Starting the Conversation About Race

Jonathan Samuel Eddie

level: Introductory

90 minutes

Race

Message from the creator Begin lesson

Lesson Tool Kit

MATERIALS NEEDED

Between The World and Me, HBO movie clip

PBS What is the History of Race

Quotes from PBS: Race - The Power of an Illusion

Photo Copies of text excerpts from Between The World and Me below:

pages 6 & 7

pages 8 & 9

pages 10 & 11

Paper/notebooks

Markers, pencils, pens, colored pencils, crayons, etc.

PREWORK

Students need to have had exposure and discussions about the social construction of race and the purpose of political manifestos.

Additional Resources:

What does equality, equity, and liberation mean to you?

How to teach Black Out Poetry

EDUCATOR FEEDBACK

Carly Weisel, New York

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

How do you define race?

Where does your definition come from?

How do ideas about race affect how we see each other and ourselves?

Why might it be important to address race personally and individually before trying to understand it at a group or societal level?

OBJECTIVES

Students will reflect on their own comfort level when talking about race.

Students will establish a racial context that is personal, local, and immediate.

Students will create, reflect on, and revise a black out poem, taking into account word choice and message.

Students will write personal journal entries to explore their thoughts, feelings, and experiences.

SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING SUPPORT

100 Race-Conscious Things You Can Say To Your Child To Advance Racial Justice

How to Have a Productive Conversation About Race

Ten Lessons for Talking About Race, Racism, and Racial Justice

Students will learn and assess the basic definitions of race and assess their own comfort level with discussing race through creating blackout poetry.

While we have built each lesson and workshop sequentially, feel free to tailor your exploration of them to suit your needs. You may choose to follow a lesson as provided from beginning to end or select sections of various lessons and combine them for a different approach.

Mariah Woolridge Work