Dear Morningside Center friends,

As a long holiday weekend approaches, and back-to-school is in full swing in the US, we wish you a restful and mindful Labor Day, and—if you are starting back—a wonderful return to school.

Below we share a lesson on the Equal Rights Amendment, a new lesson on relationship building through self-expression, an SEL tip for creating meaningful community agreements with your students, and a collection of tried-and-true Labor Day lessons and resources.

The Fight to Pass an Equal Rights Amendment Continues Today

This two-part lesson consists of two readings which explore the ongoing history of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in the United States. Questions for discussion follow each reading as well as a post-reading activity.

Who Are You?: Building Relationships through Self-Exploration

Who are you? You may be asking this when looking at all the new faces in your classroom at the beginning of the school year. You may also be asking: How can we, as a classroom community, encourage each other to answer this question authentically, peeling away the many layers that comprise who we are? 

• For upper elementary and middle school
• For high school

SEL Tip: Start the Year with Community Agreements

The beginning of the school year is the ideal time to start building a positive classroom climate.

Begin by asking students, "What do you need to feel safe, comfortable, and excited to learn?"

Lessons for Labor Day

If you're looking to honor Labor Day and working people in your classroom, consider these lessons from our collection. 

Photo: Amazon Labor Union co-founder Chris Smalls, after the union's victory at Amazon, by Legoktm

What We're Reading

What Does Evidence-Based Mean? Why Is It Important?

"Using evidence to guide decision-making can support educator, family, and community goals to promote positive outcomes for students. Since evidence-based approaches have been shown through rigorous research to bring about desired outcomes in the past, these stakeholders can confidently select an approach that is likely to support young people in their context." By Dr. Rista Plate at CASEL

The Teachers are Not All Right: Improving the Mental Well-being of Teachers and Their Students

"Public and private school teachers who say their own mental health is having a detrimental impact on their work are more likely to say the mental health of their students is having a detrimental impact on their learning." By Holly Kurtz at Education Week

“I hope that more educators in our various communities continue to attend trainings like [Morningside’s] so that we can continue the conversation about what means to forge communities guided by love, respect, and kindness towards all.”

—Special Education Teacher from the Bronx