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When I have my own classroom, I plan to incorporate some sign language into my teaching. This article provides many ideas for teachers wanting to do this. It also has links to other helpful resources. Teaching my students how to sign basic phrases, the alphabet, and the Pledge of Allegiance are all goals that I have set for myself. This resource can help me achieve these goals by providing helpful teaching strategies. The content is directed toward teachers of students of any age, as long as they are beginning sign language learners.

Source Citation:
Staake, J., (2021). How to use and teach sign language (ASL) in your classroom. https://www.weareteachers.com/teach-sign-language

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Even if you never encounter a student who is deaf/hard of hearing in your own classroom, there are lots of terrific reasons to teach sign language basics to your students. Perhaps most importantly, it introduces kids to the Deaf/Hard of Hearing community, which has a rich history and important culture of its own. It provides kids with a way to communicate with those in that community, wherever they may encounter them. Embracing diversity in all its forms is a lesson that's always worth including.

We've rounded up some excellent resources to help you teach sign language to your students. It's important to note that these resources are for those using American Sign Language (ASL). (Other countries have their own versions of sign language, including British Sign Language.) Many of them focus on teaching the fingerspelling alphabet and other basic and important signs. If you're looking for signs not included in these resources, check out the site Signing Savvy.

Teach sign language for classroom management

Many teachers have embraced basic signs to help with classroom management. These signs allow kids to communicate with you quickly and quietly, without interrupting the flow of the lesson. Learn how one educator uses this method at For the Love of Teachers.

If you do choose to teach sign language basics as part of your classroom management strategy, be sure to set those signs in their larger context. Show your respect for the community that communicates in ASL on a daily basis by taking time to learn more about it .

Watch sign language videos for kids

Ready to introduce ASL basics to your students? YouTube is a great place to start. There are lots of videos that teach sign language to kids of all ages. Here are a few of our favorites.

Learn ASL With Blue's Clues

Start by learning the ASL fingerspelling alphabet, then learn signs for emotions like "scared" and "excited." Along the way, you'll figure out Blue's Clues!

Jack Hartmann Animal Signs

Animal signs are especially fun to learn and easy to remember since they're so descriptive. It may be helpful to pause the video after each animal and demonstrate the sign to your kids the first few times.

Let's Make Friends (Signing Time)

Signing Time is a popular TV show for kids ages 4 and up who are interested in learning ASL. This episode teaches the signs kids need to make new friends, which is one of the very best reasons to learn any new language.

ASL Alphabet Lesson

If you know the ASL fingerspelling alphabet, you can spell out any word you need to. This video for kids is taught by a kid, and it takes the time to really explain each and every letter at a speed new learners will appreciate.

20+ Basic Sign Language Phrases For Beginners

Older students will like this video, which presents basic conversational ASL words and phrases. It explains how and when to use greetings, introductory phrases, and more.

Get free printable sign language activities and ideas

Reinforce the video concepts with free printables. They cover fingerspelling, basic phrases, and even popular kids' books and songs.

ASL Alphabet Flashcards

These free fingerspelling flashcards are available in several styles, with options that include the printed letter or just the sign itself. There's even a line drawing style that is perfect for coloring!

Learn more: Look We're Learning

ASL Numbers Chart and Cards

ASL has its own signs for numbers too, allowing you to communicate any number using only one hand. Print these free posters and flashcards in color or black and white.

Learn more: iCANsign/Teachers Pay Teachers

ASL Alphabet Puzzles

These puzzles help kids match upper and lower case letters with their fingerspelling method. Use them as part of an alphabet learning station or group activity.

Learn more: Look We're Learning

I Have... Who Has... ASL Alphabet Cards

We love playing "I have... who has..." in the classroom. Use these cards to help your kids master the fingerspelling alphabet.

Learn more: HearMyHands/Teachers Pay Teachers

ASL Colors Flashcards

Learn the ASL signs for colors with these free cards. We suggest pairing them with this Sign Time video to see each of the signs in action.

