Hey everyone, I'm back!
There have been so many changes happening lately and I'm constantly preaching ACCEPTANCE to my kids, and I figured it would be a great topic for a post!
I teach in Illinois. There has been a governor's order that masks have to be worn in schools. There is a court case in progress that determined the order to be illegal. There has been a lot of confusion as to if that meant all schools could/should stop following the mandate or if it only applied to the schools involved in the court case. Obviously, things have become very political and very heated among parents and the school districts. Unfortunately, teachers have been caught in the middle and have to enforce district policy.
This past week, the governor's order expired and it was voted down to continue. Mid-week, many districts (including mine) sent out e-mails that they would now make masks optional, as they cannot legally enforce the use of masks in schools anymore. Again, this has created tension with parents...but it also creates issues in schools. The students & families that still choose to wear a mask are feeling pressured to take them off. They are being questioned by other students as to why they are still wearing a mask.
My goal is to make everyone feel included, regardless of their choice to wear a mask or not. We had a discussion in my classroom about how everyone has a choice, everyone gets to decide for themselves, and they don't need to feel bad or pressured about their decision. I think this is an important skill for kids to learn as they get older, because of the social media life that they now grow up with. There are so many pressures in the world and they need to start learning that they should do what is right for them, not do what others pressure them into doing.
Here are some books that I will be using in class to promote acceptance. These books promote acceptance of differences and how they make people special. They don't necessarily relate to masks and Covid, but it's easy for us to relate these books to things currently happening in our lives.
The books are linked below in case you want to check them out or purchase them. They're also all listed in my Amazon store, along with tons of other amazing books, furniture, sensory items, and more that I use in my classroom!
(A few of these books were picked for a dual meaning. This week, a new family joined our school from Afghanistan. They do not speak any English. I wanted to make sure some of these books could also relate to meeting new people, accepting them, and having empathy for their situation.)
There are SO many great conversations that can be had with these books. And there are so many others that you could choose for conversations about acceptance as well.
I'd love to hear some of your favorites in the comments!
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