What Makes People Different Colors ?

Grade Level : Kindergarten

Objectives

To show the uniqueness of one's skin color

To gain a better understanding of skin color

Vocabulary

All skin is composed of four substances and has colors in it, brown, yellow, white, and red. These colors have special names. Yellow is carotene, red is hemoglobin, and the brown is melanin. The amount of melanin is the substance that makes people's skin different colors.

melanin--Any of a group of naturally occurring dark pigments, especially the pigment found in skin, hair, fur, and feathers

carotene--An orange-yellow to red crystalline pigment, C40H56, found in animal tissue and certain plants, such as carrots and squash. It exists in three isomeric forms and is converted to vitamin A in the liver.

hemoglobin--The iron-containing respiratory pigment in red blood cells of vertebrates, consisting of about 6 percent heme and 94 percent globin.

shades of skin color--The degree to which a color is mixed with black or is decreasingly illuminated; gradation of darkness

Pre-assessment

Display pictures of groupings of people with shades of skin tones. Ask children to talk about the pictures and what they see. (Pictures have been clipped from magazines and laminated.)

Hands In A Circle: Children stand in a circle or sit around a table and put out one hand so all can see. Ask children to tell what they see. Accept all observations; who has freckles, the smallest fingers, relative skin colors, etc. Hopefully someone will notice that the hands are different colors. Teacher leads a discussion: why do you think the hands are different colors? Where do we get our skin color? What causes skin to be different colors? Accept and record all comments for later comparisons.

Reading

Bright Eyes, Brown Skin by Cheryl Willis Hudson.

This is a story about children who are proud of their skin color. This simple rhyming text celebrates positive images.

Activities

#1 Mixing Colors
Instead of mixing paints as an experiment to show how the amount of melanin controls skin tone, an experiment using everyday kitchen ingredients has been used.

Materials:

3 clear plastic containers

white cornmeal

yellow cornmeal

red Kool-Aid powder

instant coffee or powder cocoa

Procedure:

Put three clear containers on a table.

Fill each container halfway with the white cornmeal.

Add one half teaspoon yellow cornmeal to each container, mix.

Add one half teaspoon red flavored powder to each container, mix.

Add 3 teaspoon of coffee/cocoa to the first container, mix.

Add one teaspoon of coffee/cocoa to the second container, mix.

Add one half teaspoon of coffee, cocoa to the third container, mix.

Read We are All Alike, We are All Different.

When people have a lot of melanin, their skin looks dark brown, as in the first glass. When there is a medium amount of melanin, their skin is a light brown. When there is a very small amount of melanin, the skin is light. Using five or six containers, decreasing the amount of coffee/cocoa in each container may be more effective in showing the shades of skin tones from light to dark.All shades between light and dark are composed of the same four ingredients.

Mixing paints to achieve shadings in skin colors is not an easy task, nor is it necessary. Commercial paints are available in twelve to eighteen different skin tones.

Reading

All the Colors of the Earth by Sheila Hamanaka.

Reveals in verse that despite outward differences children everywhere are essentially the same and all are lovable.

#2 Sorting Pictures
Images are sorted into categories according to the amount of melanin in the skin.

Materials:

pictures clipped from magazines and laminated of children and adults with a wide range of children and adults

Procedure:

This can be a small group activity with the children discussing and sorting, or a whole class activity with teacher holding each picture and the class deciding how to sort. Some classes may have two groups, others may have two or three groups depending on the observations of the children.

Accept reasonable explanations and groupings.

When all pictures are on display, ask if there are any pictures that may need to be changed from one group to another.

Always encourage the children to tell why they think the picture should be moved. Some children may be able to see fine shadings.

Photographs may be particularly useful to demonstrate that not all "white" people are the same shade, and not all African-Americans are the same shade of brown.

#3 Matching Skin Tones
Children will match their skin color to the tones of paint. Encourage the children to verbalize about their skin tone as they try to match their skin to the paint samples. "My skin has a lot/not much melanin so I am looking for a paint that is brown/light".

