Roberto Clemente school staff created several activities that could be utilized with students in grades 4-8. 

A leader committed to the mental health and healing of black communities shares his insights.

Amid concentrated job losses and financial insecurity, disproportionate rates of contracting and becoming seriously ill from COVID-19, and nationwide protests in response to centuries of racial injustice and anti-Black racism, the past few months have exacerbated the already disparate mental health needs of many Black, Indigenous, and non-Black people of color (BIPOC). In particular, BIPOC students are experiencing all of these traumas on top of the isolation of social distancing and remote learning.

This resource is intended to help educators understand how they might address the interplay of race and trauma and its effects on students in the classroom.

After defining key terms, the guide outlines recommendations for educators and offers a list of supplemental resources.

General questions to ask about policing and discussion topics to facilitate with your students.

5 Ways to Help Kids Deal With Disturbing News: Age-based tips on how to talk to kids about worrying news events.

In collaboration with Peaceful Schools, we are excited to release a series of videos highlighting mindfulness strategies for everyone. These easy to follow videos demonstrate practices that we can learn to reduce stress and share with the people we love to support their mental wellness, too.  Each video focuses on a mindful practice, explains the physical and mental health benefits, and includes a basic yoga pose to incorporate into the mindful practice as an option. 

Create a sense of belonging. Feeling connected and welcomed is essential to children's positive adjustment, self-identification, and sense of trust in others and themselves. Building strong, positive relationships among students, school staff, and parents is important to promoting mental wellness.

It can be difficult for educators, who are so often over-tasked and under-resourced, to prioritize self-care. But doing so is incredibly important and beneficial, both for educators and their students, especially when it comes to supporting students affected by trauma. Teaching is emotional labor, so here are some ways for trauma-informed educators to cope, care for themselves, and prevent burnout.

There isn’t a perfect definition of stress, but it is a common feeling these days. Why are we experiencing so much of it? Dictionaries define stress as the feelings that result from pressure or tension. Stress is a very normal part of life. When big events happen on a global scale everyone feels more stressed!

As millions of people across the country take to the streets and raise their voices in response to the killing of George Floyd and the ongoing problem of unequal justice, many people have reached out asking how we can sustain momentum to bring about real change.

At BrainPOP, we are devastated and deeply disturbed by the senseless murder of George Floyd and many other Black Americans. We stand in solidarity with the Black community in declaring that Black Lives Matter and we are inspired by the thousands upon thousands of people coming together to demand justice in protests across the country and around the world.

There’s so much going on in the world right now, it can be tough to face the newscycle as a fully grown adult - let alone for young people and children. As a parent, it can be tough to know just how much children are hearing, seeing, and understanding. In the midst of one of the biggest civil rights, how do we judge what our children need to know about?

There are good ways — and there are less good ways — to be a white ally right now. Do take cues from black leaders and create space for their voices to be heard. Don’t think a performative emotional post on Instagram about your knowledge of racism does the trick. Do not center your feelings during this time of social unrest — an uprising that’s about racist violence against black Americans.

For additional information, lesson plans and resources, please take a look below or visit the Roc Restorative page at the following link: