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Most people have heard about “the talk” — the conversation many African American parents have with their kids about how to avoid altercations with police or what to do and say if they’re stopped.

The recent unrest sparked by anger over police brutality against African Americans has parents who aren’t black thinking more about how they talk to their kids about race.

Michel Martin, weekend host of All Things Considered, spoke with Jennifer Harvey, author of Raising White Kids: Bringing Up Children in a Racially Unjust America.

This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.


Michel Martin: You wrote a piece for CNN about how not to raise racist kids. You said most white parents have come up in families in which white silence was a pervasive norm in our socialization. These same parents are now passing such silence on to their kids. Could you talk a bit more about that?

Jennifer Harvey: Many white Americans were raised in families that thought that they were teaching equality. The way that they did that was to just say, “Well, we’re all equal” and not say anything more explicit about what it means when you believe everyone should be equal.

Many members of our society do not experience equality. And so what happens is that in the racist culture we live in — Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum talks about it as “smog” — our kids, our youth, we adults just breathe it in. So we end up showing up in racist ways, even when we come from families where equality was the presumed value.

What is the consequence of that silence?

It breeds a lack of capacity among white people to engage in conversations about race and to respond when racism is happening. If I hear racism out on the street or from a co-worker, should I challenge it? What should I say about it? If my African American colleagues or friends see me be silent because I don’t know what to do, I become untrustworthy.

My daughter is told, “Police are safe — go find one if you’re in trouble,” but her African American cousin is learning complicated messages about the police from his parents. Those differing messages mean they can be great friends for a while. But eventually, the depth of their friendship will erode because my white child will not be able to identify with her African American cousin or her African American friends.

White Americans have to teach our kids how to identify with that experience and how to be good friends to black and brown youth as they grow up. That requires us teaching them about racism. And it requires us modeling anti-racism, which is something a lot of white Americans really struggle with.

With videos like the one of George Floyd’s death, do you wait for your child to come to you? Do you show it to the child and say, “This is something I need to talk about with you?”

White families should not wait to talk about racism with children, because segregation is so deep that if we just wait, it will never come up. I never show my children videos of black people being killed by police, and I try not to watch those videos myself. But I do talk about the videos with them.

I started doing that work with my own children before they even had words. I would make sure we were in spaces where we were opposing police brutality, attending vigils and organizing. I knew they wouldn’t exactly understand what was going on. One time after a rally, my 5-year-old said, “Black people are not safe.” And I said, “Yes, that’s true.” And then she said, “But we’re white, so we are safe.” And I said, “Yeah, that’s true too.”

Then I said to her, “The reason we went to this rally is because we’re trying to tell the government that everybody deserves to be safe.” So now, six years later, she’s already got a deep understanding of this. And so we can talk about what happened to George Floyd. We’re much further along the conversation.

How are you discussing the unrest that’s being shown in the media?

I discussed that with my children by talking with them about how they might respond when they have been harmed or an injustice or an unfairness has happened to them and they aren’t heard. Because we’ve been having these conversations, my kids understand that peaceful protest has not yielded justice for black and brown people in this country.

We’re wrestling with it as a family and acknowledging that it’s really unsettling, but also appreciating that people are really hurt and really angry. And the government hasn’t responded.

I’m always trying to complicate messages about following rules and obeying the law. I made sure they knew that Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. were breaking the law. They need to know sometimes that’s what’s required. They’re certainly unsettled and it’s a scary time for everybody, but they do appreciate that when you’ve been hurt and harmed and no one is given justice, sometimes eruptions happen.

For people who say, “You know what — this stuff just gives me a headache. I don’t want to be bothered. This isn’t my problem. Why do I have to think about this? I have problems of my own,” what do you say?

I ask them, would they call it a headache if it was their child or their sister or their brother or their parent? We’re talking about our fellow human beings. What would you do on behalf of your own?

And then my work as a parent is to raise my kids in a way where they experience communities of color, black people, Latino people, being human beings they identify with as part of their human network. And that’s something that hasn’t really happened in part because of segregation in the United States.


This story originally aired on All Things Considered.

The audio was adapted for the Life Kit podcast by Audrey Nguyen, and the text was adapted for digital by Sylvie Douglis.

