In a society that assumes both families and individuals to be monoracial, it is fundamental for a multiracial family’s home environment to reflect their diverse heritage. Helping children in multiracial families feel comfortable about their unique family and confident in their self-identity is a lifelong task for parents.

HOME SURVEY

Start by looking through the adult and children’s books on your shelves, the magazines and catalogs on your coffee table, the art and photographs on your walls—do the images reflect your family? Continue by examining your family’s music, movies, and television choices—do these entertainers represent the entire range of your family’s heritage? Do your children’s dolls resemble your child? Could your child create a family of toy people that look their family?

MEDIA

Contemporary media and society will not provide your child with a self and family-affirming picture. All-White families will see their family make-up represented regularly and positively. To a lesser degree, other monoracial families will see themselves represented as well. It is impossible for a child growing up in the United States today to avoid the dominant perspective of White America, making a multiracial home atmosphere essential.

CELEBRATE YOUR FAMILY

Celebrate and reflect the diverse heritage of your own family. The place to begin is in your home. Surround your children with pictures of multiracial and monoracial families who share their heritage, pictures of people who look like them, and pictures of people from their individual ancestries.

INCLUDE THE WORLD

Bring other racial and cultural groups outside of your family’s heritage into your home. This conscious inclusion demonstrates to your child that their family values multiculturalism, not only the diversity of their individual family.

Art Supplies
www.alaafiakids.com

Crayons, Markers, Paint, and Paper in all skin tones.

Yoon Kids Wall Art
www.yoonkids.com

Canvas print wall-art customized by skin and hair color choices.

Dolls
www.joyswaldorfdolls.com

Waldorf-style dolls in numerous styles. Customizable by skin color, hair color, hair texture, hair style, eye color, and eye shape.

Bamboletta Dolls
www.bamboletta.com

One-of-a-kind Waldorf-inspired dolls made by a Canadian mother.

Lizzy Rockwell
www.lizzyrockwell.com

Illustrator of multiracial children’s games, toys, and journals, including the award-winning I Never Forget A Face memory game.

Putumayo Music
www.putumayo.com

Adult and Children’s collections of music from around the world.

Customized Cards
www.mandysmoon.com

Create your own birth announcement, party invitation, or holiday card with a family that looks like yours.

Baby Bug, Lady Bug, Spider, & Cricket
www.cricketmag.com

Children’s story magazines with pictures of children and families of all races. Baby Bug is especially good about showing multiracial families and children, and comes in a laminated format.

Baby Bug (6 months-3 years)
Lady Bug (3-6 years)
Spider (6-9 years)
Cricket (9-14 years)

All Fall Down
Tickle, Tickle
Clap Hands
Say Goodnight
Written and Illustrated by Helen Oxenbury
Purchase from Amazon

Snuggle Me Snuggly
Yum Tummy Tickly!
Wake-ity Wake!
Written by Karen Baicker, Illustrated by Sam Williams
Purchase from Amazon

Busy Toes
Busy Fingers
Written by C.W. Bowie, Illustrated by Fred Willingham
Purchase from Amazon