25_Fair vs Equal

Fair doesn’t mean giving every child the same thing, it means giving every child what they need. —Rick Lavoie Fair vs Equal: Celebrating Differences At Home Resources Level: Lower Elementary (K-2) Concepts: • Diversity • Equality • Fairness • PrivilegeBig Ideas For This LessonWe live in a diverse world. This means there is a wide range of differences between and among indi-viduals and cultures. How can we best prepare our children to meet the challenges of our increasinglydiverse world? Developing a deeper understanding of fairness goes hand-in-hand with increasing stu-dents’ tolerance and appreciation for diverse learners and an understanding of privilege.Many students think that fair means equal; however, fairness means treating people according to theirneeds. This does not always mean it will be equal. When students understand the difference betweenfairness and equality they are better able to cope when things seem “unfair” and develop greater em-pathy for those with needs that are different from their own. Essential VocabularyEquitable: Treating people fairly, according to their needs.Privilege: A set of unearned benefits given to a person based on membership of a particular social group (e.g., gender,race, sexual orientation, family, education, country of origin, language, physical and mental ability, etc.).Fair and Fairness: Treating people according to their needs.Equal and Equality: Treating people the same, regardless of their needs.© 2018 Empowering Education, Inc. PAGE 1 of 2 All rights reserved.

FAIR VS EQUAL: CELEBRATING DIFFERENCES | GRADES K-2 PracticeWorking with your student, reflect on their unique needs, along with their unique abilities, talents, and inter-ests. You may want to create a T-chart with “Needs” on one side and “Abilities” on the other. What makes yourstudent special? How are their needs different from their peers and the rest of the family? What abilities ortalents do they have that others do not?Finally, reflect with your student on how these unique needs/abilities could be used in service to the greatergood. In your opinion, what special gifts can you both offer to make the world a better place? How can you goabout offering these gifts? Student Resources• Anything But Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin (Grades 4 – 7)• Out of My Mind by Sharon M Draper (Grades 4 – 6)• Rain Reign by Ann M. Martin (Grades 4 – 6)• Rules by Cynthia Lord (Grades 4 – 7)• Thank You Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco (Grades 2 – 3)• Wonder by R.J. Palacio (Grades 3 – 7)• Asperger’s Rules!: How to Make Sense of School and Friends by Blythe Grossberg• How to Talk to an Autistic Kid by Daniel Stefanski• The Asperkid’s (Secret) Book of Social Rules: The Handbook of Not-So-Obvious Social Guidelines for Tweens and Teens with Asperger Syndrome by Jennifer Cook O’Toole• The Survival Guide for Kids with Autism Spectrum Disorders (And Their Parents) by Elizabeth Verdick and Elizabeth Reeve, M.D. Adult Resources• Celebrating Diversity, Nurturing Respect (PDF)• Neurodiversity in the Classroom: Strength-Based Strategies to Help Students with Special Needs Succeed in School and Life by Thomas Armstrong, Ph.D.• Young Learners, Diverse Children: Celebrating Diversity in Early Childhood (Book) by Virginia Gonzalez• What is Neurodiversity? (Blog)© 2017 Empowering Education, Inc. PAGE 2 of 2 All rights reserved.