Home | How It Works | Stats Login | Register         Case: I Wish I Were Black! As a teacher of 5th grade students, I try to make sure that my students have a good sense of all the people and cultures that make up this country. Last couple weeks, I paid special attention to the African American people who have made significant contributions to the US. We read a book written by Walter Dean Myers. We have studied scientists, writers, and political figures. Students were very engaged and interested in the content. Yesterday something happened that puzzled me. Three of my White students told me that they wished they were Black. This was not my intention when I planned all my lessons on contributions of African Americans. How should I address this issue? Solution: (Rates are posted for this solution!) I think it is very common for students to want to be like someone they are inspired by. I would not consider this something to worry yourself about too much especially because it sounds so innocent. However, it still needs to be addressed. I would prompt them to tell me why they want to be black. I am sure it is not truly about the skin color and more that they just learned about someone that they aspire to be like. Once you discover the qualities that they are aspiring for than you can express that they can be all those things just the way they are. If it is truly that they want to be a different skin color, I would try to talk to them about the why. Do they think they would be more liked if they were, do they feel left out because of it? The first start is to get to the bottom of the why and then the solution will be clearer.