First Steps in Constructing Counter Narratives of Young Children and Their Families

Teachers and preservice teachers offered initial assumptions about children and families from backgrounds different from their own, "Letting them speak Spanish in school will hinder their ability to learn English and also hold back the other children" and "His house will be messy and dirty." Through experiences in the children's homes and communities, however, teachers and preservice teachers began to recognize that assumptions such as these are inaccuracies that negatively define and label children and families and limit teachers' visions for what is educationally possible. They also began to recognize the power that teachers hold to either perpetuate single stories or interrupt them by providing counter narratives that make visible the rich resources that children and families bring to schools. (Contains 2 photos.)