Upon receiving the resource “I Am Because We Are”, I dove into the lessons and examples it contains. As a white settler, the idea of teaching topics such as black history can come with a certain degree of imposter syndrome, questioning if you are the best person for the job. In an episode of a popular tv show, Abbott Elementary, Jacob, a white male teacher, is complained about to his administration because he is teaching black history month to a population that is primarily composed of black students. The principal goes and observes one of his lessons, and is immediately engrossed in the content, the way it is presented, and the room Jacob gives for students to share their own voices and perspectives on the topic. A clip of the principal talking to the parent can be found below:
BC has an open resource which outlines lesson plans, suggestions on how to go about approaching the topics, and how to make your classroom a safe space, keeping in mind your own positionality and the diversity of your students. I Am Because We Are includes teaching reflections and resources to consider before you start teaching the content, prompting thoughts about how you will address tougher conversations, and what you can do when a conversation starts going off the rails. It also consistently incorporates and refers to the First Peoples Principles of Learning and learning objectives whenever introducing a lesson plan or topic. It is a resource that I would use when designing a unit plan for my potential future classroom if I end up teaching middle school.
Leave a Reply