When kids are still under your care, it’s easy to forget that they’ll move out and be part of a broader and diverse social community. As such, it’s your responsibility as a parent to teach your kids about diversity, cultural differences, and other distinctions that exist in the world. Instilling in them a sense of tolerance and acceptance while still young allows them to appreciate different cultures, races, and religions. Bear in mind that kids tend to pick up habits from adults, so how you relate and interact with other people is also essential.
So, what’s the best way of teaching children about diversity? It’s all about parenting and how you guide your children. Additionally, Baketivity offers the Positivity Cookie Kit Project to help you teach your kids about diversity through engaging, fun activities.It’s important to note that cultural values and beliefs shape almost every aspect of child-rearing. How you treat your kids, talk to them, and dress them — each of these activities conveys cultural influence. Such experiences are what shape your kids into what they become when they grow up.
This means that it’s possible to start addressing the issue of diversity the moment you have your first child. Try as much as possible to respond to your kids’ comments and questions about differences even when you’re unsure about what to say. Lack of response might mean something is unacceptable to children.
Also, remember to shape your responses to your kid’s age and personality. Sometimes they might want to know why they are different from other people, and this is a way for them to gather information.
Observe their curiosity and actions, especially when your kids are non-verbal. You can quickly know their understanding of other people through how they treat others, look at them, and draw pictures. You can then guide them on the best approaches for every situation.It’s normal for many American parents to have a babysitter or a nanny from a different culture. While they shouldn’t take up the parental role in regards to culture, there are certain practices that are okay for kids. For example, you may want your toddler to wear shoes all the time, but in some cultures, there is the idea that walking barefoot provides toddlers’ feet enough room for growth.
You might disagree with a particular practice, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong. Ideally, there are different ways of doing things, but all usually achieve the same goal. Understanding this helps kids become culturally sensitive to other people and families. This allows your kid to grow in an environment that accommodates different cultures.Allow your kids to interact with diverse friends. Don’t be that parent who always wants to choose friends for their kids. If there is an opportunity for them to play with kids for other cultures, be sure to take advantage.
It’s important to note that kids’ friendships form essential memories that they live to cherish as they grow. So, be sure to let them play and engage with kids who are different from them. Allowing them to play with kids of the opposite sex is also advisable.It is common for kids to have dolls that look like them. This isn’t a bad thing, but for diversity, you can get them a toy that looks completely different. The doll can have different eye color, skin color, or hair color.
In this case, the goal is to get them to embrace dolls with different features. In the long run, they’ll be more receptive to people who are different from them. Alternatively, you can get them toys that don’t resemble or depict people to prevent them from making opinions or assumptions about other people.Learning a new language is also great for kids’ diversity. Whether it’s Latin, French, Hungarian, or Spanish, languages help to introduce people to new cultures and beliefs. You can teach your kids some of the basic words, such as greetings and appreciations, if you speak more than one language.
There are even books and television shows that your kids can use to learn a new language. Some institutions also encourage teaching diversity in preschool by allowing kids to learn different languages.Traveling is also an ideal way of introducing kids to different cultures. Europe, Asia, and Africa have some great cultures for parents and kids to explore. Such places provide firsthand experiences that allow kids to appreciate other cultures.
While traveling (and even at home), please encourage them to eat local or ethnic foods. The more local menu items they know, the easier it will be for them to remember specific values, traditions, and destinations that are different from what they’re used to.
You also need to attend festivals with them. Examples include Holi, the Festival of Spring in India, Ueno Cherry Blossom Festival in Japan, the Chinese New Year parade, among others. Such festivals allow them to see other cultures in action, thus gaining a better understanding of them.There are also certain activities you can do with your kids while at home. Kids’ inclusion is not all about considering their interests and needs. It’s also about teaching them how to deal with diversity in our today’s society.
Baketivity’s Positivity Cookie Kit Project helps kids appreciate other cultures and people through colors and flavors. You can get your child this kit and allow them to prepare cookies while at home and share them with their friends or a new neighbor.
It includes all the necessary ingredients for making the cookies. This includes flour, salt, vanilla sugar, colored candies, baking powder, circle cookie cutter, and flower cookie cutter. The best part is that they’re already pre-measured, so all your kids need to do is mix and bake. There’s also a step-by-step baking recipe book that they can follow when baking.
While the cookies are baking, your kids can have fun thanks to the child-friendly activity book that’s provided. Allowing your kids to engage in these activities with other kids or grandparents is vital in teaching them to appreciate others and be kind to them.
The kit comes with a blank yard sign with a mini watercolor paint set. Your child can add a positive message to the sign to share kindness and positivity with your neighbors. It also includes a shopping list for baking tools and wet ingredients you’ll need for baking.Kids tend to form ideas about other people and themselves long before they start schooling—most of these ideas they pick up from the people around them. So, your kids are likely to treat other people just the way you do.
As such, it’s helpful to introduce them to anti-bias and diversity lessons while still growing. This will allow them to appreciate, instead of fearing, other people, cultures, differences, and religions. Introduce them to role models in their culture as well as those other cultures to help them develop positive relationships.
Make the lessons and experience even fun for them through family activities that involve cultural diversity for kids. With Baketivity’s Positivity Cookie Kit Project, addressing cultural diversity for children is made easy and fun.
