Early years activity: My hair and me
World Afro Day is a Global Day of Celebration and liberation for Afro hair. The day aims to challenge negative attitudes and help people understand and appreciate the diversity of Afro hair and identity. This my hair and me activity provides a wonderful opportunity to explore the idea that everyone’s hair is different, and every type of hair is beautiful. Children can explore different textures through play, observation and creative experiences while developing positive attitudes towards difference.
My hair and me learning aims
- Recognise and celebrate differences in people’s appearance, including different hair textures, colours, lengths and styles
- Develop positive attitudes towards difference, understanding that everyone is unique and special
- Develop self-confidence and a positive sense of identity by exploring and talking about their own appearance.
Resources you will need for this activity
Provide mirrors, paper plates or clay and a selection of materials such as:
- Wool – curled and straight
- Pipe cleaners
- Ribbon
- Paper strips
- Scrunched/twisted tissue paper
- Fabric
- Ribbon
- Beads
- Natural materials.
My hair and me activity outline
- Don’t treat Afro hair as something unusual or exotic; include it naturally through everyday provision
- Share storybooks which feature a diverse range of hair types and hairstyles. Encourage children to look closely at the illustrations and talk about what they notice, use descriptive language such as straight, wavy, curly, coily, long and short
- Introduce the materials and invite children to explore their own hair using the mirrors and discuss different ways of creating hairstyles. Children might have their own ideas about other materials to use too
- Encourage children to experiment with creating straight, wavy, curly and coiled hair textures, supporting them to explore how different materials can be used to represent different types of hair
- Use the activity as an opportunity to develop children’s understanding that everyone is unique and our differences are something to celebrate. You could ask:
- “Do we all have the same hair?”
- “What do you notice about the different hairstyles?”
- “What makes your hair special?”
- “Can hair look different?”
- “What different textures can you see?”
- Remind children that there is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to create a hairstyle. The focus is on exploring, expressing creativity and celebrating the wonderful variety and differences of hair.
Ideas to extend this activity
- Create a hair salon in the role-play area where children can explore different hairstyles and develop their understanding of hair diversity through imaginative play. Provide dolls with a variety of hair textures and styles, alongside brushes, Afro combs, mirrors, clips, ribbons and other hair accessories.
- Take a look at the resources and information provided at https://www.worldafroday.com/
Special considerations for this activity
- Never touch or handle a child’s hair without their permission.
NDNA products to help you with this activity
Leadership and Management – Live virtual classroom
Disclaimer: Activities with children must always be risk assessed, including for allergies or choking. Children must always have adequate supervision. Resources and materials must always be appropriate for children’s age and stage of development.
- Activity
- MyNDNA
