Lesson 1: Race.  The Professor helps Isabella understand that race, which is skin color, hair texture, and facial features, is not a true measure of our identity, and that every human being is of the same race. We meet some engaging people, including anthropologist Dr. Warren Perry, who explains that in our society race and skin color have been unfairly used against some people.

Lesson 2: Culture & Ethnicity.  Kayoko travels to meet, among others, Tibetan excile Lobsang Sangay who explains that culture is comprised of acquired things like language, religion, marriage, holidays, food and all the things you believe in.  The Professor helps Kayoko realize that her own Japanese ethnicity is the history of her cultural heritage.

Lesson 3: Religion.  Brian wonders why there are different religions.  The Professor explains to him that, as people changed over thousands of years and as they moved around the planet, many newer religions were born from older ones.  Brian meets some proud people, like Salma Abounadi, who exemplify the fact that there are many similarities between religions, and that religions what a group of people believe about the world.

Lesson 4: Appearance.  The Professor helps Deepika understand that appearance is simply how a person looks on the outside – clothes, weight, body shape, color and size. And that showing off one’s appearance is not “cool.”  She visits some extraordinary people like Ukumbwa Sauti, who entertains her with a short story that illustrates that appearance doesn’t show whom you really are inside.

Lesson 5: Abilities.  Calvin learns that everyone has strong and weak abilities and that by working together, we share all our strengths.  The Professor transport Calvin to meet inspirational people like fourth-grader Jackie Snyder, who proudly tells of her accomplishments and humbly conveys her compassion for people through sign language.

Lesson 6: Families.  This lesson ties in many aspects of identity and diversity to feature the fact that all families are normal and come in all shapes and sizes.  Frank visits some very interesting families with adopted kids to mixed ethnicity families to the Solomon family, with a stay-at-home musical instrument inventor-street performer dad. (CC)

Block Feeds

Wednesday  4/30/08  2:30 - 3:50 a.m. #1-6