I saw a post on FaceBook which had to do with racism using 3 different colored eggs. They showed the outside and then cracked them open only to find each one was absolutely the same on the inside. I immediately thought about using this egg idea with my 1st and 2nd graders to discuss differences , understanding and acceptance.
Thankfully, Miss Schaefer, Miss McArthur and Mrs. Acevedo volunteered to have me try a trial run with the whole thing today (3-18-19). The end result was incredible!!
As I was preparing for the lesson, it also dawned on me that some of my students may not even know there are different colored eggs that chickens can lay. This concept would add yet another layer of understanding about how we can be different, yet the same!
The students (and adults) never realized that there were colored eggs other than white or brown; most have only ever had white eggs from the store. When I shared with them that chickens can lay brown, green, tan, yellow, white and blue eggs, their eyes got so big!!!
We talked a lot about all the differences with the eggs and then compared them to ourselves. We talked about how some of us are girls and others are boys; some are tall and some are short; some have light skin and others have dark; some of us need glasses; some of us need help learning; some of us might be in a wheelchair, need crutches, have a cast, etc.; some of us have long hair, curly hair or straight short hair; some of us have blonde, black or brown hair; we have different color eyes...........the examples could have gone on forever if I would have let it!!!
The students (and adults) never realized that there were colored eggs other than white or brown; most have only ever had white eggs from the store. When I shared with them that chickens can lay brown, green, tan, yellow, white and blue eggs, their eyes got so big!!!
We talked a lot about all the differences with the eggs and then compared them to ourselves. We talked about how some of us are girls and others are boys; some are tall and some are short; some have light skin and others have dark; some of us need glasses; some of us need help learning; some of us might be in a wheelchair, need crutches, have a cast, etc.; some of us have long hair, curly hair or straight short hair; some of us have blonde, black or brown hair; we have different color eyes...........the examples could have gone on forever if I would have let it!!!
Some of the ideas the students shared before cracking the eggs are as follows:
1.) The eggs are brown, tan and green
2.) One is more round than the others
3.) One looks more oval than the other
4.) The yolks will be a different color
5.) A baby chick may come out
7.) They are going to be different sizes
7.) Nothing will come out
8.) Another animal will come out
Upon cracking the eggs, the students were amazed that each one looked the same; they might have been a little bigger than the next, but they were the same. Even without my prompting, one of the students shared "They are just like us, Ms. Mazzella. They are different on the outside but the same on the inside."
I cracked each egg into it's own container. We then talked about what might happen if we put them together. The overall consensus was that nothing would happen and the eggs would just move together.
I had 3 additional eggs, so we did one more round just to make sure our predictions and ideas about being different on the outside and the same on the inside were correct............by the time I cracked the last egg, the kids were cheering 'put them together' 'put the together'!!
All 6 eggs ended up in the same container with no problems at all!