Source: NPR

https://www.npr.org/2020/06/03/869071246/how-white-parents-can-talk-to-their-kids-about-race?utm_source=npr_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20200605&utm_term=4611340&utm_campaign=life-kit&utm_id=52467743&orgid=

Talking to Kids About Racism, Early and Often
By Jessica Grose, NYTimes Parenting
Art: Loris Lora
As protests over the killing of George Floyd (and Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor) spill into a second week, many parents are wondering how to talk about the deaths and unrest with their children. But just as important in the long run, especially for nonblack parents, is how to keep the conversation about race and racism going when we’re not in a moment of national outrage, and to make sure all children see black people as heroes in a wide range of their own stories, and not just as victims of oppression.
 
In this moment, try to address the killings and protests honestly and in an age appropriate way, said Y. Joy Harris-Smith, Ph.D. a lecturer at Princeton Theological Seminary and the co-author of the forthcoming “The ABCs of Diversity: Helping Kids (and Ourselves!) Embrace Our Differences.”
 
You can start having conversations about race in preschool, said Jacqueline Dougé, M.D., a pediatrician and child health advocate based in Maryland — children can internalize racial bias between the ages of 2 and 4, according to an American Academy of Pediatrics article that Dr. Dougé co-wrote.
 
With preschool-age children, you should start by discussing racial differences in a positive way, said Marietta Collins, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist at Morehouse School of Medicine and the co-author of “Something Happened in Our Town: A Child’s Story About Racial Injustice,” which is a book for children about a police shooting.
Dr. Collins gave the example of a white child asking why another child had brown skin. A parent can take this opportunity to explain what melanin is, and to talk about how wonderful it is that the world has so many different kinds of people.
 
Older children will be much more aware of what’s going on right now. So find out how much yaour child knows about the protests, Dr. Harris-Smith said, because kids may know more than we think they do from overhearing the news, their parents talking, or simply noticing what is going on outside in their neighborhoods.
 
Once you assess what they know, you can have a conversation about the violence against black people without being too explicit with elementary-age children.
 
Dr. Dougé suggested starting with something like: “There are things happening in the news that are upsetting us. Unfortunately there were police officers that made bad choices for the wrong reasons because of the color of our skin.” Dr. Collins said that with children in elementary school, you should focus on how unfairly black and brown people have been treated throughout American history to the present day, because fairness is something all children can understand.
If you live someplace where people are actively protesting and your children have observed some destruction, “First and foremost, reassure them you’re there to keep them safe,” Dr. Dougé said. But also explain why people are protesting, and show them positive images of protesting now and from history, she suggested.
 
Make sure to create space for your child to feel however they need to feel about what you’re discussing — they may be angry, sad or scared. “When we’re not validated in how we feel, it makes it difficult for us to be active participants in our lives,” Dr. Harris-Smith said. Dr. Collins suggested that parents can let their children know, “The important adults in her life are working really hard to make sure these injustices don’t continue to happen in our city, country and world.” Respect your children’s feelings if talking about it is too upsetting, but make sure to leave the door open for future conversations, she continued.
 
In addition to keeping an open dialogue about racism, a way to raise children who are anti-racist is by making sure your home library has books with black people at the center of their stories. Christine Taylor-Butler, the prolific children’s author and writer of The Lost Tribes Series, said that she got into children’s literature because she wanted to see more stories of black joy. “I want stories about kids in a pumpkin patch, and kids in an art museum,” she said. “Not only do we want our kids to read, but we want white kids to see — we’re not the people you’re afraid of.”
 
“I see students clamoring for books that speak to heart, not oppression based on civil rights,” Taylor-Butler added. And she is also a fan of books that tell stories of black triumph and invention, like “Whoosh! Lonnie Johnson’s Super-Soaking Stream of Inventions,” by Chris Barton and illustrated by Don Tate, which is about the black engineer behind the Super Soaker water gun.
With that in mind, I asked several authors and Times editors to offer suggestions of books to read to children. Some are explicitly about racism, but others are stories with nonwhite protagonists. They are broken down roughly by age range; see our full list here.
 
Email us with a list of your favorites and we will run an article with your suggestions.
 
Ultimately, words and books should not be the end of your child’s education about race and racism. “The best advice I can give parents is to be models for the attitudes, behavior and values that they wish to see in their children,” said Nia Heard-Garris, M.D., an attending physician at the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago.
 
“It is not enough to talk about racism, you must strive to be anti-racist and fight against racist policies and practices,” Dr. Heard-Garris said. If you have the privilege, “make space, speak up or amplify issues of inequity and injustice.” Children see everything.
 