Materials:

skin tone paints

window cards

paint brushes

oak tag or heavy drawing paper

Procedure:

The child places one hand on the paper and traces around their hand. Some children may need adult help with the tracing. Using the painted half circles from the kit, children match the paint tone closest to their skin color then find the paint container that matches.

Child uses the paint to paint their hand print.

Allow paint to dry and have children cut out their hand print.

Have children arrange their painted hands from the darkest to the lightest.

Assessment:
Again, each child is encouraged to verbalize, "My skin tone is light/dark. I have little/much melanin in my skin." The same general questions and discussion that were used in the pre-assessment can be used here as a post-assessment.

The skin tone paints will need to be diluted a little and placed into smaller containers for classroom use. Thick paint tends to crack and flake off. Unused paint in the smaller containers can be returned to the original bottle for later use.

#4 Naming Skin Tones
To promote language development , creativity, and pride in their own special color, have children think of names for their skin tones. Teacher may remind the children of foods or objects in nature that might have a similar color. Vanilla ice-cream, peanut butter, brownie, toast, chocolate bar, coffee and cream, cinnamon, peaches and cream, etc.

Websites

Mommy, Why is that Boy's Skin Brown?: An article about teaching your child to see the beauty in differences. [Children's Television Workshop]
Just Us Books, publisher of Bright Eyes, Brown Skin.

Lakeshore Learning Materials produces art materials and paints in skin tones.

Materials for this Kit

pictures of people with many skin tones (clipped from magazines and laminated)

art Materials:

12 bottles of skin tone paints
6 boxes multicultural markers
2 boxes skin tone crayons
1 package of skin tone art paper

drawing paper or oak tag

ingredients for experiment

6 clear plastic containers
1 box yellow cornmeal
1 box of white cornmeal
1 box of cocoa
1 package red kool-aid powder or jello

Window cards for matching skin tones

Books

All the Colors of the Earth by Sheila Hamanaka.Reveals in verse that despite outward differences children everywhere are essentially the same and all are lovable. Morrow Junior Books, 1994. (E)
All the Colors of the Race by Arnold Adolf.A collection of poems written from the point of view of a child with a black mother and a white father. Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, 1982. (811)

All the Colors We Are: The story of How We Get Out Skin Color =Todos los colores de nuestra piel : la historia de por que tenemos diferentes colores de piel by Katie Kissinger. Redleaf Press, 1994. (612.7)

Black is Brown is Tan by Arnold Adolf. Describes in verse the life of a brown-skinned momma, white-skinned daddy, their children, and assorted relatives. Harper & Row, 1973. (811)

Bright Eyes, Brown Skin by Cheryl Willis Hudson.This simple rhyming text celebrates positive images. Just Us Books, 1990. (E)

Shades of Black: A Celebration of Our Children by Sandra L. Pinkney. Photographs link skin tones to the colors of favorite foods. Scholastic, 2000.

We are all Alike, We are all Different by Cheltenham Elementary School Kindergartners. Kindergarten children describe the likenesses and differences between themselves. Scholastic., 1991 (370.19)

Why People are Different Colors? by Julian May. This books examines the biological causes of differences in skin color. Holiday House, 1971. (572)

melanin--Any of a group of naturally occurring dark pigments, especially the pigment found in skin, hair, fur, and feathers	carotene--An orange-yellow to red crystalline pigment, C40H56, found in animal tissue and certain plants, such as carrots and squash. It exists in three isomeric forms and is converted to vitamin A in the liver.
hemoglobin--The iron-containing respiratory pigment in red blood cells of vertebrates, consisting of about 6 percent heme and 94 percent globin.	shades of skin color--The degree to which a color is mixed with black or is decreasingly illuminated; gradation of darkness

Pre-assessment	Display pictures of groupings of people with shades of skin tones. Ask children to talk about the pictures and what they see. (Pictures have been clipped from magazines and laminated.)
	Hands In A Circle: Children stand in a circle or sit around a table and put out one hand so all can see. Ask children to tell what they see. Accept all observations; who has freckles, the smallest fingers, relative skin colors, etc. Hopefully someone will notice that the hands are different colors. Teacher leads a discussion: why do you think the hands are different colors? Where do we get our skin color? What causes skin to be different colors? Accept and record all comments for later comparisons.
Reading	Bright Eyes, Brown Skin by Cheryl Willis Hudson. This is a story about children who are proud of their skin color. This simple rhyming text celebrates positive images.

