Today’s the Day I Tell the Kids

It’s World Down syndrome day, and today I am visiting Masha’s classroom with a bunch of Munchkin donuts and a lesson about Down syndrome. I get to explain to 22 Kindergarten children what Masha has. I’ve got a plan, and I am pretty good at making stuff up on the fly for little kids, so I think it should go just fine.

I was going to start with a story, maybe Meet Annie or My Friend Isabelle, but both have gone missing from my bookshelf. So instead I will start with my mini whiteboard on which I have drawn two matching rows of 23 circles. Row number 21 has an extra circle. And this is what I will tell them:

People are made up of instructions, kind of like Lego sets are. People instructions have 23 “double steps”. Sometimes it happens that a baby’s instructions have more or less information at one of the steps. Masha has an extra bit of information at step number 21. When this happens, the person has Down syndrome. Masha has Down syndrome. Having Down syndrome doesn’t hurt but it does change some things about you.

For Masha it makes it so that it is harder for her to speak clearly. You all may have noticed that. Even though she cannot speak as well as you, she can understand everything you are saying. It also makes it harder for Masha to learn some things, like counting numbers or reading sight words.

It makes some things easier for Masha. It is easy for her to learn and follow rules, and as you also may have noticed, she likes to help other people follow the rules too. It makes it easier for her to be brave. When Masha learned to ride a horse, she was nervous at first, but she was very brave and got up on that great big horse anyway. Masha is not afraid of the dark. Masha is not afraid to try new foods. And Masha is not afraid to put her whole head underwater.

 

Today is a special day for Masha. It is World Down Syndrome day, the day we celebrate people who have Down syndrome. There have always been people with Down syndrome in the world. Once there was even a real princess with Down syndrome. Right now there are about 6 million people in the world who have Down syndrome. Masha has two little sisters with Down syndrome. To celebrate Masha, and all the people like her who ever were and ever will be, we will eat sweet treats!

Then we break out the donuts.