Using persona dolls can help children learn to treat everyone with respect, writes Babette Brown
Persona dolls are special - not only because they are toddler size, but because they come with their own individual personalities and life histories. They don't stay in the home corner but visit the children, usually at circle time.
Through the dolls, equality issues can be raised in a safe and supportive environment and children can be encouraged to treat everyone with respect. What follows is an example of how they can be used.
In a nursery school in London, Christopher shouted at one of the few black children in the group, 'Rachid, go away. You can't play. My gran and me don't like brown people.' After this, two other children, Kylie and Jeff, invited Rachid to join their game.
The nursery teacher decided to tell a persona doll story based on this incident at circle time. To avoid the children being recognised and to ensure it did not exactly mirror the situation, she changed the circumstances and the gender of the main character, but used a black doll. While telling the story, she observed Christopher and Rachid in case they needed her support. Positive responses, such as those of Kylie and Jeff were highlighted.
As usual, the children were delighted to see one of the persona dolls sitting in the teacher's lap as the story session began. 'Do you remember her name?' she asked. 'Emily!' the children chorused. The doll was passed around and, from the way each of the children greeted it, the teacher could see how much they cared.
'Do you remember how happy Emily was when she came to visit us last week?' Everyone nodded. 'Do you remember why she was happy - what had happened to her?' From their animated responses it was obvious the previous story had made an impression.
'But look at Emily today. Do you think she looks happy?' The children thought that she didn't. 'Emily asked me to tell you what happened yesterday because she is too sad to tell you herself.'
The children were told that Emily was having a really lovely time in the park on Sunday with her friends, Lee, Alice and Jack. Having described what they were doing the teacher encouraged the children to talk for a short time about what they do at the park.
Drawing their attention back to the story, she told the group that some big children came along and asked Lee, Alice and Jack if they wanted to join in their game. 'Sure!' they replied.
Emily wanted to play as well but they said that she was too small and small people were stupid so they didn't want her in their game. Off they ran, leaving Emily all alone.
At this point, the teacher encouraged the children to do most of the talking because from then on her role was to facilitate discussion. She asked questions such as, 'What do you think Emily was feeling when the children said she couldn't play with them? Do you sometimes feel like that? Do you think small people are stupid?
Knowing that discussing feelings and ideas is often more important than finding a solution, the teacher encouraged the children to name Emily's feelings and talk about how the story made them feel. The children were eager to help Emily, particularly because they considered she had been unfairly treated. They enjoyed offering advice and talking about their own experiences. They were further stimulated by being asked questions such as, 'Emily was the smallest.
She might have spoilt the game. Do you think they were right not to let her play?' and 'If you saw what happened to Emily what would you have done? She wants to know if it happens again what you think she should do?'
The story had a range of possible solutions. By weaving in the children's contributions, the teacher brought it to a conclusion which emphasised the pleasure of inclusion and the pain of exclusion. She picked up on the contributions of Christopher and Rachid and stressed the solutions that mirrored Kylie's and Jeff's response to Rachid. She hoped that thinking about how Emily was feeling might have helped Christopher gain insight into his own behaviour and learn that some of the things he had been told were untrue.
Persona dolls are tailored to requirements and can be ordered, after training on how to use them, from Persona Doll Training: learning by doing at 51 Granville Road, London N12 0JH. Tel: 020 8446 7056.