Sinéad’s Class: Diversity & Inclusion Week

We celebrated “World Down Syndrome Day” as part of Neurodiversity Week. This year’s theme is “End the Stereotype”. The children discussed what the word stereotype means and shared common ones that they were aware of like “toys for boys and toys for girls”. It was a great starting point to show that stereotypes are incorrect and can be harmful. Quite often, stereotypes prevent people from pursuing their dreams.

We read a lovely poem called “I am me.” It was written by a mother for her daughter who has Down Syndrome. The poem taught us that instead of seeing someone as a stereotype, we should see them for the person they are inside. A person that has their own unique interests, dislikes and personality. We wrote our own version of the poem, celebrating what we love about ourselves.

For Diversity and Inclusion Week, we opened our conversation up to all the ways people are wonderfully different. The children designed their own jelly bean for our display. Their faces lit up when they asked “Can we do anything we want?”

We came to the conclusion that while everyone is different in their own way. Something we all have in common is that we all want to be happy.

I Am Me: So Here’s Us