 
Click here (or copy and paste into URL) to read the full list of books:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/02/parenting/kids-books-racism-protest.html?campaign_id=118&emc=edit_ptg_20200603&instance_id=19024&nl=nyt-parenting&regi_id=64443996&segment_id=29946&te=1&user_id=344d8907b402b18aac0ca87c1bb6157c
 
P.S. Click here to read all NYT Parenting coverage on coronavirus. Follow us on Instagram @NYTParenting. Join us on Facebook. Find us on Twitter for the latest updates. Read last week’s newsletter, about when couples diverge on coronavirus risks.
 
Want More on Talking to Kids About Race?
 
In 2016, several Times editors and reporters had a group conversation about “Talking to Children About Race, Policing and Violence.”
 
Two Instagram accounts that suggest great books with diverse protagonists are @hereweeread and @theconsciouskid.
 
Dr. Heard-Garris recommends the website Embrace Race for webinars, action guides and book recommendations.
NPR’s Michele Martin interviewed Jennifer Harvey, the author of “Raising White Kids: Bringing Up Children in a Racially Unjust America,” on May 31. You can listen to their conversation here.
 
 
Tiny Victories
Parenting can be a grind. Let’s celebrate the tiny victories.
My 5-year-old was having nightmares and waking me up each night, so I hugged and kissed her pillow and told her I’d filled it with “mommy love.” It worked, but I have to recharge it each day with more hugs and kisses. — Leah Nelson, Montgomery, Ala.

Source: https://www.healthychildren.org/English/family-life/Media/Pages/Talking-To-Children-About-Tragedies-and-Other-News-Events.aspx

A Trauma-Informed Approach to Teaching Through Coronavirus

Experts from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network share their recommendations for educators supporting students during the COVID-19 crisis.

Last week, as schools across the nation closed their doors to slow the spread of the coronavirus, TT reached out to our community to learn what support you needed at this time. Among the most common responses was a call for trauma-informed practices to support students over the coming weeks and months.

For guidance, we reached out to our friends at the National Child Traumatic Stress Network with a series of questions. A group of researchers, psychologists and educators were quick to respond. We’re grateful to Laura Danna, Dr. Jane Halladay Goldman, Dr. Jen Maze, Dr. George Ake and Dr. Isaiah Pickens for their answers, and we hope their recommendations offer some much-needed support during this difficult time.

We know that in some districts, schools have just closed, while in others, there’s an expectation that classes will shift to distance learning. This change can be a challenge for educators as well as students. From a trauma-informed standpoint, what do educators need to be conscious of as they navigate this transition?

Establishing a routine and maintaining clear communication are crucial.

Maintaining and communicating predictable routines is very important. Doing so helps students to maintain a sense of psychological safety—a sense that they can manage stress or connect with someone who can help them manage stress.

It is important not to assume that students understand your routine is changing due to current events. Even if routines shift as you determine the best ways of connecting, taking the time to explain the changes and provide a predictable agenda is helpful. It will reduce student stress and increase their confidence that important adults in their lives are capable of taking care of them.

It’s also important that educators ensure that the information they provide to students is digestible. Moving to remote learning and having fewer direct interactions can make assignments feel more overwhelming and daunting—particularly when several directions are given at once. Break directions down into smaller bites when necessary and encourage students to ask clarifying questions even if it appears they understand.

Finally, we can’t assume students’ experiences with remote learning or their understanding of a global pandemic are universal. Encourage students to lead the way in sharing what they understand and do not understand about their current situation. You can do this by asking open-ended questions, such as, “How are you feeling about not being in school?” which can provide insight without letting assumptions guide the conversation. Approach students’ experiences with curiosity. Aim to clarify misinformation and connect students with other important adults (such as family) who help them feel safe.

Relationships and well-being can take priority over assignment and behavioral compliance.

In shifts to distance learning, educators will need to actively focus on maintaining attitudes of inclusivity. Now more than ever, students should feel valued and welcome regardless of their background or identity.

Remember that students may be dealing with many different home life situations while trying to maintain their academics, and there are myriad reasons they may be embarrassed to share about why they can’t complete assignments. Educators should communicate that, regardless of challenges, students’ efforts are appreciated.

In work with students right now, educators should let relationships be the focus. It is important to ensure students have structure and to hold high expectations. But students will fare best if they know their teachers care about their well-being just as much as their behavior and assignment compliance.

