An excerpt from the book NurtureShock was published in Newsweek last month. (Link to the book here.) One of the many topics the authors studied in the book is how and when we humans become aware of race and how societies’ efforts to be colorblind have many unintended consequences.
A quick summary on how scientists think about race and children has changed:
Then: We assumed children didn’t notice race until we pointed it out to them.
Now: Evidence shows children identify racial differences much like they see the differences between pink and baby blue—two colors often used to distinguish girls from boys.
Then: Like me, many parents figured children would get the “diversity” point after we exposed them to different races and cultures.
Now: Researchers have found the more diverse the environment, the more likely children are to self-segregate.
Then: Children often told about discrimination were less likely to see the relationship between working hard and achieving goals.
Now: Black children who repeatedly hear messages of black pride are more interested in school and more likely to connect their success to their hard work and persistence.
Born Curious 
Really fascinating, Angel, thanks for sharing. Definitely plan to pick up this book… The interesting thing to me is that children are naturally predisposed to note patterns, differences, to categorize; it’s part of how they make sense of the world. So it makes sense that they would recognize racial (and other) differences from an early age.
I think the finding that the more diverse the environment, the more likely they are to self-segregate, is fascinating. It runs a bit counter to the (anecdotal) evidence I’ve seen of city-kids, e.g., who, growing up among kids of all different races, colors, religions, seem to mix and mingle and bond indiscriminately…
Perhaps it’s a developmental thing — that younger children, concrete thinkers, impelled to fit in, flock together with children who look and act like them… As they grow older, they find more compelling qualities beneath the surface and form connections across (now less important) racial/ethnic lines…
Interesting… lots to think about here! Thanks for posting!