Nursery World - Protestant and Catholic children

By the age of six, 90 per cent of Protestant and Catholic children in Northern Ireland are aware of the political or cultural significance of at least one event or symbol such as a flag, parade or violent incident, research into sectarian attitudes among young children in the Province has found. Last week's report, Too Young to Notice?, said that from the age of three, children showed 'small but significant' differences in their preferences for flags and people's names, and in their attitudes to the police and Orange marches. The report called for early years settings and schools in Northern Ireland to find ways of engaging and working closely with parents and the local community and connecting with community relations and cultural diversity initiatives in the community. By the age of six two-thirds (66 per cent) of Catholic children said they preferred the green and white hooped Celtic FC shirt while more than three-quarters (77 per cent) of Protestant children chose the blue Rangers shirt.

By the age of six two-thirds (66 per cent) of Catholic children said they preferred the green and white hooped Celtic FC shirt while more than three-quarters (77 per cent) of Protestant children chose the blue Rangers shirt.

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