Learn more: Breezy Special Ed/Teachers Pay Teachers

Old MacDonald Signs

"Old MacDonald Had a Farm" is the perfect song for beginning signers! The chorus gives them the chance to practice some fingerspelling, plus they'll learn lots of new animal signs.

Learn more: hellobee

Top 10 Beginner Signs

This poster is a nice reminder of some basic signs. (If you need to see them in action, drop by the Signing Savvy site and look up videos for each.)

Learn more: Sprout On Your Own/Teachers Pay Teachers

ASL Sight Words

Active learners can really benefit from associating fingerspelling with traditional spelling. The physical movement can make it easier for them to remember the correct letters. Get free printable cards for 40 sight words at the link.

Learn more: Mary Lirette/Teachers Pay Teachers

Brown Bear, Brown Bear in ASL

Include ASL in your next storytime adventure! This free download includes the entire book Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? If you like it, find more in the creator's TpT store.

Learn more: Mimi's Book Nook/Teachers Pay Teachers

Everyone Is Welcome Sign

We can't think of a better way to remind kids that in your classroom, everyone is truly welcome. Get the free printables at the link, then use them to create a sign or banner for your wall.

Learn more: Aloe There/Teachers Pay Teachers

Do you use or teach sign language in your classroom? Come share your tips on the WeAreTeachers Helpline group on Facebook.

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How To Use and Teach Sign Language (ASL) In Your Classroom

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Even if you never encounter a student who is deaf/hard of hearing in your own classroom, there are lots of terrific reasons to teach sign language basics to your students. Perhaps most importantly, it introduces kids to the Deaf/Hard of Hearing community, which has a rich history and important culture of its own.

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This pack offers teachers several ideas for including lessons about religious diversity in their teaching. Lessons based on religious symbols, religious writings, and how religious freedoms are protected by laws are all presented in this article. There is also a video webinar included that should precede the activities in this article. The article lays out the Common Core Standards and how the lessons align with those standards. The content includes lessons for students of all grades.

Source Citation:
Tanenbaum. (n.d.). Religious diversity in the classroom what's law got to do with it encore presentation [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwKs2JwzvLc

Tanenbaum. (2013). Religious diversity in the classroom: What's law got to do with it. https://www.learningforjustice.org/sites/default/files/After%20Session%20Pack%20Webinar%201.pdf

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This website is an excellent resource for teachers or school systems to utilize when looking to improve their schools or classrooms. The website provides kits and programs for teachers or whole schools who want to improve student behavior, decrease absenteeism, or improve their special education program. The website sells a special education curriculum that helps schools identify and receive the tools they need then apply those tools to help their students. Although these programs are not free, they would still be a helpful tool for those in need. The website provides resources for students from kindergarten to eight grade.

Source Citation:
https://www.positiveaction.net

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Students want to learn and feel connected to school. Teachers need a partner that understands their needs. Parents are eager to support and participate. Administrators seek to create a safe and welcoming environment.
Nurture each role with Positive Action.

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Leading SEL Program for Pre K-12. Embeds academic content in lessons designed to develop an intrinsic interest in learning & promote pro-social behavior

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This article provides elementary teachers with many options for teaching about all types of diversity in the classroom. My favorite aspect of this article is how it helps teachers learn to reach out to parents/families of students when teaching a lesson that is based on race or other diversity topics. The strategies in this article teach students to be respectfully curious about other cultures. The content is written for elementary age students.

Source Citation:
Confident Counselors. (n.d.). Teaching elementary students about identity, diversity, and social justice. https://confidentcounselors.com/2021/01/17/teaching-elementary-students-about-identity-diversity-and-social-justice/

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Teaching Elementary Students About Identity, Diversity, and Social Justice

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A couple of years ago, during a lesson, one of my students said, "not to be racist, but she was white." It wasn't the first time a student had mistakenly thought that naming race was being racist, but it was still one of the bigger wake ups I had about the need to talk more directly to my students about identity, diversity, and social justice.

