Building a Classroom Community: Creating an Environment for Connection and Learning
This back-to-school resource contains activities and routines to help you create a sense of community, build relationships, and nurture students’ social-emotional needs.
![Students sitting in groups in a classroom](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/London_Classroom_2019_%20FH2117946.jpg?h=56d0ca2e&itok=UGM9knhg)
Teaching Brown Girl Dreaming
Teach a unit on Jacqueline Woodson's coming-of-age memoir in verse that invites students to reflect on their own experiences and identities.
![A girl leans against a wall while reading a book.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/iStock-1209693972.jpg?h=7bbcb45e&itok=b5N9XQ_7)
Red Scarf Girl
A child's nightmare unfolds in Ji-li Jiang's chronicle of the excesses of Chairman Mao's Cultural Revolution in China in the late 1960s.
Curriculum Planning Begins with Self-Reflection
Dr. Kimberly Parker discusses the internal work that teachers need to do during the curriculum development process in order to engage and support students in their learning.
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All Souls: A Family Story from Southie
In this memoir, MacDonald details his story of growing up in Southie, Boston's Irish Catholic enclave, and examines the ways the media and law enforcement agencies exploit marginalized working-class communities.
![All Souls book cover](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/all_souls_cover.jpg?h=d4399b17&itok=yib58Gi_)
The Bear That Wasn't
One day, a bear awakens to find himself in the midst of civilization. Interpretations abound in this excellent catalyst for discussion of the individual in society.
![Book cover of The Bear That Wasn't](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/the_bear_that_wasnt_cover.jpg?h=2888c176&itok=p5jJCR-3)
Wonder
August was born with a facial deformity and has been homeschooled―until now. Entering fifth grade, he must navigate being the “new kid” in a mainstream school.
![Book cover for Wonder.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/wonder_cover.jpeg?h=c38eadaf&itok=2ouB1w3Z)
Introducing Agency (Adapted Version)
Students use this reading to learn about the concept of individual and collective agency.
![Students write at a table.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-07/Chicago_Classroom_2019_FH2101326.jpg?h=2e5cdddf&itok=FdA96TZN)
Becoming American: The Chinese Experience Part Two - Between Two Worlds
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The second of a 3-part series explores the impact of the Chinese Exclusion Act
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_1289.jpg)
Camera of My Family: Four Generations in Germany 1845-1945
Photographer Catherine Hanf Noren tells the story of her family, before, during, and after the Holocaust, through old photographs.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_1341.jpg)
Can You Solve This?
In this video illustrating the Wason Rule Discovery Test, people are asked to determine the rule governing a sequence of three numbers.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_1345.jpg)