If a child is in the grocery store and points out someone of a different race, how should a parent respond?
Family Conversation Kits might help get the conversation started by explaining ways to teach children about diversity and equity, said Becky Linderholm, educator, social justice advocate and co-creator of the kits.
"Instead of going, 'Shh, we don't talk about that,' how can you help your child to have that conversation and know that it's OK to notice race and it's not racist to notice race?" she asked.
These kits, available at five locations in the Eau Claire area, have two or three books highlighting diversity and guides to go along with them to lead parents and teachers in conversations about race. The guides also help parents respond to inquiries from their children about people with different backgrounds.
"The guides give families some good background information about the groups that the kits focus on and provide some questions for parents and children to discuss together that connect to the specific books we've chosen for the kit," she said. Included in the guides are conversation starters for the books, recommended books and websites for more information, and lists of words to use and avoid and reasons why.
The idea for the project sprung from an initiative, Circles of Change, in which participants met to discuss race relations and how to help make the Chippewa Valley more welcoming.
One of the ideas was to ensure libraries were stocked with books highlighting diversity. But members of the group realized that while families might want to have conversations about diversity, they don't know where to start.
The kits, which first became available in June, are meant to help steer and direct that conversation, Linderholm said. So far they're helping parents and educators feel more comfortable when having those discussions, Linderholm said of comments she's heard.
Books and a guide are featured in the young readers edition of the Asian Family Conversation Kit. Photo courtesy of Becky Linderholm
They also encourage reading literature that's more reflective of reality, especially because about 25 percent of children's books published in 2017 featured diverse characters, according to a study from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Cooperative Children’s Book Center.
"When we start to notice differences, than our eyes are more open to the different ways people experience the world because of those differences and then we can pave the way for more equitable communities," Linderholm said.
The kits are broken down into specific topics, for example Latinx and Asian communities, and then further divided into age ranges from early childhood to middle school age. Linderholm said the next topic will likely focus on the LGBTQIA+ community.
"Beyond that, we have a whole list of different identities that we want to hit and help families start conversations about," she said.
Donations and grants help keep the kits free to people in the Eau Claire area.
Linderholm said the organization is working with independent online bookstore Dotters Books to sell the kits to people in other parts of the state and country. Linderholm hopes that option will be ready before the holiday season.
"We hope that families leave with the background information to feel confident knowing that they're using vocabulary words that are appropriate for the groups that the kits focus on," she said.
Linderholm said race can be a difficult topic to talk about with children, but noted the guides are a helpful start. So, too, is admitting to children that adults might not have all the answers.
"I think sometimes as adults we feel like we have to be able to answer every question," she said. "It's really powerful for children to see that sometimes we don't know and we have to talk to people who know better than us."
The kits can be found at the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library in Eau Claire, the Altoona Public Library, the Chippewa Falls Public Library, the Boys and Girls Club — Mary Markquart Center, and the UW-Eau Claire Children's Nature Academy. Families interested in finding other diversity-related books can check out We Need Diverse Books and its Our Story application that lists book options, Social Justice Books, and PragmaticMom.
