Face Puzzles

Every teacher must provide meaningful activities to her/his students in order to enhance their desire of learning. Diversity activities promote the goals and objectives of activity goals by fostering each child’s positive, empathetic interaction with diversity among people. Diversity activities help children explore the concepts of alike and different (York, 205).

 “Face Puzzles” themes are “I’m Me and I’m Special, Bodies, Alike and Different, Friends.

Objectives: Appreciate the physical characteristics of others and yourself

Materials: Camera, film, poster board or foam core, mat knife, rubber cement, pencil, ruler

Description: Teachers can take a close-up photo of each child’s face. The photos should be enlarged to 8 by 10 inches. Glue the photo to the foam core and let it dry. Using a ruler, mark off the photo in fourths, vertically and horizontally. Using a pencil, lightly draw lines for cutting out the pieces.  This should result in sixteen 2-inch squares. Teachers should cut out the pieces with the mat knife ahead of time and put the child’s name or initials on the back of each piece.  During group time, teachers should give the pieces to each child in a plastic bag.  Educators should encourage children to try to put together their face puzzle. As children work on their own puzzle, a conversation about where the eyes, nose, and mouth are located on a person’s face should occur. When children have completed their puzzle, asking them to hold up the piece that shows their mouth should be demonstrated by the teacher. Talk about how each person’s mouth is different. Continue with the other facial features.

For older children (4-8) Teachers can combine three to four puzzles. Have children unscramble them and make the correct faces of other children. Set out the puzzle pieces in a tub and let children freely explore putting the pieces together to create different faces.

Teachers can also extend this activity by having children pick a partner of a different cultural group, let them set up each other’s puzzles, and discuss each other's physical characteristics.

I chose The “Face Puzzles” activity because I believe it promotes children’s view of themselves; children are able to see their beauty in a puzzle, talk about their physical characteristics, explore each other’s differences and similarities, and learn about different people.  I also chose this activity because I believe it helps children appreciate the difference they notice, without making judgments; children gain knowledge about one another, and explore their classmates.  

As we saw earlier in the semester, Jane Elliot had implemented a 2 day activity, in which she had divided her class into two groups: blue eyes and brown eyes. She had given superiority to both groups one at a time and established that children easily adapt to a role of superiority and dominance. This activity is age appropriate because during childhood, racism affects children’s social and emotional development. Children from early age began to be racist which shapes their personal and racial identity (York, 40-41).  Through this activity children learn that their physical characteristics are different, yet they all have attributes such as noses, mouths, lips, tongues, eyes, ears, hair, etc. When choosing my activity, I had three themes that support my activity; fostering positive self-esteem, positive self-concept in children provides children with a positive experience exploring similarities and differences among each other, and it promotes respect towards others (Goals for Anti-Bias Curriculum).  This appropriate activity meets anti-bias goals, for example, it nurtures each child’s construction of knowledgeable, confident self-concept, and group identity.  Teachers are suppose to create the educational conditions, where all children are able to like who they are, without needing to feel superior to anyone else. This activity helps children accomplish it. The activity also helps children recognize and respect difference, while  recognizing and accepting, both mentally and emotionally, the common humanity that all people share.

I have chosen 3 different books for my activity. “What I like about me” written by Allia Zobel Nolan, is about different children who love themselves. Children in the book love their braces, others feel distinguished when they wear their glasses, and other children wouldn’t trade their big feet for a lifetime of free video games. This is a fun-loving book, which features entertaining and proves to children that, in a world where fitting in is the norm, being different is what makes us special. 

 The second book that I have chosen is for ages 3 to 8, and is written by Michael Tyler. The book is called “The Skin You Live In”. The story’s themes are associated with child development and social harmony, such as friendship, acceptance, self-esteem, and diversity are promoted in simple and straightforward prose. 

                                                                                                                       My third book is called “Whoever You Are” and is written by Mem Fox and is about peace and equality.  The book has a great beginning, where the author reminds readers that whoever you are and wherever you are there are people all over the world just like you. 

Children live in a world created by their educators and parents; children are influenced by other children and their educators. It is our job to protect them, teach, respect, and love children. The beauty for a teacher is to create a meaningful learning opportunities for students and see them progress as they learn.  I believe children are fabulous at everything they do; it is educator’s job to notice their effort and encourage them to full progression.