, we’re not teaching our kids to stop paying attention to race, or to automatically see everyone as “the same.” Kids are hard-wired to notice physical differences like skin color in people, and our job as parents isn’t to stop this from happening — it’s to help guide their observations.
In order to raise the next generation of kids to actually treat people with equality and equity in mind, it’s important to be open about race and ethnicity. There’s nothing wrong with noticing that someone has a beard or is taller than we are, and there’s nothing wrong with noticing that people have different skin colors, either.
Claiming that we “don’t see” race doesn’t take it away. It actually just makes it harder for us — and our kids — to empathize…
