Book tutorial: Konrad's dress
Curious about dresses?
Konrad likes everything that sparkles. Hedvig has been given a dress that sparkles. Oh how unfair! A book that invites questions about glitter, clothes and conflicts!
Create a permissive environment where all children can try different expressions and clothes. This book gives everyone - she, he and he who likes dress an opportunity for identification in an obvious and inclusive way.
Questions about dresses
Konrad thinks Hedvig's dress is nice. Are there clothes you like to wear on different occasions? What do you like to have in preschool? Home? At a party?
Konrad gets to borrow Hedvig's dress in the book. Do you usually borrow clothes from someone? Do you usually lend your clothes to someone?
How do you think Konrad and Hedvig feel in their dresses? What do you think is good about wearing a dress?
Exercise! Have all the children try on dresses together. Try doing different things in the dresses. Dance, spin, climb, run. Reflect together.
Questions about gifts and conflicts
Hedvig receives a present. Have you ever received a gift? How did it feel?
Have you ever given someone a present? How did it feel?
At first only Hedvig gets a dress. Konrad gets nothing. Why do you think that is so? How do you think Konrad feels then?
Konrad and Hedvig get help from their grandmother when they are at odds. Can you need help when you are at odds with someone? How does it feel to be at odds? How can one get along when one is at odds?
About dress and different colors
The dress is a garment that evokes emotions, whether it is girls or boys who wear it. Many parents opt out of dresses for their sons, because it is perceived as very feminine coded. But many guys like to try dressing in dresses and skirts when those clothes are available. Some let boys wear whatever clothes they want at home, but not in public - because they are afraid of the reactions the child may have to face. Preschool should be a place where all children should feel safe and be given the opportunity to explore and develop their identity in both big and small ways.
Colors evoke emotions! Many children's clothes are strongly gendered. Many children are drawn to what is perceived as colourful, festive and glittery. When children feel that there is something that they are "not allowed" to like, it is not really the color that is the big loss for the child, but what the color symbolizes. Parts of the child become forbidden territory, which cannot be explored and developed. In this book, Konrad gets to like all colors, shapes and expressions.