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This article provides four specific teaching strategies to use when teaching a classroom of culturally diverse students. It describes Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) a way to learn and respect the cultures of the students and brings cultural differences into the subjects and curriculum. The article offers concrete examples of how teachers can acknowledge cultural differences through literature, classroom discussions, and a willingness to learn. The content in this article is directed toward teachers of early elementary students.

Source Citation:
Armstrong, A. (2020). Culturally responsive teaching in early childhood education. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/article/culturally-responsive-teaching-early-childhood-education

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Culturally Responsive Teaching

Four ways to validate and affirm young students' cultures in meaningful ways, which can boost their engagement and motivation.

Bob Ebbesen / Alamy Stock Photo

There are various ways educators can approach working with multicultural groups of students, and it can be overwhelming to choose one that fits you. One approach that I've found myself consistently using, whether in early childhood or informal education, is culturally responsive teaching (CRT), which validates and affirms the cultures of the students and incorporates their cultures in multiple aspects of learning and the environment in meaningful ways. This approach also encourages educators to hold high expectations of the children and their ability to learn content.

Researchers and educators have demonstrated the effectiveness of this approach in supporting young children's learning. From scholars, peers, and my own practice of integrating CRT, I've seen evidence of students being more engaged, motivated, and connected to the learning process.

4 Tips for Using CRT in Your Work

1. Apply CRT to multiple subjects: CRT complements a variety of subjects. For literacy, along with content that exposes children to new content areas, you can select books and software that represent their backgrounds, environments, home language, and routines, and include books and software that are bilingual. This will allow some children to make real-world connections and others to learn about different perspectives and experiences.

When reading bilingual books, let students help you pronounce words, which demonstrates that you support their home language, view students as sources of valuable information, and are curious and care about their languages. You are expanding their knowledge of English and exposing all students to multiple languages in a meaningful context.

Culturally responsive texts can be used to initially engage students in different content areas before introducing other texts that may be traditionally used in the curriculum. Perhaps you may decide to compare two books about rain or trees and compare and contrast the characters and environments in the two books. This would build on the children's experience and help them expand their understanding of specific content areas.

During book discussion, you can prompt deeper thinking about the text by asking questions you usually ask, like "How would you feel if...," "Can you say more about...," and "Why do you think this happened?" Asking these questions while using culturally responsive materials can help you foster critical conversations with learners about gender roles and expression, ethnic differences, and different forms of bias that occur in society.

2. Be creative: By applying CRT, you can discover new approaches to teaching and learning. For instance, if you play music during transitions, you may include various genres that children already listen to or reflect their cultural community and contemporary experiences.

When teaching concepts in math, try using manipulatives or digital representations of manipulatives that are everyday objects that children are familiar with or are their favorite items, such as toys, rocks, shells, etc. Familiar objects help spark children's interest and curiosity, especially those children who are initially resistant to a subject.

Collaborate with families to incorporate children's home language in your program. Families can help you create object labels in children's home language, identify music to incorporate in the classroom or online classes, or model the correct pronunciation of words.

3. Build connections with students and families: Getting to know students, families, and communities helps you be responsive in a way that authentically represents the learners. Whether in person or online, CRT helps you foster a positive learning environment.

Distribute a survey to families at the beginning of the year to ask about home language, tech access and use, and what each family likes to do together. Consider offering this survey in multiple languages, and using tools that families use to make sure it's accessible to them, whether that's smartphone, laptop, paper, etc.

Making phone calls is another way to connect, but it may be challenging if you and the family member don't have a common language you both feel comfortable using.

Learn a little of the family's home language so you can converse with them. It's likely they will appreciate this gesture because you're making an effort to connect and see their knowledge and language as valuable. If possible, offer translations of homework instructions, projects, or other take-home work.

You can develop relationships with families by inviting them to participate in day-to-day activities and attend in-person and virtual field trips. You may also decide to host family events at school, online, or at community centers.

4. Become a learner: It's important to remember that what happens in the classroom is part of larger structural and social issues and that there are a variety of communities and cultures within learning environments. It is therefore valuable to frequently review books, podcasts, articles, and research that describe the ways these issues and cultural nuances show up in communities, the lives of families, and educational settings-doing so can help you see topics from a variety of viewpoints and give you ideas on how you can be more culturally responsive in your practice.

