EDUCATOR AS AN

AGENT OF CHANGE
IN A DIVERSE
ENVIRONMENT
Diverse
Learners

Inclusive School
Environment

Concerned
Adults
Concerned Adults
Inclusive School Environment
y This presentation is geared towards
educators who work with learners in
grades 7-10.
y The material in this presentation is also
useful for educators at other grade levels.
y Today’s presentation is designed for 15
educators who teach 7th and 8th grade.
 Objectives
y Participants will understand the structure
of the “Teaching Tolerance” site.
y Participants will know how to obtain
materials from “Teaching Tolerance.”
Outline
1. Overview of “Teaching Tolerance” site
2. Types of content available
a) Classroom activities
b) Kits and Handouts
c) Web Exclusives
d) Magazine
e) “Mix it Up” Program
f) Grants
3. Sample Activity
4. Refences
Organizational Grid
Activity Time Grouping

Introduction of Teaching 3 minutes Whole Group

Tolerance Lecture

Overview of Teaching 10 minutes Whole Group

Tolerance Site Lecture

Bias Activity: Seeing the 10 minutes Small Group

Whole Person Discussion

Question and Answer 5 Minutes Whole Group

Discussion
y Teaching Tolerance (http://www.tolerance.org) is part of
the Southern Poverty Law Center an organization
founded during the U.S. civil rights movement.
y “Teaching Tolerance is dedicated to reducing prejudice,
improving intergroup relations and supporting equitable
school experiences for our nation's children.”3
What kind of content is available?
Classroom activities

Kits and Handbooks

Web Exclusives

Magazine

“Mix it Up” program

Grants
y Activities are searchable by grade, subject
matter and “tolerance topic” (i.e. race,
religion, etc.)
y Activities include discussions, lesson plans
and group.
y Some activities offer enrichment for
other items while others deal with more
general issues such as the US presidential
election.
y All the kits and handouts are free to
educators! (order form)
y Materials include documentaries, ready
made lesson plans, and activities for a
wide range of learners.
y Sample kit about the Holocaust: One
Survivor Remembers
y There are lesson plans and activities
which can be downloaded. Example,
Gender Based Bullying.
y There are a variety of activities which
discuss hidden biases.
y Links to related websites which may be of
interested.
y Free subscriptions to their magazine,
published twice a year, are available.
y Some of the magazine’s content is also
available online
“Mix It Up at Lunch Day is a simple call to
action: take a new seat in the cafeteria. By
making the move, students can cross the
lines of division, meet new people and make
new friends.”3

y Activities for grades K-12 on interacting

with different groups, prejudice, and bias.
y Includes information from individual schools
who have sponsored a “mix it up day.”
y Contains a searchable database of grants
offered by the Southern Poverty Law
Center.
y Also includes spotlights on projects which
have received grants.
 Writing for Change

y Example of an activity at tolerance.org

y Part of guide which has over 50 activities
of different lengths about bias in written
language.
y Activity: Seeing the Whole Person
Questions?
References
1. Stills from “Twilight” on slides 3-5 from
http://twilighters.org/gallery/index.php
2. “Teaching Tolerance” logo from tolerance.org
3. http://www.tolerance.org/about/index.html, accessed 12/9/08.
4. http://www.tolerance.org/about/index.html, accessed 12/9/08.
5. http://www.tolerance.org/teach/mix_it_up/about.jsp, accessed
12/9/08.
6. Mt. Rushmore image on slide 15, from
http://www.tolerance.org/teach/magazine/index.jsp
7. Stills from “Twilight” on slide 16 from
http://twilighters.org/gallery/index.php
8. Monopoly image on slide 18
http://www.flickr.com/photos/daviddmuir/2125697998/
9. Still from “Twilight” on slide 20 from Stills from “Twilight” on slide
16 from http://twilighters.org/gallery/index.php