Dear Morningside Center Friends,

It's June and time is flying to the end of the school year! End of year projects, Regents testing, and important celebrations like Juneteenth and Pride month are upon us, and Morningside is here to support you with all of it.

Below you'll find lessons on Juneteenth, managing worries about transition, and an activity to end the year. And remember our 11,000+ TeachableMoment lessons are available every day, online and free—no matter when you need a lesson on hundreds of topics from SEL to a moment in history.

Also, our Annual Report is here!  Thanks to everyone who collaborates, supports and joins us in this work to support more than 45,000 children in the last year alone!

Our 2024 Annual Report

This year, Morningside Center trained more than 2,800 educators, and supported more than 45,000 students while launching vital Parent/Caregiver Workshops that will serve more than 3,000 families by June. Take a look at the enriching work we do when we collaborate with schools, districts, families and learners across the 5 boroughs and beyond. No matter the challenges around us, Morningside is here with magic and medicine to make incredible things possible for kids. Thank you for your part!

New & Featured on TeachableMoment

Juneteenth & the Importance of History

Students learn about Juneteenth, share family histories, and explore resources on the holiday and current efforts to erase aspects of American history and the role of Black people in it. 

SEL Tip: Managing Worries about Transition

For many students, the close of the school year comes with anxiety about the transitions ahead. Try these strategies to help you and your students address those anxieties in a positive way.

Group reflections to end the school year

Students reflect on the way their advisory or class has worked together and consider the values that are most important to them as a group now and going forward.  

What We're Reading

In prison, I embraced the SEL skills I should have learned in grade school

"For me, restorative justice has been transformative, providing me with the tools to break down the walls of insecurity and shame that I’d built up most of my life. I can’t help but wonder what my life might have been like if I’d had access to these tools earlier." By Anthony Baye at Chalkbeat

Culturally Responsive and Community-Focused PBL

"Having students design project-based learning units that influence their own communities can have a transformative impact on learning." By Holly Spinelli at Edutopia

NYC schools fail to protect students with disabilities from lengthy suspensions

"As a result, some students are serving longer punishments than legally allowed, a problem that disproportionately affects Black students. The removals can compound academic struggles among students who are often far behind their peers." By Alex Zimmerman at Chalkbeat

"When kids have been doing circle all year, they feel part of a community, and they don’t want to disrespect that community by fighting. So our suspensions have gone down significantly. Our restorative circles have brought us closer to our students. And they’ve brought us together as adults. We became part of the circle." 

—Caron Pinkus, Former Principal, Landmark High School