In any classroom, it’s critical to teach students to embrace diversity and combat stereotypes. Students of all ages need to have authentic windows into cultures and experiences beyond their own because, as Kylie from Cottontail Creations explains, “How we teach our students about different heritages is the picture that will stick with them.” For support in this important work, you can turn to the 10 educators featured in this post and the resources they created for TpT’s Teach for Justice grant program. Check out their resources below to find thoughtful ways to teach students about stereotypes, diversity, and difference. And for more resources that apply anti-racist and social justice teaching practices, be sure to browse the full Teach for Justice collection on TpT.
Resources to teach students about stereotypes, diversity, and difference
Kylie from Cottontail Creations
How we teach our students about different heritages is the picture that will stick with them. Students need to be exposed more to Native Americans than just the inaccurate story of the first Thanksgiving or during November. I was motivated to create resources that break the biases and misconceptions being taught about Indigenous history and culture.
About Kylie: The majority of Kylie’s family has worked in education, ranging from preschool to collegiate level. Growing up around wonderful educators, she saw the impact they made on their students and schools, and she knew she wanted to do the same when she grew up. She teaches 3rd grade ELA and is currently in her second year of teaching. She’s also pursuing a Master’s in Early Childhood Education.
A Little’s Introduction to Native American/Indigenous Culture
PreK – 1st grade
This is an Online Resource for Google Apps™. Learn More.
That Special Educator – Braelan Martin
I was unable to find any [social justice] resources that focused on special education for students with disabilities. Complex topics are important to teach to ALL children. I was able to create resources that would work for my students with disabilities.
About Braelan: Braelan Martin is a Kindergarten through 2nd grade special education teacher. Braelan is passionate about instilling imagination and independence into her students. She knows by experience that first-year and veteran teachers alike are always looking for ways to make their classrooms engaging, fun, and welcoming. With limited resources and time, visual supports that are easy to create, implement, and adapt to meet each student’s needs are hard to come by.
Social Justice! Stereotype and Race! Special Education
PreK – 2nd grade
I was motivated to create resources for the Teach for Justice grant program due to my own experiences as a student growing up and as a teacher in the U.S. I wanted students and teachers to have access to social justice topics so that students with immigrants in their class could learn how to be more empathetic and understanding to people’s different circumstances. It is my hope that my resources will help facilitate difficult conversations.
About Cindy: Cindy has been a teacher in the Chicago area since 2008. She holds a Bachelor’s in Bilingual Bicultural Elementary Education from Northeastern Illinois University and a Master’s in Reading from Concordia University. Most of her teaching experience is in Kindergarten and 1st grade as a dual language teacher. She loves being a dual language educator because she is able to create a safe learning environment in which her students can grow in two languages.
Picture Book Study on Immigration with Google Slides
K – 5th grade
Michael and Rozanne from Ro Squared Resources
Exploring identity and representation and helping students find the language to celebrate and express who they are is something that we think is critical for children to experience at an early age. We were motivated to create “Sum of Our Parts” to help educators create a space for their students of all shapes, sizes and colors to be proud of who they are and to speak up when they see injustice around them.
About Michael and Rozanne: Michael and Rozanne both received their Masters’ in Childhood General and Special Education from Bank Street College. They’ve taught for seven and nine years respectively. Rozanne, wanting to parlay her love of children into her everyday life, changed careers from the world of publishing and never looked back. And Michael comes from a long line of educators and knows the importance of education for personal and community uplift, especially within the Black community. Rozanne currently teaches 3rd and 4th grade, and Michael teaches 2nd grade and serves as his school’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Coordinator.
Sum of Our Parts: Exploring Identity and Representation with Upper Elementary
2nd – 4th grade
This is an Online Resource for Google Apps™. Learn More.
Renee from A Counselor’s Heart
I have faced personal hardships and use this to motivate change that I desire to see in the world around me. My professional experiences, personal experiences, international experiences, and faith have equipped me with a deep connection to advocate for positive changes in our society.
About Renee: Renee has worked in education for 16 years, first in the classroom and later as a school counselor. Currently, she’s a homeschool mom and is working on her Clinical Counseling Licensure. She also holds a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education and a Master’s in School Counseling. She has a passion for education and for equipping young learners with tools to help them navigate life.
