NEW YORK TIMES: …The progressive [Manhattan Country School] private school considers the visits to be one of the most radical things it does. “We knew we needed to talk about social class,” said Lois Gelernt, the teacher who came up with the idea. “It was opening up a can of worms, but if we were never going to talk about who we are and where we come from, the sense of community wasn’t going to be there.” …
Still, for all of the school’s commitment to diversity, openly acknowledging who lived where and how well was complicated. It became easier for the parents when they realized that the children had no issues with it; at 4 or 5, they’re still a few years away from wielding the word “rich” as a weapon or experiencing deep and lasting class envy. “Four-year-olds have no value judgments about one house being better than another because it’s fancier,” said Sarah Leibowits, who teaches that age group and now leads the visits. “They don’t think that way. That’s what adults think.”…
There are other possibilities too. The right Little League, scouting troop or house of worship can allow children to form deep relationships with peers they might not otherwise encounter. And spending time with families who have much less or more than you do can be illuminating for children as well, though not always in the way parents might expect…. (more)
