PARENT GUIDE #2
Danger of a Single Story
Next we’ll focus on how to shatter stereotypes through the application of two skills: individuating and avoiding a single story. Author Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche said “The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story.” Believing and teaching stereotypes supports the formation of racial bias. Click here to watch her 19-minute TED Talk.
Individuation is the practice of noticing what is unique about individuals. When we see and point out what is specific about each person, it becomes difficult to believe stereotypes. A related antidote for stereotyping is hearing multiple stories within one group of people. One way to hear multiple stories is to read many books that highlight the similarities and differences between individuals within a particular racial or cultural group.
To get you started, we’ve chosen a two-book set to give you an opportunity to practice individuating and seeking additional information about Black boys.
Books
Pre-K Books:
Saturday Morning at the ‘Shop
Written by Keenan Jones and illustrated by Ken Daley
The Last Stand Written by Antwan Eady and illustrated by Jarrett & Jerome Pumphrey
Elementary Books:
When Langston Dances
Written by Kaija Langley and illustrated by Keith Mallett
Abdul’s Story
Written by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow and illustrated by Tiffany Rose
Identity Statements:
We are a family who see each individual.
We explore many stories about each group of people.
Bookmarks
Bookmark for Saturday Morning at the ‘Shop and The Last Stand
Bookmark for When Langston Dances and Abdul’s Story
The first time you sit down with these two books, read them back-to-back. This will help you practice individuating and will create rich dialogue around ideas your children might be forming about Black boys. Remember that no one book or pair of books can single-handedly teach us how to individuate.
Check Out More Books!
Intersectional Stories about Black Boys
Now that you’ve spent time exploring the varied identities of Black boys, use these books to go further. These titles depict some of the varied cultural identities of Black boys in the United States & Canada.
More Stories About Black Boys (included in link above)
This booklist provides additional titles focused on Black boys. We encourage you to explore individuating and the danger of a single story within your home library as well.
Glossary of Terms
We’ve created this glossary of terms for you and your children to provide definitions that are used throughout our curriculum. If there are terms we use that you would like to see added to this glossary, let us know!
Why this Matters:
If our kids see individuals as unique people, they will be less likely to group people into categories and believe or create stereotypes. Individuation “has long been considered critical for reducing prejudice” (Cloutier, Li, and Correll, 2014).
Centering Black Boys
Black boys deserve to be seen in the fullness of their humanity: joyful, curious, imaginative, sensitive, intelligent, and complex. Yet pervasive anti-Black bias in the United States often denies Black boys the innocence, care, and opportunity afforded to their peers.
In the U.S., Black boys are more likely to experience harsher discipline in school, are over-identified for special education, and more likely to be portrayed negatively in the media. (Rizzo, Britton & Rhodes 2022). Studies have also found that Black boys are frequently perceived as older and less innocent than White boys, a bias linked to harsher treatment by adult authorities (Goff, et al, 2014). Experiencing racism and discrimination can have profound effects on Black children’s emotional well-being, sense of safety, and mental health (Oshri, Reck & Carter, 2024).
Because kids are inclined to view groups to which they don’t belong as more homogenous than the groups they are part of, kids who are not Black are likely to believe existing stereotypes about Black boys and view them as a homogenous group (Qian et al, 2022). When adults and children encounter only limited representations of Black boyhood, bias can take root early and influence everything from friendships to expectations for success. Sharing a wide range of stories featuring Black boys helps disrupt these harmful narratives by affirming that there is no one way to be a Black boy and that every child deserves to be seen as an individual who is multifaceted and worthy.
What the Research says:
Some children think race is a biological category. Race is not biological; it is a social construct.
Here are two resources to deepen your understanding of race:
A Family Guide to Talking About Race
Teaching Diversity: The Science You Need to Know to Explain Why Race is Not Biological
Researchers have studied how children think about categories and what that tells us about how they think about race. Specifically, researchers were interested in how language helps children learn categories. Hearing the word “tigers” helps children form a category - it helps them understand that the different animals called tigers are similar to each other, and then if they learn something about one tiger (it eats meat), it probably applies to other tigers too.
One question researchers explored was if children learn more about race categories through language (“Blacks,” “Whites”) in the same way. To seek more understanding, the researchers made up a category of people, “Zarpies.” They had two groups of children. One group heard a story that described Zarpies as a category (“Zarpies are scared of ladybugs”), while the other group heard a story that described Zarpies as individuals (“this Zarpie is scared of ladybugs”). To see if children thought of Zarpies as a category, the researchers asked children if they thought all Zarpies were afraid of ladybugs, and, if so, if it was because they were Zarpies. Kids who had heard Zarpies as a category (“Zarpies are scared of ladybugs”) believed that all Zarpies were afraid, while kids who heard the story that stated “this Zarpie is afraid of ladybugs” did not believe all Zarpies were afraid, just the one that was mentioned. (Rhodes, et al, 2012)
Do’s and Don’ts
DO: Use specific language to describe race as it relates to particular individuals. (“Connor is on my soccer team. He’s Black, has braces, and is a great writer.”)
DO: Discuss race as a characteristic that makes us who we are. Reflect on race in the same way you would reflect on another physical characteristic, such as eye color or hair color.
DO: Look for books that tell lots of different stories about a group of people. For example, look for Muslim stories that include Middle Eastern cultures as well as stories that include cultures from the African Diaspora or from Southeast Asia.
DO: Look for books that counter stereotypes around the intersection of identities, for example race and wealth.
DO: Define the word “stereotype” for your child. You might say “a stereotype is an idea many people have about a group of people that is often based upon how they look on the outside. This may be only partly true or it may be untrue. Here’s an example: ‘Girls like pink.’ Some girls like pink, but not all girls do.”
DO: Point out stereotypes in books. You might say, “Hmm. I notice that all the kids with brown skin live in apartments. Do you think this is true for all kids with brown skin? I don’t.” Offer counter examples from your life, other books, tv shows or movies.
DON’T: use race as a primary identifier for an individual, something White people tend to do only when discussing BIPOC individuals. (“A Black woman at the grocery store complimented my outfit.”)
What you or your kids may ask:
“Where can I find more books that counter stereotypes and tell many stories about different groups of people?”
Diverse Books Finder is a searchable database of more than 3,000 picture books featuring Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). You can use the Search Tool to find books by subject, race, genre, gender, awards, etc.
Colors of Us has 500+ children’s books that can be sorted by ethnicity and age or provided in a booklist. Sign up for the smiling list and get recommendations straight to your inbox.
Challenge the single stories of groups of people by reading multiple books, having conversations, and drawing on your experiences. Here is a go-to set of questions to use when you encounter a single story in a book:
We just read this book about a person who is ______.
What did we learn about the people who are ______?
You’re right, ____ in this book is _____. But that’s not always true for ____. OR Oh, what in the book made you think that? Yes, that does happen in this book. But also [provide a specific counter example of someone they know.]