Educators can display their investment by creating relational rituals before checking on distance learning assignments with students. For example, students and educators can share one tough moment and one hopeful moment of the day, or educators and students can share one new lesson they learned about themselves during the day. Participating in these shares can help educators build and maintain connection despite the distance.

What are a few key points educators need to understand about stress, trauma and their effects? Are there specific approaches to student support they should be prioritizing during this crisis?

When people are facing stress and difficult life circumstances, it can particularly affect three areas: a sense of safety, feelings of connectedness and feelings of hope. In each of these areas, educators can make an impact.

Sense of Safety

A sense of safety is the belief that your needs—and the needs of those you care about—will be met. It is a belief that you will be protected from harm and that those around you will be safe. Educators can expect that many students’ sense of safety will be compromised right now. None of us have ever seen a time like this, when institutions that provide safety and structure are closed, and the news talks about death rates and hospital bed shortages. For the many families that are experiencing or will experience significant income loss, this crisis may also mean food insecurity or an inability to pay rent and bills—all of which can severely damage a child’s sense of safety.

But there are steps educators can take to support a sense of safety in children. They can:

  • Reach out, provide space and encourage students to connect with them or another trusted adult or counselor to talk about their safety concerns. Offer students a way to connect if there is something that they need help with or are worried about.
  • Encourage students to talk to friends or family members on the phone.
  • Help students plan some virtual playdates to distract them from their worries.
  • Recommend or include in lesson plans and packets some fun, free activities that kids can do at home.
  • Encourage families and caregivers to avoid watching the news in front of their children (as that can be upsetting), keep as much of a regular family routine as possible, and plan activities such as going for walks or hikes or playing board or video games together.

Connectedness

Connectedness refers to having relationships with others who can understand and support you. As we are practicing social distancing and have closed most public places, educators will need to get creative to help students feel connected.

To foster a sense of connectedness, educators can:

  • Make time to ask students about something fun they are doing right now.
  • Greet students by name and create a touch-free or virtual routine (similar to a handshake, a hug or a high five) to invite connection, either online or at meal pick-up.
  • Consider putting students together in small groups to work on projects or activities and encouraging students to work together online or by phone. These activities may include virtual puzzles or scavenger hunts. The key is to help the student feel connected to others in the class by sharing an important part of themselves that helps the class get to know them better. Foster a sense of community by highlighting each student’s contribution to the group activity.
  • Plan activities through the use of web-conferencing sites that allow students to see, hear and interact with each other and their teacher.
  • Talk directly about the importance of connecting with others.
  • Incorporate space for play and fun activities into online lesson plans or take-home packets.

Hope

Hope is the expectation that everything will work out and the feeling that things will be all right. Right now, many people may be feeling discouraged, hopeless or angry. Adults and students may be feeling a great sense of loss for activities that will not be taking place as usual. Students particularly may be disappointed in missing out on sports, competition, performances and other important rituals of the spring semester.

To encourage a sense of hope, educators can:

  • Have students connect with someone in their family or community to ask a person they respect how they stayed hopeful in troubled times.
  • Teach about other historical times of crisis, including how these ended and communities rebounded.
  • Encourage students to get fresh air and to move when possible.
  • Share some of the many stories of hope and helping that have come out of this current crisis.
  • Share a positive affirmation or a strength of a student—it can go a long way right now.
  • Let students know that people find help in different ways, including through spiritual beliefs and practices, and encourage students to discuss things that bring them hope.
  • Facilitate and encourage students meeting virtually or by phone with a trusted adult who can show them a different perspective, help to identify their talents and strengths, list their options and resources, and encourage and support them.

In addition to the suggestions above, are there any activities for students (either for online classes or that students can do independently) that you recommend educators try?

Now is a time to provide opportunities for students to complete activities that affirm their competence, sense of self-worth and feelings of safety. There are many social emotional learning practices and wellness activities that teachers can encourage students to complete independently or online.