In addition, cultivating relationships with peers with different backgrounds, identities, and perspectives can provide you with insight into new ways of thinking. For instance, you may start a book or podcast club to discuss insights and reactions or hold an online discussion about an article. This peer network is a space where you can share what you experience in your practice, support each other, and converse about how different cultures view different content areas and materials. It's also a place where you can be willing to critique and challenge each other's practice and ideas in a respectful manner.

As Professor Gloria Swindler Boutte has said, "Critical teaching requires teachers to admit that they do not know everything. We can learn from our students by listening to them. We need to document, respect, and learn about people from all over the world, particularly those who are dramatically different from us." We educators can get stuck in our biases and approaches to teaching. CRT offers us the opportunity to create teaching and learning spaces that engage us, the students, their families, and the whole community.

Being culturally responsive has helped me stay flexible and adaptable as well as create learning experiences that are meaningful to students. Culturally responsive teaching reminds us that everyone brings something to the table and everyone has value. Look for the strengths and assets within students, their families, and their communities.

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Culturally Responsive Teaching in Early Childhood Education

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Four ways to validate and affirm young students' cultures in meaningful ways, which can boost their engagement and motivation.

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The ODE website provides educators and families of students with disabilities with many resources. On this website you can find resources for students with disabilities including deafness, learning disabilities, traumatic brain injuries, visual impairments, and more. The website provides how to gain access to learning tools, intervention techniques, and assistive technology. The amount of resources and information on this website seems unlimited. The information on this page can be used for students of all school ages.

Source citation:
Ohio Department of Education. (n.d.). Disability Specific Resources. https://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Special-Education/Students-with-Disabilities

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This module from the IRIS Center addresses different types of diversity in the classroom. One section is devoted specifically to socioeconomic status (SES), why it matters, and how teachers can acknowledge it in their classrooms. The module also provides short informational interviews with educational professionals. The module can be useful for teachers in any grade.

Source citation:
The IRIS Center. (2012). Classroom diversity: An introduction to student differences. https://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/module/div/

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Page 6: Socioeconomic Factors

Just as students will have varied cultural backgrounds, speak many languages, and have different learning needs, so too will they come from various socioeconomic levels. A family's socioeconomic level or status (SES) is defined by the income, education, and occupation of members of the household. A family's SES is typically categorized as either high, middle, or low. It is important for teachers to understand that a relationship exists between SES and educational outcomes, specifically:

Did You Know?

One in five school-aged students live in poverty. Dropout rates for children living in poverty have steadily increased even as national high school dropout rates have steadily declined.

Students from low-SES families typically:

Achieve at lower levels than do students from middle- and high-SES families

Enter kindergarten with significantly lower language skills

Score at least 10% lower than the national average in mathematics and reading

Students living in poverty are much more likely to be absent from school, which also affects their learning.

Students of parents with higher educational levels and professional careers have stronger language skills than do students whose parents have lower educational levels because their parents speak to them more using enhanced vocabulary, longer sentences, direct and open-ended questions, questions that enhances higher-order thinking skills, and more encouraging statements.

Why SES Matters
Research shows that students from low-SES households face a variety of challenges that can lead to negative educational outcomes. Consider the story of Mark, a twelve-year-old sixth grader. He often falls asleep in class and does not turn in his homework on time. Lately, Mark seems confused about which bus to ride home. His teacher is concerned about Mark and is looking forward to discussing her concerns with his parents; however, after they do not attend their scheduled parent/ teacher conference, Mark's teacher assumes that education is not a priority in his family. After several attempts to reach Mark's parents, his teacher finally connects with his mom. Apologetically, Mark's mother explains that she was unable to attend the conference because she had to work overtime. She has two part-time jobs, and Mark's dad works the evening shift. Because of this, Mark has to care for his younger siblings, including cooking their dinner, bathing them, and putting them to bed. In addition, Mark and his family have had to move several times recently, which explains why Mark is sometimes uncertain about which bus to ride home.