3rd – 5th grade
As an accomplished, and published, Ghanaian poet and performer, I aim to use both my honed writing voice and my extensive performance experience (as well as a diverse canon of words from other Black and African authors) to introduce students to the multi-faceted world of creative writing, performance art, and public speaking. My hope is that through these topics, students will gain a breadth of knowledge in writing, confidence, and speaking, and will be inspired to investigate their own identities and voices (especially during this time when people/students of color are often silenced and maligned).
About Cynthia: Cynthia is a spoken-word artist originally from Ghana. She completed her MFA at The New School and has been featured on the stages of TEDxDrewUniversity, TEDxOhioStateUniversity, and more. Cynthia’s writing, teaching, and performances highlight the forgotten stories of the world, while transcending the oftentimes marginalized groups she delineates in her work. Cynthia’s contribution as an educator empowers young people with the tools that helped her identify her exact voice: creative writing and performance. In addition, she teaches topics ranging from life skills, mindfulness, positive-thinking and confidence-building to students of all ages, all over the world.
Poetry Around the World: An In-Depth Poetry Study
8th – 10th Grade
Elena from Oh for the Love of Literacy
As a K-12 educator, I was always scrambling to find enough resources for my students that were inclusive, antiracist, and justice-oriented. My goal for being part of the Teach for Justice grant program was to offer more resources for teachers who want access to inclusive, antiracist curriculum for their students.
About Elena: Elena is currently working on her PhD in Education at Chapman University, where she’s studying critical love, literacy, and community-building in the classroom. She’s deeply committed to antiracism through the lens of love, as Bell Hooks describes it, the spiritual nourishment of others. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in education, and she has also taught English in 6th through 12th grades at public and charter schools.
Poetry and Identity: Exploring Ourselves Through Poetry
9th – 10th grade
This is an Online Resource for Google Apps™. Learn More.
Gladys from Quirky Teachers Unite
I have experienced and witnessed discrimination, but I as a kid, I felt that it was my fault. [. . .] I was always interested in learning more about my culture and other cultures, but there were no traces of non-White cultures in the curriculum. [. . .] When I began teaching, I knew that I wanted to create an inclusive environment and teach my students to embrace diversity.
About Gladys: Gladys began her career as a biomedical research intern at Dartmouth and Johns Hopkins, but she knew she truly wanted to be a teacher. She was always excited to volunteer at her mother’s daycare or at summer camps because she loved working with young humans. Now, she’s been teaching for seven years, and she’ll soon be receiving a Master’s in Educational Leadership. She has taught English, middle school math, and high school biology, and she also serves as the facilitator of her district’s Diversity and Inclusion Task Force.
Analyzing the Use of Race to Define Others
7th – 12th grade
Amy from poco a poco Profe
Students deserve more than a surface-level exposure to other cultures because critical issues related to identity, privilege, and persecution exist around the world. I believe that awareness of other cultures empowers students to engage in difficult conversations that inspire change on local and global scales.
About Amy: Amy’s passion for learning, especially learning languages, motivated her to become a teacher. She has taught high school Spanish for three years and works with bilingual programs. She also previously worked as a language assistant in Spain and as a Fulbright English teaching assistant in Brazil. She holds a Bachelor’s in Spanish, a Master’s in Secondary Education, and is currently pursuing a certificate in English as a New Language. Her hope as an educator is to help young people develop global mindsets rooted in compassion and justice for all.
Spanish-speaking cultures beyond stereotypes- a unit of readings and activities
10th – 12th grade
I was motivated to create this resource because it has broken my heart to see adults and children mistreat others because of their biases and misunderstanding about people who look different.
About Shirley: Dr. Shirley Auguste has over 29 years of experience in education. In her experience, she has enjoyed being a teacher, a teacher-mentor, a team lead, and an administrator. She has served as a PreK through 8th grade educator and has taught science and reading.
2nd – 5th grade
In any grade level, educators must help students understand and combat stereotypes, and they must expose students to different cultures and experiences in authentic ways. For support in this important work of teaching about stereotypes, diversity, and difference, you can turn to the 10 resources in this post. And for more resources to help inforportate more anti-racist and social justice teaching methods into your instrcution, check out the full Teach for Justice collection on TpT.
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