Asking Why with Transformers One
‘Why?’ is one of my children’s favorite questions. When they were little, they asked, “Why is the sky blue?”…
MorePosts tagged: Bias
Exploring Values through Cultural ‘Holidays’
Pop up a digital calendar and you’ll likely see a host of cultural ‘holidays’ created to encourage local,…
MoreDreaming about Racial Equity with Kids
During the Black Lives Matter protests of 2021, my home city (Richmond, VA) struggled with the legacy of several…
MoreTalking about the Israel/Palestine Conflict with Children
After the 9/11 terrorist attack, my four year old asked, “Mommy, were there children on those planes?” I responded…
MoreExploring Identity with Loujain Dreams of Sunflowers
Sexism, racism, and classism are hard concepts for children to understand. Kids have a strong bias toward fairness and…
MoreSeeing Differences through Eyes that Speak to the Stars
Children are often curious about differences. They wonder why someone has red hair instead of brown like them, or…
MoreTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Spirituality
My kids used to grab paper and pens and create their own comics. Their scratchy designs would tell stories about their…
MoreExploring the Goodness of Most People
Stranger danger lessons, active shooter drills - these experiences can teach children that others are to be feared.…
MoreExploring Spirituality with The Little Mermaid
Children have long loved Ariel, the star of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, because of her determination to live her…
MoreCelebrating AANHPI Heritage Month
Just a few weeks after cherry blossoms peak in the U.S. capital, Americans begin a month-long celebration of Asian…
MoreRihanna Spirituality
Rihanna’s Super Bowl LVII performance is trending on social media. Several reviewers place it in their all-time top…
MoreBabies & Racial Bias
My nine month old daughter cowered in my arms. She clearly didn’t want to interact with the person who had just…
MoreAddressing Empathy Deficits
“Jamal is icky. He walks with a limp and talks funny.” “Suzanne is so stupid! She looks weird, too.” Such…
MorePromoting Restorative Justice
My son’s Montessori school had a ‘peace table’ where children could go to work out disagreements. On it were a…
MoreCelebrating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Reading books about Martin Luther King, Jr. was more than an annual event when my children were young. We had several,…
MoreSpiritual Themes in The Door of No Return
Lessons about slavery in the United States typically begin with life on a plantation in the American South. This…
MoreExploring Community Justice with Unfadeable
In Unfadeable, Bella Fades is a fierce tween girl who loves her community and wants to see it thrive. Her strong belief…
MoreReading Small Town Pride With Kids
Small Town Pride stars a tween working to understand himself, change his community and gain autonomy over his own…
MoreBeing Antiracist with Kids
As a white researcher and teacher, I know I am susceptible to implicit bias. Even though I am committed to antiracism,…
MoreExploring Power & Perseverance with Minions: The Rise of Gru
The new Minions movie has much of the silliness you expect from the Despicable Me franchise. We watch as young Gru…
MoreReading What Do You Do with a Chance?
Taking chances is risky. Some children can’t wait to explore the unknown. Others prefer familiar structures and…
MoreIdentity Discussions with Alice Austen Lived Here
Sam and TJ have learned a lot about ‘Dead Straight Cisgender White Men’ in history. So when they have to research a…
MoreReplacing Hurtful Words with Kindness
“Losers! Losers!” shouted a kid on the opposing soccer team. My fifth grader and her teammates were headed to the…
MoreSpiritual Reflection with Turning Red
Pixar’s newest release is a coming-of-age story about a Chinese Canadian girl accepting both her changing body and…
MoreExploring For Beautiful Black Boys Who Believe in a Better World
Like many parents, Michael W. Waters looked at his newborn son and thought him the most beautiful baby on earth. He…
MoreBooks Celebrating Black Identity
Children’s spiritual well-being depends, in part, on strong self-esteem. They need to see themselves as individuals…
MoreReading Fauja Singh Keeps Going
Celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on the 3rd Monday in January reminds us that society needs strong leaders:…
MoreWhy Children Confuse God with Santa
Santa is everywhere these days. Well before Thanksgiving, store displays and commercials were selling products in his…
MoreGender & Toys
“He has a doll?!” my mother exclaimed, disapproval ringing in her words. She couldn’t believe I would let my…
MoreHelping Kids Appreciate Facts
What is a fact? One basic definition is that facts are things that we know to be true because of experience,…
MoreReading The Proudest Blue
Wearing hijab is a spiritual statement for Muslim girls and women. It is a sign of faith and a practice of…
MoreEncouraging Active Empathy
My daughter came home talking about a new girl in her class. Since being the new kid can be challenging, I want my…
MoreTeaching Tough Topics
Ruth Wills doesn’t believe in shying away from tough topics with children. A few years ago, she developed a method…
MoreEmpathy Maps
Getting to know the children with whom we work is essential. We learn their names and perhaps ask about their favorite…
MoreGender and Sexual Diversity Inclusion
My daughter returned from her third grade ‘Meet the Teacher’ with news she’d heard through friends: a boy in her…
MoreWhy Children Won’t Ask for Help
“Go ask your teacher for help,” I told my daughter again. For a whole grading period, she had been struggling with…
MoreSocial Emotional Learning at Home
My second child would become easily overwhelmed as a toddler. If we were shopping at the mall, she would start crying…
MoreContextual Engagement
Engaging children in spiritual work is a contextual experience. Yet much of our understanding about children’s…
MoreIdentity Portraits
Valuing who we are and respecting others’ identities are crucial to spiritual wellbeing. Every child wants to be seen…
MoreCritical Race Theory
When the University of North Carolina declined to tenure Nikole Hannah-Jones after recruiting her for a chair in…
MoreDeveloping Trust
When it comes to deciding what information about spirituality to trust and what to doubt, children acquire useful…
MoreRace & Gender Bias in Children’s Media
Children consume a lot of media. They watch videos, play animated games, and have favorite streaming television shows.…
MoreClass Bias in Religious Resources
Pandemic business closures, safer-at-home orders, and the move to virtual schooling have hit all families hard, but…
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