Activities	#1 Mixing Colors Instead of mixing paints as an experiment to show how the amount of melanin controls skin tone, an experiment using everyday kitchen ingredients has been used. Materials: 3 clear plastic containers white cornmeal yellow cornmeal red Kool-Aid powder instant coffee or powder cocoa Procedure: Put three clear containers on a table. Fill each container halfway with the white cornmeal. Add one half teaspoon yellow cornmeal to each container, mix. Add one half teaspoon red flavored powder to each container, mix. Add 3 teaspoon of coffee/cocoa to the first container, mix. Add one teaspoon of coffee/cocoa to the second container, mix. Add one half teaspoon of coffee, cocoa to the third container, mix. Read We are All Alike, We are All Different. When people have a lot of melanin, their skin looks dark brown, as in the first glass. When there is a medium amount of melanin, their skin is a light brown. When there is a very small amount of melanin, the skin is light. Using five or six containers, decreasing the amount of coffee/cocoa in each container may be more effective in showing the shades of skin tones from light to dark.All shades between light and dark are composed of the same four ingredients.
	Mixing paints to achieve shadings in skin colors is not an easy task, nor is it necessary. Commercial paints are available in twelve to eighteen different skin tones.
Reading	All the Colors of the Earth by Sheila Hamanaka. Reveals in verse that despite outward differences children everywhere are essentially the same and all are lovable.
	#2 Sorting Pictures Images are sorted into categories according to the amount of melanin in the skin. Materials: pictures clipped from magazines and laminated of children and adults with a wide range of children and adults Procedure: This can be a small group activity with the children discussing and sorting, or a whole class activity with teacher holding each picture and the class deciding how to sort. Some classes may have two groups, others may have two or three groups depending on the observations of the children. Accept reasonable explanations and groupings. When all pictures are on display, ask if there are any pictures that may need to be changed from one group to another. Always encourage the children to tell why they think the picture should be moved. Some children may be able to see fine shadings. Photographs may be particularly useful to demonstrate that not all "white" people are the same shade, and not all African-Americans are the same shade of brown.
	#3 Matching Skin Tones Children will match their skin color to the tones of paint. Encourage the children to verbalize about their skin tone as they try to match their skin to the paint samples. "My skin has a lot/not much melanin so I am looking for a paint that is brown/light".
	Materials: skin tone paints window cards paint brushes oak tag or heavy drawing paper
	Procedure: The child places one hand on the paper and traces around their hand. Some children may need adult help with the tracing. Using the painted half circles from the kit, children match the paint tone closest to their skin color then find the paint container that matches. Child uses the paint to paint their hand print. Allow paint to dry and have children cut out their hand print. Have children arrange their painted hands from the darkest to the lightest. Assessment: Again, each child is encouraged to verbalize, "My skin tone is light/dark. I have little/much melanin in my skin." The same general questions and discussion that were used in the pre-assessment can be used here as a post-assessment.
	The skin tone paints will need to be diluted a little and placed into smaller containers for classroom use. Thick paint tends to crack and flake off. Unused paint in the smaller containers can be returned to the original bottle for later use.
	#4 Naming Skin Tones To promote language development , creativity, and pride in their own special color, have children think of names for their skin tones. Teacher may remind the children of foods or objects in nature that might have a similar color. Vanilla ice-cream, peanut butter, brownie, toast, chocolate bar, coffee and cream, cinnamon, peaches and cream, etc.

Web of Respect

Positive Images

What Makes People Different Colors ?

Grade Level : Kindergarten

Objectives

Vocabulary

Pre-assessment

Reading

Activities

Reading

Materials for this Kit

Books