Learning About Different Cultures & Religions...

You should teach her that people are different and just because they are different that does not make them bad. And that she may have a bad experience with a person of a different race but that does not mean that everyone from that race is bad. Teach her to treat people accordily and by the Golden Rule but also let her know that just because she is nice to someone they may not always be nice back. Teach her the reality of things. That's what mother taught me.

I sell Usborne children's books and we have a book in our collection called The Usborne Encylopedia of World Religions. This book is excellent for any age, is illustrated and best yet, has internet links to give you more tools to teach/learn from. All of Usborne's books are excellent--they tend to be my children's favorites. :) HTH

I'm not sure about books but a great show to have her watch would be Sesame Street. They had a whole show dedicated to the Mexican culture the other day. Last week, there was a show regarding the African culture. It's a great way to introduce her to several cultures. Good luck!!

E.,
Sorry I don't know of any books, although I'm sure there are some out there. I just wanted to say that I think it's great that you are helping your daughter to learn about people who are different from her. I know with my two kids that they seem to take these differences in stride. When they ask questions or make comments about things they notice, I do my best to explain, and they usually say, "okay", and then go right back to playing. Funny how kids are often better at dealing with differences than we grown-ups! Anyway, best wishes, I'm sure you will do a great job!

Show her pictures of a flower garden, how each flower looks and sometimes smells different, and they all grow well together in a garden.

Show then a picture of all sorts of people who might look different on the outside, but as people we all live and grow well together in a neighborhood in this garden called "earth". Show the outside differences first. Getting into religious differences can come at an older age. But explain that no matter what the surface looks like, we all bleed red, we all have the same inner make up (hearts, lungs, etc) and we still all have the capacity to love, hurt, laugh, cry.
Look for pictures on the internet that show these examples.

I think it is great that you are aware enough to help your daughter with this. I would go to the local library.

My son attands pre-school and there are lots of different families. Kids are so very accepting and it is funny the things they see as "different". For example, there is an indian girl in his class (she is actually our neighbor too) and what he sees as different is not her skin, or her accent, but that she doesn't eat meat (she is Hindi).

I try to emphasis to him to him that people are all different and we treat everyone nicely.

Wow! Having always lived in urban areas, I can't imagine there are people anywhere in this country who aren't used to seeing different races and cultures! First of all, young children sometimes don't notice these differences very much. My grandson used to describe kids of other races by their hairstyles. He never noticed their skin color. Second, your daughter's best teacher is you. Interpret the world to her in language she will understand and correct any negative stuff she may hear or see - explain to her to give things a more positive, loving tone. Take her places - museums, university campuses, shopping in urban areas, festivals - where she will naturally experience folks who look different than your family. When my daughter was in preschool, the school did a field trip to a preschool in a more urban area and they in turn spent an afternoon at our school. Today our neighborhood is very ethnically mixed but not so back then.
Most recent children's books show an ethnic mix, so that should be easy. My daughters took their 5 yr olds to a creative movement (pre-dance) class down at the university where they were the only caucasian students. It was a wonderful experience for them - they had a ball! Think outside the box. God bless you for wanting to prepare your daughter for our diverse world! Be careful what is said in your home too because we all have our little prejudices, and we should work not to pass them on!

Googling is my thing for additional information per each culture. Plan "different culture days" where you could choose to be that specific culture for the day. And don't forget to include your dogs in the fun!!!