Tackling Tough Topics: Teacher Feature
Searching for actionable advice on how to thoughtfully and appropriately tackle tough topics in your classroom? Keep reading to learn how a second-grade teacher from Massachusetts discusses current events with her students. ~ Sitaara Jones
When the world around us becomes hard to manage, it can be difficult to watch and impossible to ignore. Children of all ages are bound to have questions and repeat things that they've heard at home.
As an educator, you want the best for your students—but you may wonder if it’s best for you to address their questions directly, or have them ask their parents. Unfortunately, there may not always be a clear right or wrong answer; but you do have options that can double as teachable moments.
We connected with Therese Keegan, a second-grade teacher of 12 years from Plymouth, Massachusetts to hear more about her experience and advice on handling difficult conversations in her classroom.
Why do you think it's important to tackle tough topics in your classroom?
With everything that is going on in the world, students tend to bring things up in class. They whisper together and try to make sense of the world, but many still have questions.
What resources have you found helpful in your discussions?
The book, The Breaking News by Sarah Lynne Reul is always my go-to book to open difficult conversations because it acknowledges the challenges in the world in a supportive and developmentally appropriate way. I love how it reinforces Fred Rogers' idea to look for helpers when in times of trouble. This book empowers children to be those helpers and to help light up the world in a positive way.
We also love to use GoNoodle to help set the mood in our classroom, especially Bring it Down to focus our breathing and settle our bodies as well as Airtime to get ready to help us discuss serious issues.
Do you use any other projects or tools to help reach students that may not know to convey their feelings?
Yes! We loved completing the sunflower art project that I actually found on TikTok. My second graders loved creating the flowers and we tied them back to sharing hope to people in need.
We’d love to hear about your classroom experiences, too! Join the GoNoodle Facebook Community to share and have a chance to be featured.
To find more resources on talking to your kids or students about current events, check out our On Our Sleeves blog here.
