Embracing Black Hair – Part 2
Written by: Hannah Pack
Many people have asked me why I chose the topic of “Embracing Black Hair.” At first I thought it was because of my experiences over the past three years, which includes having to fix a student’s hair, allowing a student to fix their hair at the beginning of class, and/or giving students hair products and styling tools. These examples played a key part in why I chose this topic. Another key component in deciding upon this topic is personal growth. At the age of 25, I’m finally Embracing my Black Hair.
In part one of Embracing Black Hair we touched on stereotypes of Black hair, understanding how important hair is to the Black Diaspora and some signs of when a child may not like their hair. As educators we already have a heavy load of what is expected of us. It is our duty to protect, mentor and educate our students. Which in itself is challenging without any outside factors. To add an extra layer, you don’t want something like a student not liking their hair to be a reason why they are not focused in class.
Implementation:
Some things all teachers can do in K-12 school is start incorporating quick conversations as students enter the room or when there is free time in class. During these conversations you can point out something you notice and compliment the student. This will help to establish trust, and students will know that you pay attention to them. Finally, offer help. Offering help might be scary for some who have never experienced doing Black Hair. A key thing to keep in mind is offering help does not mean you have to physically do the students’ hair.
“This will help to establish trust, and students will know that you pay attention to them.”
ne thing that works very well with students are compliments. If a student comes in with a fresh haircut or a new hairstyle, do not be afraid to point it out. Most of the time students will say “thank you” and even smile. These small compliments that don’t take much time show you pay attention to them outside of their academics and safety. Some examples of compliments you can say are “I like your braids,” “ I noticed you got your haircut yesterday. It looks good!” Once you’re feeling more confident in giving these compliments and or you know the name of many Black hairstyles you can make your compliments more advanced. By being able to identify a specific hairstyle, you make the compliments more personal. For instance, braids are a very popular hairstyle in the Black community, but there’s many different types of braids. Some examples are micro, tribal, knotless, goddess and box braids. Instead you could say “I like your faux locs” or “I see you got a re-twist. It looks good!”
When a student has expressed concern about their hair, assure the student that their hair is beautiful and point out something about their hair you like or admire. Reassurance can play a huge factor because you’re trying to boost that student’s confidence, in hopes they can still be productive and educational.
“When a student has expressed concern about their hair, assure the student that their hair is beautiful and point out something about their hair you like or admire.”
Finally, offer your help to a student who is struggling to focus or have a positive experience in your class because maybe their hair isn’t done how they like it. If you know how to fix their hair, you can offer your assistance. If you’re not comfortable with doing or fixing a student’s hair, here are a few ideas you can do to offer help.
- Allow students to use a mirror in the classroom or send them with a pass to the restroom. I know especially in secondary school you may run into the problem of students taking a long time in the restroom. You can simply write a time frame on their pass of when you would like them to be back in the room by.
- Another thing you can do is send the student to someone in the building to fix their hair if that’s what the student wants. Also ask the student if they would like to get help from another adult in the building or if another student (friend) in class is willing to help give them 5 minutes in class to fix the issue so class can be successful for you and the student. Make sure to get guardian’s permission.
- The final and most useful thing for me over these past two years is having a container with hair supplies (brushes, gel, spray bottle or hair ties) in your class and allowing students to use them when needed. This container doesn’t have be filled with an assortment of hair supplies just with a few essentials. Having a hair supply container in my classroom has truly negated hair being a factor for students to not focus or feel good about themselves in class.
What’s Next?
Sometimes students just need to feel like you notice the small details and that they feel comfortable expressing what’s bothering them even if it’s “just their hair.” Being comfortable with providing compliments, offering help, immersing, and acknowledging yourself with your students’ culture strengthens your classroom environment. Students appreciate and welcome when adults are able to give them specific compliments and reassurance that are geared towards them personally. It is important to acknowledge that as educators we have a responsibility to ensure our students feel their best in order to succeed. We all come from varying cultural backgrounds with varying experiences within our communities. Taking an opportunity to learn more about your students and their hair will not only expand your knowledge as an educator, but will impact that student for a lifetime.
In part three of this series of Embracing Black Hair we will look into the different hairstyles that are pivotal to the Black Diaspora like corn rows, locs and the afro. We will explore how many of these hairstyles are a way of connecting Black people throughout the diaspora to their African culture.
Resources
Things to have in your in class hair container:
- Wide tooth comb
- Rat tail comb
- Hair pik
- Slick/Smoothing brush
- Paddle brush
- Spray bottle
- Hair gel
- Hair ties, scrunchies, bobby pins
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