Integrating Culture: The Color of Us

Karen Katz is a great children's author. I love her books because of the diversity in them. In a country where there are many cultures, exposing our children to different people will be helpful to them in life. She has board books for babies and paperback for school age.

Resources:


Activity:
Taken from a wonderful site Karen Katz.com

Procedure:
1. Give the children multicultural crayons
2. Have them draw pictures of themselves or give them die cut multicultural heads
(Available from shapes 1.800. 888.6580.)
Have them decorate them and hang up all the different shades
of brown and white. Discuss everyone’s beautiful skin color.
3. Ask the children to name things they think are the color of their skin such as
oatmeal or sand.
4. Write the words on construction paper and tape it all around the room.
Discuss the beautiful differences in people’s colors.
5. Ask children to bring in items that match their skin color. Make a collage.
(Leaves, oatmeal, sand, cumin, etc.). Talk about nature and variations colors.
6. Have each child choose a head from the 3x3” multicultural die cut packs.
(Use the small ones, or precut them yourself ).
Decorate with yarn and various materials.
7. Make a large map of the world on brown butcher paper. Draw the equator.
Paste each child’s head on the part of the world from where their ancestors
originated. Write the child’s name.
8. Have the children notice people born closer to the equator
usually have darker skin. Tell them how darker skin is a protection
from the sun and people born far from the equator usually have paler skin.
Discuss how color is an indication of where you come from and
not what you are like as a person
From an art perspective:
1. Have the children bring in wrapping paper, old paintings, boxes or shopping bags
with pattern on them etc. Cut out shapes of clothing from the art materials and
have them make collages of themselves. Make pictures using the found papers.
Cut them into leaves or tables or anything!