These activities can promote self-regulation when students are feeling stressed and provide a healthy sense of control over controllable aspects of an overwhelming situation. Some possible social emotional and wellness practices can include the following:

  • Promote self-awareness by having students review a feelings chart and share how they are feeling. To help them communicate their feelings, encourage the use of a scale, such as, “On a scale of 1-10, how bored are you feeling?” or “Are you feeling a little lonely, somewhat lonely, or very lonely?”
  • Recommend quick mindfulness or self-soothing exercises such as smelling a flower or completing four-corner breathing prior to completing the lesson. Four-corner breathing simply involves inhaling deeply and exhaling deeply four times. Students can complete this breathing exercise by standing up and taking one inhale and exhale breath while facing each of the four corners in a room.
  • Model and normalize a range of emotions by giving students opportunities to express themselves in nonverbal ways. This may include drawing a picture about how their lesson or day is going or showing the most important thing that happened to them that day. Teachers can complete this exercise first and share with students to model how to share with others in a way that feels safe and helps us feel connected.
  • Have students complete a virtual or long-distance appreciation or gratitude circle. Encourage students to write one thing they appreciate about classmates. Add your own, and then give each student the appreciations written about them.
  • Give students the chance to share what they’ve learned or a chance to teach their classmates. This can include having students find and teach brief self-soothing or mindfulness exercises that promote self-regulation.

Are there students in particular situations that educators should be keeping closer contact with during this period? Do you have recommendations for ways educators can reach out?

While not all families have a history of exposure to trauma, children with identified histories of trauma may be especially vulnerable to the impact of significant changes in schedule, routine and expectations that come with social distancing, canceled classes, remote learning and reliance on caregivers for academics.

Other students may also be at additional risk during this time:

  • students who have had anxiety;
  • students who have depression or suicidal ideation;
  • students who have learning and attention disorders;
  • students whose families may have lost jobs or income;
  • students who have loved ones particularly vulnerable to the COVID-19 virus;
  • students who have a caregiver who is a healthcare worker or in another occupation where they are exposed to the virus or are being asked to respond in an intense way;
  • students who may be less supervised because of caregivers’ work.

Even remotely, however, there are ways that educators can provide extra support to these students:

  • Educators can reach out to caregivers to check in and offer or explain the supports that they typically use in the classroom with their children.
  • Educators can set up individual conferences via computer or phone to check in with students and ask about their safety and worries.
  • Educators can and should connect with school mental health professionals to know how they can connect students and families with them when necessary.

What kinds of stressors or potential trauma will families and caregivers be facing during this time that educators should be aware of? How can educators help?

In general, it is important to consider that the stress adults might be facing during this time of uncertainty will probably be mirrored in children. Families could be dealing with high levels of stress, and they probably will be for an extensive amount of time. Educators can consider sharing messages about how families need to give themselves some space when emotions run high, and they can model how to regulate emotions to help children cope.

Educators should have an appreciation for how kids might respond to stress and consider how stress might play out by age group. Whenever possible, they should share this information with caregivers.

Educators can also play a role in promoting the message that caretakers should try their best to establish a routine, involve children in the development of their own schedules, and maintain reasonable expectations of children, knowing that some changes are just difficult to predict.

Finally, we understand that in other countries, rates of domestic violence and child abuse have increased during the COVID-19 crisis. Stress and increased isolation are risk factors for abuse. Families experiencing difficult financial issues or job loss during this time might be especially at risk. But all families will be under increased stress and isolation with varying levels of support and resources.

For more information about child trauma and child traumatic stress, the National Child Traumatic Stress Network has many resources to help educators and caretakers better understand the impact, consequences and resilience of children and families exposed to trauma. This page is a good place to start.

What steps do you recommend for educators who want to be there for their students but who might also be dealing with their own stress right now?

  • Practice self-kindness, and remember that it is best to take care of yourself before you try to take care of anyone else.
  • Take time to check in with yourself to gain insight into where you may be struggling. Once you identify the issues, work to create a plan to address the issues you can control and to work on letting go of the ones you cannot.
  • Utilize social supports as needed. Consider planning a virtual coffee break or lunch hour with colleagues or other educators via Zoom, where you might share strategies that are or are not working, talk about what you’re cooking or watching on Netflix, and experience a much-needed sense of community
  • Create a routine that includes getting up at a regular time, getting ready and dressed for the day, a work schedule, some way to move your body and some breaks to connect to others.
  • Remember that, as adults, we are the best predictors of how our students and children are doing; they are watching and listening to us. When we take care of ourselves, we’re showing them how they can take care of themselves, too.

Are there any specific resources, articles or other information you recommend?

Some of the answers above were adapted from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) publications, including:

These resources from the NCTSN expand on some of the recommendations above:

These resources from the Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress can be helpful:

Educators can may find these resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) useful:

These resources from Substance Abuse Mental Health Services (SAMSHA) may also provide support:

For more on supporting students and families during this time, visit TT’s resource collection “Supporting Students Through Coronavirus.”