Schools are often based around middle-class norms and values. Mark's teacher made the assumption that Mark's parents were home in the evenings and never considered that Mark, at such a young age, might have so many responsibilities, which contributed to inadequate sleep and incomplete homework. Like Mark, students from low-SES backgrounds might display behaviors that interfere with their ability to succeed in school. As Mark's teacher did, school personnel sometimes assume that the student in question is unmotivated, lazy, or apathetic about school. Alternatively, they might think that the student has a disability that affects his learning or behavior. The graphic below lists some potential challenges that students face and the difficulties they might experience in class.

Potential Challenges for Students Related to Low SES

Having their basic needs met

Few educational resources at home (e.g., books, computers)

Less access to enrichment (e.g., tutors, museums)

Limited access to transportation

Reduced opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities at school or in the community

Transiency or homelessness

Poor nutrition

Inadequate healthcare

Less help with homework

Delayed language development

Read to less frequently at home

More responsibilities (e.g., childcare, cooking meals) because parents are working multiple jobs or longer hours

Less supervision at home

Fewer hours of sleep

Students Might Have Difficulty

Staying awake

Concentrating

Remaining engaged

Attending school regularly

Being on time to school

Responding appropriately to authority figures

Completing or turning in homework

Bringing materials to class

Communicating with others

Performing on grade level

Staying in school and graduating

Teachers should understand that students from low-SES backgrounds often have an independent mindset that can cause tension in the classroom. Listen as Lanette Waddell, former Director of Teaching and Learning in Urban Schools (TLUS), discusses this in more detail (time: 1:29).

Lanette Waddell, PhD
Former Assistant Professor, Former TLUS Director
Vanderbilt University

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View Transcript
Transcript: Lanette Waddell, PhD

Urban students or poor students particularly grow up in a natural growth way. Their parents tend to be directive. They tend to tell them things to do. You know: "Go brush your teeth." "Go set the table." "Go wash the dishes." It's not a conversation. It's mostly, let's do this, let's do that, let's move forward. And students follow those directions because it's their parents. But they also get a lot of free time where their free time is not structured. It's open. They can do what they want. They make up their own games. They play. They do whatever they want. They also carry a lot of responsibility. They have to get up, make their own breakfast, wash their clothes, clean their house, take care of their siblings, get to school by themselves. They do a lot of independent work. So they come to school with a much more independent mindset than you would see with maybe suburban students who have mother at home and a father who works, or where there's money so that there's someone there taking care of them all the time. But it can cause some tension in school, because when you go to school then you're told what to do. You're told when to do this, and when you're going to do that. You're not independent in the way that you are at home, in your own personal decisions. When you think about students who are independent and are able to do what they want to do when they're at home, and they are able to take care of themselves, and they bring that independence into school, you have to be able to understand that, but also let them know that we are in school with others and we have to follow certain procedures so that everyone is safe and everyone is comfortable and content here so that we can all learn.

Teachers should also understand the link between behavior and language skills. Students with strong language skills are better able to express their thoughts and feelings, explain or justify their needs, and negotiate with peers. Students with poor language skills more often resort to physical displays (i.e., grabbing) to express their needs or wants. An inability to explain displeasure with a friend or to find an acceptable compromise to a playground situation can result in pushing, shoving, or worse.

Listen as Dolores Battle discusses the relationship between language and behavior (time: 1:28).

Transcript: Dolores Battle, PhD

There's a lot of emphasis recently on the relationship between language and social behavior, because language helps regulate behavior. If a child cannot ask a question for information, cannot use language to get what he wants and to help him in his interaction with others, he's going to resort to using physical means. Or he's going to be more inattentive. There's a lot of children who are thought to be ADHD, for example, who turn out to have problems with language and comprehension. So when a child is not getting the information in a way that he can understand it, he's going to lose focus, and he may not pay attention. He may then become more interested in the things that he can see. He may not ask for things. He may just simply take them. And that gets into some difficulty with social interactions in the classroom. So a lot of times those "behavior problems" are not so much behavior, but they are language problems. You see the behavior that is shown in very young children, where they reach and take or hit because they don't know how to ask for things. You see that same behavior in an older child, and it's called a behavior problem. In a younger child, it's because the child hasn't developed the skill, the language skills, to manipulate his environment. The first thing is to ask the question, "Why is this child doing this and under what circumstance?" It cannot be assumed that it's just a behavior problem. Because it may be a language problem.

