Resources to Celebrate MLK Day
We are closed on Monday in honor of Martin Luther King Day. As a staff, we have professional development to continue discussing what Anti-bias education and Race Consciousness look like at Big Wonder.
5 wonderful resources to assist parents and caregivers in understanding the importance of talking to young children about race and sharing the unique inequities and history of racism in Saint Paul. five
1) They Are Not Too Young To Talk About Race
The graphic below highlights how racial bias can develop in very young children.
2) This interactive map shows the Child Opportunity Index (COI)- COI measures and maps the quality of resources and conditions that matter for children's healthy development in the neighborhoods It highlights how and why Minnesota has the 2nd highest achievement gap (the difference in academic performance between groups of students) in the country, and who profoundly inequitble Saint Paul and the greater Metro are.
It is worth looking at the neighborhood level and adding demographic data to see the correlation between race and income on childhood outcomes.
3) Early Risers Podcast
You can listen to this amazing podcast in the car, while vacuuming, or at swim practice.
Early Risers is a podcast from Little Moments Count and MPR with frank facts, engaging stories and real how-tos for anyone who cares about raising children with a clear-eyed understanding of cultural differences, race and implicit bias.
4) Understanding Implicit Bias- 2.5-minute video
We can easily fall prey to implicit bias because our physical reality is so segregated. This micro video explains implicit bias.
5)Segregation and Redlining in the Twin Cities: How One of America's Most Progressive Cities Became One of the Most Segregated
It is helpful when we look at racism and white supremacy in our schools, churches, and neighborhoods. To understand our reality in Saint Paul, we must look at our city’s history.
https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/65f5a28b458143a7969d3e21efbce629
On this Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I am focusing on these three words: "We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope" - Martin Luther King Jr.
Thank you all for being a part of this community and being intentional in our race-consciousness efforts.
-Celeste
