Discussing Race
Lesson 2: Families Are Different (And The Same)

Lesson Goals

  • Notice diversity within and between families
  • Discuss different family structures

Lesson Description

Use the collage of family photos to spark conversations about how families, like people, are both similar and different.

Standards

Early Learning Outcomes Framework: Goal P-SE 6, Goal P-SE 9, Goal, P-SE 10, Goal P-SE 11, Goal P-LC 1, Goal P-LC 2, Goal P-LC 5, Goal P-LC 6, Goal P-LIT 

CT ELDS: SE.36.13, SE.48.12, SE.60.15, SE.36.7, SE.48.7, SE.60.9, SE.60.11, SE.36.9, SE.48.9, SE.60.11, SS.48.1, SS.60.1, L.36.5, L.48.5, L.60.5, L.36.7, L.48.7, L.48.11, L.36.14, L.48.13, L.48.15

Lesson Plan: Similarities & Differences

Play "Us Time" Song

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Open Us Time with the “Us Time” song. Sing it together or play the video. 

Review Agreements

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Agreements are rules that people decide, together, to follow such as:

  • Paying attention to each other;
  • Keeping our hands to ourselves; and
  • Giving everyone a turn to speak.

In each session, discuss agreements, add to them, modify them, and recommit. Students can raise their hands or say “I agree” to show that they agree.

Discussion: Family Collage

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  • Using the “Family Photos” collage, select two families to highlight.
  • Share one photo at a time with the students, saying, “This is a picture of a family!” Point to each person in the picture and ask students who they think that person is to the family (mother, baby, grandfather, etc.). 
  • Ask students if the family members in the photo are all the same or if they see any differences. Point out and name any differences that students don’t highlight on their own. 
  • When you have looked closely at each photo separately, ask students how two families are the same and different. Use the following questions to spark ideas: (1) Who are the family members in each family? (2) How many people are in each family? How many children? How many adults? (3) Do the people in each family all have the same skin color or different skin color?

Activity: Family Interview

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Please Note: Take a moment to consider the home situations of the students in your class before beginning this activity. Some children with unstable or otherwise challenging family circumstances may not be able to participate. If this is the case, you might decide to invite the children to paint/draw family portraits instead of using photos.

  • Ask each family to send in one photo of their family for a class project. Encourage families to define “family” in any way that they choose.
  • During free play/choice time, individually interview each child about their photo. Possible questions include:
    • Who is in your family photo?
    • How many people are in your family?
    • How many brothers and sisters are in your family?
    • How many adults are in your family? How many children?
    • Do you have any animals in your family?
    • What is the same about everyone in the photo?
    • What are the differences among the people in the photo?
    • What do you like to do with your family?
    • What do you love about your family?
  • Assemble a class book of families, with each student’s family photo and interview answers on a single page (you may put the photo on one side of the paper and their answers on the opposite side).

Activity: Family Statistics

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Based on students’ interviews about their family photos, create graphs to visualize their “family statistics.” 

Get creative. Let the class’s charts be inspired by the statistics they collected about their families. Consider:

  • A pie chart of family pets
  • A bar graph of human family members 
  • A histogram of siblings’ ages
  • A graph of hair color, skin color, or eye color of immediate family members

Closing Discussion: Families

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There are many ways that families can be different … and the same. 

  • The grown-ups in a family can be a mom and a dad, one or two moms, one or two dads, grandparents, aunts, uncles, or someone else! 
  • There can be one child, two children, or many children. There can be brothers, sisters, cousins, or someone else! 
  • Families can come together by birth, adoption, foster care, or something else! 
  • Families can all have the same eyes, hair, and skin color, or those things can be different!
  • But the one thing that we know for sure is that all families LOVE each other.

Thank You: Share the Us Time Closing Song

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Conclude with “Thank You,” the Us Time “goodbye” song. This song marks the end of Us Time. Invite children to share what they want to say “thank you” for! Find the song online at playsparkler.org/UsTimeSongs.

Same – an identical type; exactly similar

Different – not the same as another or each other; unlike in nature, form, or quality

What You'll Need
Lesson Quick Links

Family Engagement Materials

From this lesson, you can share:
Reading List
Vocabulary
Suggested Letter to Send Home
Activities to Play At Home

Explore Other Us Time: Race & Racism Resources

Visit the Race Guide Website for Families