Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers | 10 and upIn its simplest terms, voting is an act of expressing your opinion. Whether you participate in a poll, take an online survey or vote in the Presidential election, you are expressing an opinion or point of view with your vote. Merriam Webster defines voting as “to express one's views in response to a poll” or “to express an opinion.”
In political…
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For Students | Grades 8-12Educators can assign these online civics activities to prepare students for deeper engagement during class or as follow-up assignments that extend learning and allow students to reflect on new concepts, discussion and questions raised during class.
#Activism
Learn about the benefits and drawbacks of hashtag activism while developing your own position on its effectiveness.
Implicit Bias
Explore implicit bias and self-reflect about situations in…
Whether you are teaching in person, online or a hybrid model—fostering a safe, respectful and inclusive classroom is as important as ever. How do safe and inclusive classroom practices apply to digital spaces and what can educators do to establish those norms and carry them out throughout the year? Just as you create safe, respectful and equitable physical classroom spaces, we also need to learn and practice how to bring those best practices online…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current EventsIn the wake of George's Floyd's murder in May 2020 by the police, protests erupted across the United States. The first protest took place in Minneapolis, MN the night after George Floyd was killed. Within days, protests were taking place in all fifty states and more than 140 cities nationwide. Tens of thousands of people also gathered in countries around the world to support the protests and show solidarity. In a…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events(Updated April 2021)
On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, an African American man, was killed while being arrested by the police. A bystander video recording of the incident showed that a white police officer pinned Floyd to the ground while he was handcuffed. The police officer’s knee pressed into the back of Floyd’s neck for more…
For Parents, Families, and Caregivers | For Students | Ages 3-12Since families are spending more time at home and together, we expect that many will be looking for hands-on activities to do with children during the summer months and throughout the year. The projects below provide fun activities and opportunities to talk with children (ages 3–12) about respect, inclusion, diversity, bias and social justice. Each activity is followed by discussion prompts for talking with children about…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current EventsThe global coronavirus pandemic has impacted every aspect of our lives. For educators, parents, families members and others who work with children, it can be challenging to talk with young people about what it means to stay safe, healthy and be physically distant from one other.
From Ricardo Levins Morales' “What to Do in a Pandemic… Our Cousins Know” series, use these coloring pages to be creative, pass…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers We have seen the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on every aspect of our daily lives. The main concern has been its impact on community health and our healthcare systems. Beyond the immediate threat of contracting, spreading, and treating the virus, COVID-19 has significantly affected systems and institutions in our society.
States and major cities have taken important steps to…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events The 2020 presidential campaign was distinctive in the number of women who ran for office. Six women in total—the most women ever in the history of elections—ran for President in the Democratic primary. They were:
Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard of Hawai’i,
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York,
Senator Kamala Harris of California,
Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota,
Senator Elizabeth Warren of…
Table Talk: Family Conversations About Current Events Despite advances, LGBTQ+ people continue to face bias, discrimination and injustice in our classrooms, workplaces, media, streets and digital spaces. While great strides have been made in recent years, including marriage equality, there is still much work to do to achieve equity for members of the LGBTQ+ community.
What is heterosexism?
Heterosexism (sometimes referred to as homophobia), is defined as: “the…
Table Talk: Family Conversations About Current Events For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers What are polls?
Polls and public opinion surveys are part of our everyday lives. From responding to surveys on social media to reading from the latest election poll, we are inundated with information about what the public thinks about a variety of topics and issues. Polling or surveying people means: “to ask people a question or a series of questions in order to get information…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events
America’s Got Talent Makes History
In a poignant and historical finale, Kodi Lee won the 14th season of America's Got Talent in September 2019. The win was groundbreaking because Lee, an Asian-American man, is a person who has autism and is blind. With his victory, Lee provides inspiration and affirmation for those who share these identity traits, which are rarely seen in mainstream media. For others, Lee’s…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Pronouns matter.
There has been a cascade of recent news about the use of ‘they’ and ‘them’ as gender-neutral pronouns. These stories provide a useful teachable moment about the importance of pronouns and in understanding people who are non-binary. Evolving knowledge of pronouns is a result of our society becoming more aware of gender identity and expression. …
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Topic Summary
Throughout Disney’s history, white women have almost exclusively portrayed their movie and television princesses. Over the years there have only been five Disney princesses of color: Jasmine (1992), Pocahontas (1995), Mulan (1998), Tiana (2009) and Moana (2016).
In July 2019, Disney announced that Halle Bailey, a Black actress and singer, will play the starring…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Topic Summary
In June 2019, we commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising, which took place on June 28, 1969 and is viewed by many as sparking the movement for LGBTQ rights in the U.S.
The Stonewall uprising, also sometimes referred to as the Stonewall riots, began in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969 at the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City. As was…
Rosalind's Classroom Conversations, May 2019 For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Recently, after a teacher training at a local elementary school, the principal asked my colleague and I to meet with the administrative team to help them handle a conflict between a group of 6th grade boys. It immediately brought to my mind how complex a principal’s job is when they make decisions around responding to a bullying incident. I’d like to share what happened and what we…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Topic Summary
Every day—from the schoolyard to the workplace—we hear biased, hurtful and offensive language, including slurs, epithets (defined below) and so-called “jokes.” We also see slurs written on walls, buildings, streets and in our social media feeds. Many people, especially those who have children in their lives, wonder what to do when they see…
Use this collection of resources for educators and families to help teach about and celebrate Jewish American heritage in schools, communities and at home.
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Topic Summary
In April 2019, Kyle Korver, a U.S. professional basketball player who plays with the Utah Jazz, wrote an essay about racism and white privilege that received a lot of acclaim and attention. In the essay, Korver, who is white, reflects on several biased incidents involving his African-American teammates and his reaction to those incidents. He then reflects on his own…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events Topic Summary
On March 8, 2019 (International Women’s Day), the U.S. women’s soccer team filed a gender discrimination suit against the U.S. Soccer Federation, which governs soccer in the U.S. The soccer team’s complaint alleges pay inequities and inferior support and working conditions. In their statement released by the team, the twenty-eight players described “institutionalized gender discrimination” that…