For Your Information

Students from high-poverty backgrounds share some of the same challenges regardless of where they live (e.g., rural area, urban, suburban development).
What Teachers Can Do
Of course, not all students from low-SES households face the same challenges or behave in the same manner. Teachers who have strong relationships with their students are better able to recognize those students' needs. Nor are they alone in providing resources and support for these students. The teacher can turn to members of the school, many of whom have specific expertise (e.g., school counselor, social worker, school nurse, administrator) to help further identify a student's basic needs and link them to resources and services. Many of these supports-for example, a clothing bank or school supplies-are provided by the school. In other cases, community agencies offer supports or services-for example flu shots, dental services, or vision and hearing screenings-at the school. Schools can also link students and families to community agencies and groups for support.

In addition to helping address some of these students' fundamental needs, there are a number of ways teachers can help them to be successful in school. Although teachers should address the objectives in the table below for all students, they are especially critical for many students from low-SES households.

Listen as Dolores Battle discusses the importance of language for developing literacy and what teachers can do to support students' learning (time: 2:14).

Transcript: Dolores Battle, PhD

When the child comes in and this is his first exposure to school, one of the main considerations for the teacher is what has this child's exposure been to pre-literacy? What kind of language goes on in the home? There's a lot of studies that show that the lower the income, the lower the education of the parents, the less language the children are exposed to at home-less words, a smaller vocabulary, shorter sentences, less direct questioning, all of the things that contribute to a solid foundation for developing literacy in school. And we don't want to assume that because the family is low income that they all have come into school with poor skills. The main point is to take a look at what the child brings to school, their background. It's all about language. It's knowing how to listen, how to understand the vocabulary, how to ask questions. Many children, at home they're not allowed to ask questions, particularly for information, from their parents. They're not allowed to initiate conversations with adults. And here they are in an interaction where they're with a teacher who is an adult, and a strange adult as it is. So in those early years, it's all about developing language skills, comprehension skills, and expression skills. So teachers need to be aware that you need to have that very firm foundation in language as a prerequisite for literacy. And if you fail to build that, the child will be forever behind. They need to do a lot of reading, developing vocabulary, making sure the children really understand what's being read. Not just reading the book once, but sometimes it takes four and five times to read the book. Much as children do in a family where the book is read, the same book, every day for a month, for two months, because that becomes the child's favorite book. All too often, classroom teachers think that once they've read the story then that's enough. But if you're going to develop a basis of literacy then it has to follow that same rule, where children get the information. They learn to ask questions about it. They learn to predict what's going to happen, all of which happens in homes where literacy is developed early. That same process has to follow if children who are entering into school who don't have that foundation.

Activity

Three weeks into the school year, Mrs. Arellano, a tenth-grade English teacher in an urban high school, is frustrated that many of her students are still without the required materials, which cost less than $10.

Because of this, her lessons are frequently disrupted as students try to borrow materials from their classmates. Many of the students claim that they don't have the money to buy the items. Although she knows that many of them qualify for free or reduced-price lunches, Mrs. Arellano wonders how her students can afford expensive tennis shoes and mobile devices, and she doesn't understand how their families justify buying these expensive items instead of basic school supplies.

What are your perceptions about the students in the scenario? How would you handle the fact that the students don't have the required materials?

In the first audio, Richard Milner provides some insights into this situation and then in the second audio he discusses how teachers might address similar circumstances.

