Plus, a short video on teacher overwork Morningside Center NEWSLETTER Dear Morningside Center friends, In this issue, we offer up a new lesson on how society influences body image and strategies for breaking the cycle. Plus, activities on banning great books and handling the holidays - and some good stuff to read and watch. If you have donated to our year-end fund appeal campaign, THANK YOU. If you haven't yet given, now is the time! With your gift, you'll be delivering palpable joy and a dose of justice to our schools in 2022. Find out here what you’ve helped to accomplish in 2021. Thank you so much for being part of the Morningside community! New Lessons & Stories Exploring Our Struggles with Body Image Students engage in a series of activities to explore the question of body image and how our society influences it. Then they test strategies for breaking this negative cycle. Banning Beloved: Censoring Toni Morrison’s Acclaimed Books Students learn about the life and legacy of Toni Morrison and discuss how her 1987 book Beloved is both frequently taught and frequently subject to calls for censorship. Holidays: Sometimes Happy, Sometimes Not In this activity, students share their feelings about the upcoming holidays and consider how they might provide some encouragement for those who are struggling. What We're Reading and Watching Explaining climate change to young children without sparking fear “That’s what needs to happen with communications about climate change: they get the facts, but also it’s communicated in a way that people can feel hopeful about being able to engage,” By Ariel Gilreath at the Hechinger Report Principals of color are scarce. Here's what districts are doing about it. "Research continues to show the benefits of educators of color on all students and the positive effects of same-race principals on students and teachers of color....Still, while 54 percent of students in public schools nationwide are nonwhite, nearly 80 percent of principals are white." By Denisa R. Superville at EdWeek. Video: Defending a teacher's right to disconnect. "Educators now log up to 20 hours a week preparing digital lesson plans while battling nagging feelings of incompetence and desperation. Meanwhile, an average of 100 emails a day pile up in their inboxes, often after work hours." This 2-minute video from Edutopia sums up the problem and some research-based solutions. “Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.” ― Thich Nhat Hanh Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility www.morningsidecenter.org ‌ ‌ ‌ Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility | 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 550, New York, NY 10115 Unsubscribe [email protected] Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice Sent by [email protected]