We believe this article from Teaching Tolerance Magazine is as relative today as it was in 2014 when originally published. Too many names of innocent black lives that have been stolen at the hands of white police officers have been added to the list discussed here, most recently George Floyd.

We stand in solidarity with all individuals, families and communities of color, Black Americans in particular, who for generations have endured social and economic injustice and reprehensible violence by systemic racism and racial discrimination. Together, we have to create an end to this toxic system of hate.

We believe that children are not born racists, they are taught racism. We encourage ALL parents to spread this message in order to help be part of the solution by raising our children to love all people and every color in the rainbow, to feel empathy for others who are hurting, to seek ways to help and to comfort, and to always, always stand up to bigotry and hatred.

Together, we will change the world…one child at a time.

Source: https://www.tolerance.org/moment/racism-and-police-violence from Teaching Tolerance Magazine

TEACHING ABOUT RACE, RACISM AND POLICE VIOLENCE

In 2014, the deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Eric Garner in New York City, Tamir Rice in Cleveland and too many others caused waves of nationwide protest and appeals for stronger protections against police brutality.

These events—along with the lack of accountability for the police officers who shot and killed these unarmed victims—also prompted educators to seek resources on how to address these subjects in the classroom.

Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice ​
The resources below can help spur much-needed discussion around implicit bias and systemic racism, but they can also empower your students to enact the changes that will create a more just society.

Editor’s note: This web package was originally published in December 2014 under the title “Teaching About Ferguson: Race and Racism in the United States.” We update this page periodically to reflect currents events. For the latest statistics on police-related civilian deaths, see the Washington Post resource “Fatal Force.”

BLM coalition supporters honor Eric Garner NYC
The second anniversary of the death of Eric Garner, New York City. (Sipa via AP Images)
Teaching Tolerance Resources
Articles
Why the Texas Police-Stop Video Is a Problem
A new Texas law requires that students learn how to act appropriately when interacting with police officers, but it misses the mark by ignoring a history of policing that has not reserved the same respect for its citizens. This article illustrates how such initiatives ignore racism’s influence in police interactions.

Police Violence: New Jersey Bill Puts Onus and Blame On Children
This bill calls for “mutual cooperation and respect” concerning interactions with police—and it misses the point.

Living With the Bear
Constant exposure to violence via social media is harming our students. Learn to recognize the signs to give them the support they need.

After the Flag Comes Down
There was growing momentum to take down Confederate flags after nine people were murdered at the Emanuel African Methodist Church in Charleston, South Carolina, but our work to denounce systemic racism cannot stop at symbolic markers.

The Revolution Will Be Tweeted
This middle school teacher empowered his students to lift their voices in discussions about Ferguson and Eric Garner—by assigning them to tweet.

Talking With Students About Ferguson and Racism
This teacher believes it’s crucial for white teachers like her to seek out productive ways to talk about race and racism with students.

When Educators Understand Race and Racism
What is the fundamental outcome of educators growing their racial competence? Learning.

#dontshoot
The tragic loss of Michael Brown presents an opportunity to help students connect with our collective humanity.

Feature Stories
Teaching in Solidarity
Learn about the annual Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action and how you can participate.

Why Teaching Black Lives Matter Matters (Part I)
All educators have the civic responsibility to learn and teach the basic history and tenets of this movement for racial justice.

Bringing Black Lives Matter Into the Classroom (Part II)
An educator introduces ways to discuss Black Lives Matter across all grade levels.

A District Profile: Black Lives Matter at School
Meet a school district that brought BLM into the classroom—and learn how you could do it too.

Don’t Say Nothing
Educators’ silence speaks volumes during moments of racial tension or violence. Our students are listening.

Why Talk About Whiteness?
This magazine feature story explores why we can’t talk about racism without understanding the social construction of whiteness.

Ferguson, U.S.A.
This feature story explains why hardships faced by communities in crisis are national issues worth teaching. Further, it delineates three approaches to teaching, thinking and talking about the events of 2014 that had the nation grappling with the effects of police violence.

Vigil for Michael Brown
Desuirea Harris, the grandmother of Mike Brown is comforted by Lala Moore at a memorial to Brown. (AP Photo/Robert Cohen)
Professional Development
What Is White Privilege, Really?
This article helps set a firm definition of white privilege, rooted in the context of the historical use of the term and its present-day implications—both surface-level and systemic.

