Hedreich Nichols is a curriculum designer and Middle Years Program district edtech lead from North Texas. She is also an author and equity consultant helping teachers and districts amplify the voices of all students. With her Cherry Lake Publishing equity series books, What is Anti-racism? and What is the Black Lives Matter Movement?, as well as her upcoming Solution Tree title … Read More
Curriculum Series #1—The Research on Teaching for Justice
This is Episode #1 of my Curriculum Development Mini-Series. I am discussing the research and rationale behind why we create units, what the research says, and how we create a step-by-step process. Research shows that student centered dialogue increases: – the students’ sense of belonging – confidence – increased academic performance – improves teach-student and student-student relationships … Read More
How to Teach for Justice When Facts Don’t Seem to Matter
Get ready because today I am discussing theory and practical steps for teaching for justice while being able to differentiate between questions of fact and questions of policy. We start off with dividing issues into two categories Empirical questions- those that have a clear answer-teaching the history Policy questions- what to do with the facts and how to respond Then … Read More
Using Music to Teach for Justice with Christopher Schroeder
Our guest today is music instructor and executive director of the Boston Music Project—an organization that seeks to provide all students with the opportunity to develop musical proficiency, social emotional skills, civic engagement, and creative self-expression. We talk about his experience in leading children to own their creativity and become activists through their music. Get ready to be inspired and … Read More
Celebrate Poetry: What Will Your Verse Be?
TL;DR: Poetry offers students an access point into language. Spoken and written word have the power to foster conversation, liberation, and increase student voice. Poetry instruction that is multimodal (spoken word, video, and audio) increases engagement and can be a great way to delve into social justice topics in the classroom. It’s OK to just celebrate poetry without feeling intimidated … Read More