Colors are for Everyone

I recently read the article, One Teacher's Approach to Preventing Gender Bullying in a Classroom. I was really happy to read how one teacher is addressing these issues in her first grade classroom.  As a preschool teacher, the students do not typically care or give a second thought to when the boys dress-up in the dramatic play area, they all seem to be ok with that; where they start voicing their gender labeling most often comes-up when talking about colors.

By four years old, my students have already decided that pink is ONLY for girls and boys should not even use the pink crayon (and they can be really snippy about this too). Some teachers of young children may choose to ignore this all together, or support the girls' stance, but I typically do not let it slip by. I respond, "colors are for everyone." I do not throw this out there and then walk away, I engage students in a dialogue. Everyone gets to enjoy all the colors that are around us and in the world. Certain colors are not just for some people and not for others. I often talk about my husband - who can rock a pink shirt. Last year, I had a male pre-k student who was very open about his love for the color pink. The children very quickly accepted that this particular student loves pink and that was ok, but making the next leap that pink can be enjoyed by any boy, or girl, that takes a little more work.

That is why as teachers, we need to create a learning environment that is safe for children to explore, ask questions, try new things, make friends, and learn. School is not just a place to learn academics; it is a social place where our students learn how to be participants of the larger society.

The teacher in the article mentioned above writes;

"My job is not to judge, but to teach, and I can’t teach if the students in my class are distracted or uncomfortable. My job is also about preparing students to be a part of our society, ready to work and play with all kinds of people. I found that teaching about gender stereotypes is another social justice issue that needs to be addressed, like racism or immigrant rights, or protecting the environment."