Test Yourself for Hidden Bias
This page defines the terms stereotype, prejudice and discrimination and includes a link to Project Implicit’s Hidden Bias Tests. It also provides suggestions for ensuring that implicit biases don’t manifest in biased actions.

PD Café: Responding to Trauma in Your Classroom
This collection of suggestions and resources can help educators identify how to respond when trauma directly or indirectly touches their classrooms.

Let’s Talk! Discussing Race, Racism and Other Difficult Topics With Students
Talking with students about race and privilege is hard but necessary. This webinar can help you find the words. (Be sure to read the related publication, Let’s Talk! Facilitating Critical Conversations With Students.)

Let’s Talk! Discussing Black Lives Matter With Students
This webinar addresses the roots of Black Lives Matter, its platform and its connections to past social justice movements. It also offers tools for teaching about the Black Lives Matter movement.

Let’s Talk! Teaching Black Lives Matter
This sequel to Let’s Talk! Discussing Black Lives Matter in the Classroom reviews the education-related policy demands within the Movement for Black Lives’ platform: Invest-Divest and Community Control.

Equity Matters: Confronting Implicit Bias
To create equitable classrooms, educators must acknowledge their own biases and take steps to confront them. This webinar can help.

Preparing to Teach The New Jim Crow
This resource offers strategies and methods that can prepare teachers to support students during conversations about race, racism and other forms of oppression.

protesters march in Ferguson, MO after Michael Brown was fatally shot
Protestors march in Ferguson, MO, after the fatal shooting of unarmed teenager Michael Brown. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Classroom Resources
Talking About Race and Racism
This lesson helps students learn to participate in open and honest conversations about race and racism.

Racial Disparity in the Criminal Justice System
How does mass incarceration function as a mechanism of radicalized social control in the United States today? What is “the age of colorblindness,” and how does it attempt to mask racial caste?

Understanding the Prison Label
What is the long-term harm and wider impact of mass incarceration on people and communities of color?

Dismantling Racial Caste
What is needed to end mass incarceration and permanently eliminate racial caste in the United States?

Iesha Evans (photo)
This iconic photo of nurse and mother Iesha Evans peacefully protesting in front of heavily militarized police officers became a symbol for the resistance to police brutality and violence. This text provides context for a discussion about the power dynamics of police and marginalized people.

Y’all Still Don’t Hear Me Though
This text for grades 6-8 features a 2015 essay by Lecia J. Brooks as she recounts her perspective as a protester who participated in the Los Angeles Race Riots that followed the trial of those who had committed police brutality against activist Rodney King. Her account details the pervasiveness of police brutality and why demonstrators protest against it.

Black Lives matter protest
Getty Images

Related External Resources
Preparing to Discuss Michael Brown in the Classroom
Developed by District of Columbia Public Schools, this document includes suggestions for how to frame painful conversations, resources for educators who wish to build their background knowledge and a protocol for engaging students. Although the material references Ferguson, it is relevant to all teaching about racial profiling or police violence.

Talking and Teaching About Police Violence
A post from the blog Prison Culture that includes activities to help assist educators in their conversations with students about the role of the police in society.

How to Teach Kids About What’s Happening in Ferguson
Published by The Atlantic, this is a crowdsourced list of readings and resources that support teaching about race, white privilege and incidents of police brutality, as well as civil rights history and other related topics. Although the material references Ferguson, it is relevant to all teaching about racial profiling or police violence.

#CharlestonSyllabus
Compiled by the African American Intellectual Honor Society, this list of readings is designed to help educators discuss the June 2015 massacre at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church.

On Views of Race and Inequality, Blacks and Whites Are Worlds Apart
From the Pew Research Center, this article summarizes research about how white and black Americans view issues of racial inequity, including perceptions related to the police.

Happening Yesterday, Happened Tomorrow
In this article from Rethinking Schools, a teacher recounts how she helped her students process a series of brutal police-related deaths while also studying the historic connection between poetry and injustice.

Curriculum for White Americans to Educate Themselves on Race and Racism
From writer and educator Jon Greenberg, this collection of activities, readings and images offers try-tomorrow approaches for white educators and students.

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Source: www.healthychildren.org

Talking to Children About Tragedies & Other News Events

Talking to Children About Tragedies

​​After any disaster, parents and other adults struggle with what they should say and share with children and what not to say or share with them.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) encourages parents, teachers, child care providers, and others who work closely with children to filter information about the crisis and present it in a way that their child can accommodate, adjust to, and cope with.