H. Richard Milner IV, PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Teaching and Learning
Vanderbilt University

Transcript: H. Richard Milner IV, PhD (Insights)

I think this is a very important scenario, and it speaks to what many teachers experience. One of the things that's critical for students to participate in the educational experiences, to participate in interactions with their friends and classmates is for them to feel good about who they are. And so sometimes that means that students might feel like they have to have the latest fashion, the newest tennis shoes or the latest polo shirt or whatever it happens to be. But what's important to remember is that students are doing that because they want to feel good about themselves. I've studied suburban schools. I've done work in rural areas. I've done a lot of my work in urban spaces. And what we find is that students are grappling with identity issues in all of those spaces. And the ways in which students respond to pressures that they are grappling with-whether it be academic, whether it be in a relationship with a friend or a classmate-they respond to those pressures in different ways.

And so some students might go and do drugs. Some students might stop going to class. Other students might purchase materials-technology, clothes, shoes-that we might see as marginal to what matters in terms of their development. The big piece is that students are grappling with very difficult situations in different contexts, and students' or parents' decision to have their children purchase clothing items or shoes is just one form of working on that identity piece.

Transcript: H. Richard Milner IV, PhD (Addressing the issue)

Some students are more school-dependent than are other students, and so the school really has to play the vital role of being responsive to the economic and the educational needs of students. On a structural level, this goes beyond the teacher's classroom. I think the school should be responsible for making sure that students have what they need to be successful. The second thing is, if students understand the necessity for them to be actively involved in what's happening in the classroom and that it's necessary for them to spend money on resources to be successful, then that's part of the work that I think needs to take place in an explicit way with the teacher helping students understand why she is pushing them to spend resources on school-related materials rather than on shoes or clothing or whatever that happens to be. But in order for those kinds of conversations to happen, the teacher has to develop solid and sustainable relationships with those students. If the teacher has not developed solid relationships such that she can say, "Listen, guys, I want you to be successful. I care about you, and I really wish you would put your emphasis on a your academic development rather than worrying about how you look or the kinds of shoes you wear and those kinds of things."

Now in order for her to do that that means she's going to have to counter so many things the students have come to believe about themselves and really engaging in conversations and listening to students in terms of why they choose to spend money on clothing or shoes rather than on resources for the classroom. And I think that's done also in consultation with parents as well. The ability of this teacher to talk with and empathize with the parents is also important so that the teacher and the parents can partner together around what is important. I think the thing that would do more harm than good is for the teacher to go in in a judgmental way with parents about why the parents are making the decisions they are making. So it really has to be a partnership, you know: "I care about your child. I want him or her to be successful. Here's what you can do to help me with that. Now, I'm open as a teacher to hear what things I can do to complement and supplement what's necessary for your child to be successful as well."

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Just as students will have varied cultural backgrounds, speak many languages, and have different learning needs, so too will they come from various socioeconomic levels. A family's socioeconomic level or status (SES) is defined by the income, education, and occupation of members of the household.

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This website is designed to teach educators, families, medical professionals, individuals, and more about gender identities. This homepage boasts their mission is "to create gender sensitive and inclusive environments for all children and teens." They provide online spaces for sharing, resources for parents and children, and an online yearly conference. The content targets students from elementary school years through high school and even beyond.

Source citation:
https://www.genderspectrum.org

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This website is an excellent resource for those looking to improve their ELL teaching skills. It contains resources for teachers, administrators, paraprofessionals, librarians, and parents.  Educators can find information on literacy instruction, creating a classroom, and inclusive literature recommendations. The content is directed at those who work with students of all ages and includes specialized sections for preschool and kindergarten, elementary school, and middle and high school.

Source Citation:
https://www.colorincolorado.org

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A bilingual site for educators and families of English language learners

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This article addresses the religious diversity in our schools. It offers teachers techniques and ideas for welcoming diverse religions and how to help students learn more about each other's religions. This article provides the legal boundaries of schools when it comes to religion, literature recommendations, and technology-based resource recommendations. The content is directed toward students of all ages.

Source Citation:
Whitaker, C., Salend, S., Elhoweris, H. (n.d.). Religious diversity in schools: Addressing the issues. https://operations.du.edu/sites/default/files/2020-03/religious-diversity-in-schools_0.pdf