Kindergarten geography: Teaching diversity to young people

A Southern Poverty Law Center grant enabled purchasing dolls representing c hildren of different races, ethnicity, and condition of disability. The tea cher used these with other materials to sensitize kindergarten children to human differences. She directed them to cut pictures from National Geograph ic Magazine showing people who are "somehow different." Responses from chil dren were classified. Nine commented on adornment, three on household setti ng, two on occupation, and one on race. Little research exists on teaching geography to kindergarteners except on the ability to read maps. The author s contend that kindergarteners are quite ready to learn about regional diff erences among human populations.