Hair Coloring

Teaching tolerance: Students think about diversity in hair-color exercise

Published: Thursday, 22 March 2007 09:09:26
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By Amy Lavalley

VALPARAISO -- The scenario was certainly one that got small groups of Cooks Corners Elementary School third-, fourth- and fifth-graders thinking.

What would happen if the principal, Vern Turner, declared Blond Hair Day at school, and only children with blond hair were allowed to take part in recess, lunch and special activities?

The exercise was part of the diversity education program conducted at the school earlier this month. All elementary schools in the Valparaiso Community School Corp. had diversity programs; the one at Cooks Corners was pushed back because of the weather.

Students there took part in an assortment of activities, including hearing stories and taking on projects with diversity themes. The Blond Hair Day exercise came after a brief play about frogs and snakes playing together.

Third-grade teachers Karol Kennedy and Shannon Gonzales, who oversaw the play and writing exercise, said they got ideas for the curriculum from the Web site www.

teachingtolerance.org.

"We made it our own," Gonzales said.

As the Blond Hair Day exercise began, Kennedy and Gonzales explained that the student groups were to write an essay about how such a school day would go, touching on what the experience would be like for blond and non-blond students. And, no, students couldn't dye their hair for the day.

For their part, students -- regardless of hair color -- admitted the day wouldn't be much fun for anyone. Dark-haired students bemoaned the lack of privileges, like recess, and hunger from not eating lunch. Blond students weren't impressed by the preferential treatment, focusing instead on how much they'd miss their dark-haired peers.

One group of blond students mulled over the consequences.

"It'd be unfair," said fourth-grader Maggie Pisarski.

"And we'd have an advantage over any other kid at school," agreed Troy Janesheski, a fifth-grader.

"If you had a friend who had hair a different color than blond, you couldn't play with them or see them at lunch," added third-grader Nerissa Siwietz.

At least one dark-haired student tried to put a positive spin on things.

"It would sort of not be that bad because I really don't have any blond friends," said fourth-grader Sydney Balcerak.

Source: Post-Tribune