Teaching Tolerance

Main ideas, concepts, and lessons

• Tolerance as an “American democracy” skill

  • The classroom is presented as a place to practice how to live with differences—because America is described as a “grand experiment” with diversity from many lands, languages, and cultures.
  • Lesson: If we can’t make diversity work in young children’s classrooms, society will struggle more later.

• Fairness, cooperation, respect, and community-building are taught through daily interaction

  • Students from varied backgrounds are not treated as separate; they’re expected to go beyond differences and create common ground.
  • Tolerance is framed as something built through relationships, not just facts.

• Teachers model respect for differences—children learn from nonverbal and behavioral cues

  • Children notice whether adults seem afraid, indifferent, or rejecting of differences.
  • Lesson: The teacher’s attitude is the model that shapes the classroom climate.

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Methodologies / classroom approaches described

1) Anti-bias curriculum and structured community rebuilding

• Use an anti-bias curriculum that treats diversity broadly, including:
  • Socio-economic diversity
  • Religious diversity
  • Family structure diversity
  • Other forms of difference
• When community-building exercises are missed, teachers may redo or restart (described as “redo September” to rebuild unity).
• Core practice:
  • Speak about differences explicitly before expecting children to build community.
  • Recognize that discussing differences “takes practice.”

2) Individual identity practice: “people-color” painting

• Goal: Honor children as individuals and help them recognize differences without devaluing anyone.
• Steps:
  • Tell children the lesson is about how special and different each person is.
  • Begin with an art-based elicitation of identity:
    • Children choose paint colors that represent their skin tone.
    • Mix paints as needed to find the closest match.
  • Language management:
    • Instead of calling someone “white,” use the actual color description of their skin (e.g., “peach,” “mahogany,” etc.).
• Expected outcomes:
  • Children feel seen and part of the group.
  • Children learn to talk about skin tone in a more respectful, individualized way.

3) Handling misconceptions with guided clarification (example: “I’m white”)

• If a child uses a label that others react to:
  • Facilitate group discussion:
    • Ask what the label means to the child.
    • Compare perceptions carefully using a non-threatening reference (e.g., paint lids as color references).
  • Replace vague/incorrect labeling with more precise, respectful phrasing.

4) “I care rules” and conflict resolution through role-play

• Use a structured classroom caring framework:
  • Five “I care rules”:
    • Listen to each other
    • Hands are for helping, not hurting
    • Use “I care” language
    • Care about each other’s feelings
    • Be responsible for what you say and do
• Conflict handling method:
  • Use stories and scenarios where characters face problems.
  • Ask children how they could apply the I care rules to solve the problem.
  • Use role-play to practice likely responses and solutions.
• Include a dedicated calming/neutral space:
  • A “peace table” near the teacher’s desk for de-escalation and neutral discussion.

5) “Peace table” as neutral-ground diplomacy for young children

• Treat conflict talk like adult diplomacy:
  • Neutral ground where differences can be discussed without punishment-by-exclusion.
• Goal: Generalizable skills—children should resolve issues not only at the peace table, but also in places like the cafeteria and playground.

6) Teaching heroes and belonging beyond the neighborhood

• Goal: Connect children to a wider community and broaden who counts as “real” or “important.”
• Steps:
  • Introduce visitors (community members) and discuss what a hero is.
  • Include varied examples:
    • Civil rights leaders (e.g., Martin Luther King Jr.)
    • Family members
    • Community helpers
  • Encourage children to define heroes in their own words.

7) Language and culture awareness through greetings and curiosity

• Practice multilingual greeting games:
  • Children learn “hello” in different languages and share them as a group.
• Teaching approach:
  • Encourage questions and curiosity, paired with respect.
  • Emphasize languages are different, not inherently superior.
• Address teasing or “funny accent” reactions:
  • Teach replacement language (e.g., if it “sounds funny,” discuss alternatives like “new” or “different”).
  • Explain how it would feel to be judged by others in another place/culture.

8) Puppets/play-acting to make abstract values concrete

• Use puppets to represent real classroom experiences:
  • Different family structures (e.g., children with two dads/two moms).
  • Characters that model fairness and consequences.
• Teach fairness at the preschool level as understanding:
  • What is fair/unfair
  • Why taking turns or sharing is fair
  • Why excluding someone or withholding stickers can be unfair
• Expand toward empathy as children grow:
  • “How does it feel for the other person?”

9) Accessibility and empathy through lived experience simulation (wheelchair/Ramp project)

• Start with misinformation and fear, then build understanding:
  • Children initially fear that wheelchairs mean illness or death.
  • The teacher corrects misconceptions and guides questions.
• Steps:
  • Build a ramp plan with the class:
    • Determine where a ramp should go and which doors are feasible.
    • Use classroom mobility simulations to test access paths.
  • Bring in a class visitor (Rebecca) using a wheelchair to validate learning.
  • Use role reversal and empathy practice:
    • Children try tasks while “simulating” limitations (e.g., getting stuck, needing help).
• Outcomes described:
  • Children develop respect and reduce fear.
  • Children learn difference isn’t only about skin tone or economics—it can also be about ability/access.

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What the video argues overall (throughline)

• Tolerance is not automatic; it must be built intentionally in early childhood.
• There is no single method: the video repeatedly emphasizes that there are “as many possibilities as there are children, teachers, and communities.”
• The most important common steps are:
  • Start early
  • Make difference visible with respect
  • Teach concrete behaviors (sharing, listening, peace/conflict skills, fairness)
  • Model respect as an adult

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Speakers / sources featured (as mentioned in subtitles)

• Debra Goldsberry (educator mentioned in connection with anti-bias curriculum and community rebuilding)
• Lourdes Ballesteros Peron (kindergarten teacher at North Miami Elementary; also associated with the Miami Peace Education Foundation)
• Mary Stewart (teacher at Edgewood Elementary; taught “harmony” via common bond)
• Linda Alston (teacher at Mitchell Montessori school; introduces community beyond neighborhood)
• Eric Hoffman (teacher in Aptos, California; uses puppets and play-acting)
• Terence (student/participant referenced during classroom activity)
• Michelle (student/participant referenced)
• Brother Nan Tom Boo (community elder/guest introduced by children in Denver)
• Catherine (introduced as a community figure; also connected to “brother nan tom boo” segment)
• Mr. Jerry Brown of the Lakota tribe (guest speaker/elder)
• Mr. Joe (community member/hero figure for students)
• Rebecca (student/visitor in wheelchair accessibility learning scenario)
• Kevin (student participant in wheelchair/role scenario)
• Larry (student participant in wheelchair/role scenario)
• Charlotte (child participant in greeting moment)
• Ian (child participant in greeting moment)

Note: Some names appear as student participants or are partially garbled in the auto-generated subtitles; the list reflects only those explicitly mentioned.