I had a teacher in Middle School, named Mrs. Hudson. She had assigned us a drawing of the different layers of skin for homework. We were to take what they did in the book, and copy it, and make our own version of what was there. I came in the next day, with mine, looking fairly horrible. I'm an awful hand with a drawing pencil, and can't make what I have look anything at all like what's on paper. That being said, I did give it a valiant effort, and coloured it like it was in the book.
The next day, as the teacher was collecting our assignments, she paused at one student's desk, and said, "Now why didn't I ever think of that?" The student had coloured her drawing of skin (the surface, of course) a pretty chocolate brown. Looking back on those textbooks, it dawns on me that the "norm" was the beige coloured skin tones of my teacher, and a couple of other students in the school, whereas the browns and chocolates of the other students were never represented. I don't know what made me think of it, but I'm glad that my teacher called to task the book which was engaged in the Invisible Backpack, which was a term I didn't learn of until a few years later.
The next day, as the teacher was collecting our assignments, she paused at one student's desk, and said, "Now why didn't I ever think of that?" The student had coloured her drawing of skin (the surface, of course) a pretty chocolate brown. Looking back on those textbooks, it dawns on me that the "norm" was the beige coloured skin tones of my teacher, and a couple of other students in the school, whereas the browns and chocolates of the other students were never represented. I don't know what made me think of it, but I'm glad that my teacher called to task the book which was engaged in the Invisible Backpack, which was a term I didn't learn of until a few years later.
Sweet memory :) Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAs a "white" teacher of many colors of students, I thank you for the reminder!
ReplyDeletewingraclaire.livejournal.com
p.s. I say "white" because every year or so we all get into a circle and put our arms in and look at the variety of color. Everyone notices that nobody is either "black" or "white;" we are all something in between.