Website Updates for the New Year

by Dorcas Hand
I updated the SNL website this week with some new resources.

A new page entitled: "Jan. 6 2021 in Washington DC: Protest or Insurrection? Talking to students about politics, civic engagement, and uncertainty." I will update this as I find more excellent resources.

A new page of LatinX resources for students.

Two booklists:

• The Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA) 2020 Best of the Best Booklist offers 50 titles for PK-4th grade; 25 titles for Middle School; 25 titles for High school; 25 Adult Books for High School.
• MISelf in Books is an annual list of diverse books for Michigan learners. The list was selected by a committee of certified school librarians who are members of Michigan Association for Media in Education (MAME). These recommendations are based on books that they see learners reading and enjoying in their libraries. The books are all published in the last two years and written by #ownvoice authors and will include books for all grade levels: PreK-1, 2-3, 4-5, 6-8, and 9-12.

 
I also note some Twitter threads that focus on diverse authorship (#ownvoice(s), #ownvoicesbooks, #hereweeread) and more nuanced explorations of literacy (#disrupttexts). Some work in Instagram as well. #DisruptTexts is also a website.

Two new video resources:

• Freedom Reads: Anti-Bias Book Talk Series. SocialJustice.org. “Freedom Reads: Anti-Bias Book Talk is part anti-bias training, part book review. Each short segment explores anti-bias books for home and the classroom with the goal to strengthen parents’ and teachers’ anti-bias, anti-racism lens and their ability to critically analyze children’s media.”
  
• StorylineOnline. “The SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s Daytime Emmy®-nominated and award-winning children’s literacy website, Storyline Online®, streams videos featuring celebrated actors reading children’s books alongside creatively produced illustrations. Readers include Oprah Winfrey, Chris Pine, Kristen Bell, Rita Moreno, Viola Davis, Jaime Camil, Kevin Costner, Lily Tomlin, Sarah Silverman, Betty White, Wanda Sykes and dozens more.” [Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists]  Young Children; Elementary
  

And one curriculum resource for high school:
Teach the Black Freedom Struggle Campaign. Zinn Education Project. “The Teach the Black Freedom Struggle campaign of the Zinn Education Project (coordinated by Rethinking Schools and Teaching for Change) supports teachers with free lessons for teaching about racism and anti-racist struggles, distribution to school districts of the book Teaching for Black Lives, teacher study groups, a podcast, online classes for teachers, and more.” 
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And here are a few books for adults and teachers about recognizing our biases and finding ways to engage with the world with more awareness of the challenges of stereotypes and biases.

• Aguilar, Leslie C. Ouch! That Stereotype Hurts... Communicating Respectfully in a Diverse World, 1st Edition. Walk The Talk, 2006. If you want to be a more effective communicator in today’s diverse workplace, this book is for you. If your organization wants to ensure that employees avoid biased, stereotypical and demeaning communication at work, you will find the guidance you need in this book.
• Banaji and Greenwald. Hidden Blindspot. Delecorte, 2013. “…explore[s] the hidden biases we all carry from a lifetime of exposure to cultural attitudes about age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, social class, sexuality, disability status, and nationality. “Blindspot” is the authors’ metaphor for the portion of the mind that houses hidden biases. Writing with simplicity and verve, Banaji and Greenwald question the extent to which our perceptions of social groups—without our awareness or conscious control—shape our likes and dislikes and our judgments about people’s character, abilities, and potential.”
• Hollie, Sharroky. Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching and Learning – Classroom Practices for Student Success, Grades K-12 (1st Edition). Shell Education, 2011. Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching and Learning uses research, best practices and evidence-based teaching strategies to provide practical activities and information to support the modern-day teacher. Beginning with background knowledge and loaded with tons of teacher-ready tools to use right away, this book can ignite growth in your teaching and classroom management. (The Center for Culturally Responsive Teaching and Learning)
• Kay, Matthew R. Not Light, but Fire: How to Lead Meaningful Race Conversations in the Classroom. Stenhouse, 2018. “Inspired by Frederick Douglass's abolitionist call to action, “it is not light that is needed, but fire” Matthew Kay has spent his career learning how to lead students through the most difficult race conversations. Kay not only makes the case that high school classrooms are one of the best places to have those conversations, but he also offers a method for getting them right,…”
• Love, Bettina. We Want to Do More Than Survive. Penguin RandomHouse, 2019. “…persuasively argues that educators must teach students about racial violence, oppression, and how to make sustainable change in their communities through radical civic initiatives and movements.”
• Muhammad, Gholdy. Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy. Scholastic, 2020. “…presents a four-layered equity framework—one that is grounded in history… The equity framework will help educators teach and lead toward the following learning goals or pursuits: Identity Development; Skill Development; Intellectual Development; Criticality.
• Sensoy and DiAngelo. Is Everyone Really Equal? An Introduction to Key Concepts in Social Justice Education, Second Edition. Teachers College Press, 2017. “…addresses the most common stumbling blocks to understanding social justice. This comprehensive resource includes new features such as a chapter on intersectionality and classism; discussion of contemporary activism (Black Lives Matter, Occupy, and Idle No More); material on White Settler societies and colonialism; pedagogical supports related to “common social patterns” and “vocabulary to practice using”; and extensive updates throughout.” High school and older.
• Teaching Tolerance. Reading Diversity Toolkit. Offers Teacher Guides for a few books for various levels in K-12, as well as a free downloadable PDF guide to selecting appropriate diverse texts.

 I hope you find these suggestions useful in your classrooms and lives.