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People's History Curriculum Group
D.C. Area Educators for Social Justice (https://www.dcareaeducators4socialjustice.org/) is forming a working group for D.C. area middle and high school social studies teachers who are committed to teaching with a people's history lens for the 2019-2020 school year. Read more >>
Elementary Working Group
D.C. Area Educators for Social Justice has launched a working group for D.C. area elementary (3rd-5th grade) educators. The group meets monthly on weekday afternoons. If you are interested, please apply.
More Than Music: Go-Go As A Mobilization Tool
By Kimberly Ellis
As a native Washingtonian, Beth Sewell, an Independence and Learning Support teacher at Calvin Coolidge Senior High School (DCPS), has been surrounded by go-go music her entire life.
Stories from the 2021 DC Area Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action
From February 1-5, 2021, Teaching for Change's D.C. Area Educators for Social Justice hosted the fourth annual D.C. Area Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action. This local week of action is part of the National Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action and Year of Purpose campaign taking place in cities across the U.S. to promote a set of national demands based in the Black Lives Matter guiding principles that focus on improving the school experience for students of color.
Students Explore Black Lives Matter through Dialogue and Reflection
Students in Sam Chiron’s Introduction to Law class at Thurgood Marshall Academy PCS discussed images and text related to the questions: What is Black Lives Matter? What are the 13 Guiding Principles? The lesson was an introduction to a month-long unit on the Black Lives Matter movement.
Reflections on the Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action and the Vital Role ECE Anti Bias Group
By Lila Chafe
On the warm Wednesday evening of March 3, 2021, early childhood educators joined the DCAESJ Anti Bias ECE Working Group’s monthly meeting. As they logged on, participants shared memories from years of collective joy and action, preparing for the departure of the working group’s coordinator, Rosalie Reyes.
Exploring Justice through Fiction: Middle School Students Analyze the Book Pet
Imagine a world rooted in justice. What would it look like? Zo Clement, special education teacher at Two Rivers Charter School in Washington, D.C., set out to answer this question with middle school students over the summer.
Everyone Should Learn About Ernesto Cardenal Says a D.C. Middle School Class
“How many Central Americans can you name?” Caneisha Mills, 8th- grade teacher at Hardy Middle School in Washington, D.C. asked her advisory. During Teach Central America Week, Mills used the remote learning Central America mixer template to explore the lives and experiences of Central American figures with students.
34th DC International Filmfest: Filmmakers Dialogue with D.C. Students
Teaching for Change was pleased to partner with Filmfest DC in October of 2020 for the ninth year to bring filmmakers to DC classrooms. Through this partnership, students and educators gained access to the 34th Washington, D.C. International Film Festival documentaries to view at home, and ten classes hosted filmmakers, including two films in the Justice Matters series. Here are descriptions of the virtual classroom visits.
Teach Central America Week: October 5-11, 2020
Teaching for Change hosted the second annual Teach Central America Week from October 5 – 11, 2020. Hundreds of teachers from 35 states and the District of Columbia signed up to participate and organizations across the country endorsed the week. If you haven’t already, we encourage you to sign up to pledge to Teach Central America and share your stories about how you teach about Central America all year long. Here, we share news about lessons, events, teaching stories, and resources from this year’s Teach Central America Week.
Maxima Filmmaker Visits with D.C. High School Students
On Friday October 9, eighty high schoolers from Capital City Public Charter School in Washington D.C. joined a Zoom call with Claudia Sparrow, director and producer of the film Maxima. Maxima follows Máxima Acuña, a Peruvian activist fighting a multinational gold mining corporation over rights to her land.
Resources for D.C. Area Educators in These Times
Educators and students everywhere are adjusting to the new reality of teaching from a distance while letting students know they are still a close part of our community. We share below a few resources for teaching in these times.
Langdon ES Fifth Graders Learn About Go-Go
Go-go artist “Sweet” Cherie Mitchell visited Langdon Elementary School in connection with Teaching for Change’s Teach the Beat program. This is the second year that the program has been able to visit Langdon, a partner in Teaching for Change’s Tellin Stories parent engagement project. At the January parent-principal meeting, parents participated in an icebreaker where they were asked to consider: what does go-go music mean to you?
Teaching How Black Lives Matter in History with "Mumbet’s Declaration of Independence"
Watkins Elementary School 4th grade teacher Monique Sullivan used Mumbet’s Declaration of Independence as a way to explore who is centered in history and what stories are left out.
Second Graders Study Activism
Second graders in Katie Soffer and Kina Gee’s classroom at Inspired Teaching Demonstration PCS learned about activism as part of the Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action.
Learning about the Go-Go Pocket Beat vs Bounce Beat at Moten ES
In “crews” of four to five, students each picked up an instrument from Ju Ju’s percussion section of cowbells and several types of drums. Then as a whole class, with drumsticks in each hand, Ju Ju taught the students to tap out a go-go “pocket beat” and a “bounce beat” that is popular among younger go-go performers and listeners.
Anacostia HS Drumline Learns About Go-Go
Go-go musician Sweet Cherie, keyboardist and singer for the all-female Bela Dona Band, joined the music class at Anacostia HS as part of the 2020 Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action. A highlight of the visit was when Sweet Cherie led the room in Junkyard Band’s go-go classic, “Sardines.” One of the drummers joined her in the circle and midway through the song added a bounce beat to the rhythm.
Discussion of “Pipeline” and the Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action
On Friday, February 7, at Studio Theatre in Washington, D.C., audience members gathered for a post-play discussion of Dominique Morisseau’s play Pipeline, a drama following a family navigating through systems of racism in public and private school.
Connecting to the 13 Principles of the Black Lives Matter Movement in Fifth Grade
I led students in a “See, Think, Wonder” routine of a photo of a Black man drinking out of a water fountain labeled “whites only” and then asked them why do they thought I was wearing this on a day where we would be talking about the Black Lives Matter Movement. Then students broke out into groups to discuss one of the 13 guiding principles of the Black Lives Matter movement.
Beers ES Second Graders Learn About Go-Go
William “Ju Ju” House led a class on the go-go pocket with second graders at Beers Elementary as part of the Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action and the and the Teach the Beat project to bring go-go to D.C. classrooms.