The aim of the study is to find an unbiased book for children under eight years of age. It was decided to consider All the Colors We Are: The Story of How We Get Our Skin Color by Katie Kissinger for study purposes. Literature is a powerful tool for educating the right values. An anti-bias book should not instill in itself stereotypes or belittlement of a particular nationality, race, gender, or group of people with any other characteristic, but, on the contrary, should emphasize the equality of people in society.
All the Colors We Are: The Story of How We Get Our Skin Color
Bibliography
Kissinger, K. (1994). All the colors we are: The story of how we get our skin color. Redleaf Press.
Choice of the Book
In the modern world, there are problems of inequality that are largely based on historical events: wars, slavery, privileged nations, and religions. According to All the Colors We Are: The Story of How We Get Our Skin Color nowadays, there is also class, religious and national inequality. Therefore, in order to solve this problem, the book conveys to children from an early age the value of equality, initially equal rights and opportunities of all people.
The book is presented on various selling platforms such as Amazon and suggested reading websites such as Social Justice Books and Redleaf Press. In addition, I’ve chosen this book because with its help it is possible to easily explain to children that in the world in which we live there are many nationalities and religions, all people come from a different cultural and ethnic background, but at the same time all this creates the variability, and it is important to respect this diversity.
Summary of the Book
There are no main characters or storyline in the book, but it is all filled with real photographs of children of various races and skin colors followed by scientific facts. The book uses visual and written form to explain the possible origins of skin color, such as from parents or relatives, melanin, and with the influence of the sun (tan).
Throughout the book, readers are being asked a number of questions, allowing them to put themselves in the place of the character of the book and form their own idea about the right actions. The children presented in the book also differ in appearance: facial features, hair, and clothing. However, their identity is emphasized in terms of the rights and capabilities of each. It is shown how these characteristics do not affect the interactions. The recommended readers age group are kids above three years old.
Assessment Criteria
Story
The book is adapted for children, and adult topics are conveyed using understandable language and presentation format that is interesting for children. The book also asks questions, involving the reader in the discussion, which is perhaps one of the key factors why this book is suitable for children. Already during the reading, the book provides an opportunity for discussion, raising resonant questions such as “What name would you like to give to the color of your skin?” (Kissinger, 1994, p. 4). Pictures are also interesting and attractive to children, which creates even greater involvement in the process of reading and studying the issue that is raised while using accessible methods.
The book helps to understand the correct actions in conflict with the help of preventive methods. Already while reading, the book asks questions about possible actions in a given situation, for example, should appearance characteristics influence the perception of a person. Thus, children have the opportunity to discuss and come to their own opinion with the influence of scientific information about the origin of these characteristics from the book.
Characters
The characters in the book are both girls and boys from various backgrounds. The uniqueness and different social chances of each are emphasized. The highlight is made on the fact that the origin has no influence on what position each of them will take in society and should not influence the attitude towards these boys and girls. The fact that the photographs are of children between about 5 to 12 years old rather than adults also helps to build empathy in the children reading the book. In addition, at the time of reading, young children mostly interact with their peers, which allows them to project the events and questions of the book into real life.
Themes
The book constantly asks discussion questions and communicates the correct values by explaining them. Various examples are given, including visual ones with the use of realistic photographs. Scientific explanations in simple words such as “if your skin is dark the melanin is very active, but if light it is not very busy” are provided (Kissinger, 1994, p. 11).
Moreover, the book asks both rhetorical and direct questions, allowing children to put themselves in the shoes of those depicted in the photographs to form a specific loyalty to other races. It is also demonstrated that children from different backgrounds can interact with each other without any barriers. The book does not insist on any values; it provides facts and examples and allows one to independently come to a decision.
Settings
Another advantage of the book is that everything is conveyed realistically. Real photographs and scientific facts are used to substantiate the material. On the other hand, the book looks at the topic of equality with any skin color from different angles, such as why is the color as such and what should be the reaction or thoughts in regards to it, but does not delve into other topics of different cultures and social inequality.
Illustrations
Repeating the above, the book uses real photos of people of various races, nationalities, and skin colors. Each of them is presented with equal attention, in different clothes that do not distinguish or, on the contrary, discriminate against anyone. There are no drawings or animations in the book, which also makes it more realistic.
Other
There are several drawbacks of the book if we consider it from the point of view of impartiality towards different people. For the most part, it is about the unbiasedness to different skin colors, but other topics are only minimally touched upon. Perhaps this book can become the basis for the further development of the topic of equality and bringing it to children.
Assessment of the Book
Summing up, All the Colors We Are: The Story of How We Get Our Skin Color meets most of the criteria for being anti-bias and covering the aspects of a multicultural environment. It is a good presentation for children under eight years old, due to such factors as raising urgent problems and using scientific facts, presenting them in simple language, and supplementing with real pictures. The book does not create new or incorrect stereotypes or beliefs but only conveys its main idea about the value of equality for people of different backgrounds.
Reference
Kissinger, K. (1994). All the colors we are: The story of how we get our skin color. Redleaf Press.