Where to Start – All Ages

No matter what age or developmental stage the child is, parents can start by asking a child what they’ve already heard. Most children will have heard something, no matter how old they are. After you ask them what they’ve heard, ask what questions they have.

Older children, teens, and young adults might ask more questions and may request and benefit more from additional information. But no matter what age the child is, it’s best to keep the dialogue straightforward and direct.​

​Avoiding Graphic Details & Exposure to Media

In general, it is best to share basic information with children, not graphic details, or unnecessary details about tragic circumstances. Children and adults alike want to be able to understand enough so they know what’s going on. Graphic information and images should be avoided.

Keep young children away from repetitive graphic images and sounds that may appear on television, radio, social media, computers, etc.

With older children, if you do want them to watch the news, record it ahead of time. That allows you to preview it and evaluate its contents before you sit down with them to watch it. Then, as you watch it with them, you can stop, pause, and have a discussion when you need to.

Children will generally follow good advice, but you have to give them some latitude to make decisions about what they’re ready for. You can block them from seeing the newspaper that comes to the door, for example, but not the one on the newsstand. Today, most older children will have access to the news and graphic images through social media and other applications right from their cell phone. You need to be aware of what’s out there and take steps in advance to talk to children about what they might hear or see.

Talking to Very Young Children

The reality is that even children as young as 4 years old will hear about major crisis events. It’s best that they hear about it from a parent or caregiver, as opposed to another child or in the media.

Even the youngest child needs accurate information, but you don’t want to be too vague. Simply saying, “Something happened in a faraway town and some people got hurt,” doesn’t tell the child enough about what happened. The child may not understand why this is so different from people getting hurt every day and why so much is being said about it. The underlying message for a parent to convey is, “It’s okay if these things bother you. We are here to support each other.”

Talking to Gradeschool Children & Teens

After asking your child what they have heard and if they have questions about what occurred during a school shooting, community bombing, natural disaster, or even a disaster in an international country, a parent can say something such as:

“Yes. In [city], [state]” (and here you might need to give some context, depending on whether it’s nearby or far away, for example, ‘That’s a city/state that’s pretty far from/close to here’), there was disaster and many people were hurt. The police and the government are doing their jobs so they can try to make sure that it doesn’t happen again.”

A parent can follow-up as needed based on the child’s reactions and questions.

Talking to Children with Developmental Delays or Disabilities

Parents who have a child with a developmental delay or disability should gear their responses to their child’s developmental level or abilities, rather than their physical, age. If you have a teenage child whose level of intellectual functioning is more similar to a 7-year-old, for instance, gear your response toward her developmental level. Start by giving less information. Provide details or information in the most appropriate and clear way you can.

Talking to Children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

What’s helpful to a child with an ASD may be different. For instance, the child may find less comfort in cuddling than some other children. Parents should try something else that does calm and comfort their child on other occasions. Ask yourself, “Given who my child is, his personality, temperament, and developmental abilities, what might work for him?”

Signs a Child Might Not Be Coping Well

If children don’t have a chance to practice healthy coping, a parent may see signs that they’re having difficulty adjusting. Some of things to look for are:

  • Sleep problems: Watch for trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, difficulty waking, nightmares, or other sleep disturbances.
  • Physical complaints: Children may complain of feeling tired, having a headache, or generally feeling unwell. You may notice your child eating too much or less than usual.
  • Changes in behavior: Look for signs of regressive behavior, including social regression, acting more immature, or becoming less patient and more demanding. A child who once separated easily from her parents may become clingy. Teens may begin or change current patterns of tobacco, alcohol, or substance use.
  • Emotional problems: Children may experience undue sadness, depression, anxiety, or fears.

Sometimes it can be hard to tell if a child is reacting in a typical way to an unusual event or whether they are having real problems coping, and might need extra support. If you are concerned, talk to your child’s pediatrician or a mental health professional or counselor.

Don’t wait for the signs. Start the discussion early, and keep the dialogue going.

Additional Information on HealthyChildren.org:

​​Additional Resources:

Last Updated
11/14/2019
Source
Adapted from an eHealthMD interview with David Schonfeld, MD, FAAP, Director of the National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement and member of the AAP Disaster Preparedness Advisory Council
The information contained on this Web site should not be used as a substitute for the medical care and advice of your pediatrician. There may be variations in treatment that your pediatrician may recommend based on individual facts and circumstances.