This week’s lesson gave me some helpful tips to add to my teaching strategies. First, I found it reassuring to hear Professor Bland say that even she sometimes consults with other experts when she is not sure of the right answer (like in the example she shared about the Helen Keller simulation of being deaf and blind). It is comforting to know that teachers out in the field truly use their professional learning communities and also resident experts at their schools to bounce ideas off of and get advice. Second, the emphasis on “sticking to the facts” when communicating with students and parents really resonated with me. For example, I found the example of what to include in the letter home to parents on sensitive topics to be very useful. It makes perfect sense to not include in the letter that the topic may be controversial and to instead just communicate the SOLs that will be covered and highlight the activities that may be involved (and of course run the letter by the principal as well). However, before this class I may have naively included the word “controversial” or “sensitive” in a letter home when mentioning such a topic, but now I understand why there is no need to say that in the letter. Let the parents decide for themselves if they have any concerns over the skills to be addressed or the planned activities, but don’t unnecessarily create concerns. Third, I agree that teachers need to make meaning of the lesson for themselves first and prepare a list of questions that students may ask on the topic in advance so that they can be prepared regarding how to respond. This is really not all that different than planning for any lesson. With each lesson, the teacher should always do the exercises or worksheets first in order to anticipate where students could struggle and need extra help. I think this planning process is even more critical though when teaching hard history or controversial material. When teaching difficult topics, teachers cannot wing it and hope it goes as planned. Teaching with intention is so important when covering difficult topics so that you are not distracted when teaching them (i.e. figuring out what’s next in the plan); instead you need to be really listening to what each student is saying and truly understand the topic that you are speaking on in depth so that you can remove any emotion and remain grounded in the facts.
In our articles this week, I was surprised to read about Sophie Blackall’s link to the controversy over A Fine Dessert, a story about four families, in four different cities, over four centuries, making the same delicious dessert, blackberry fool. Sophie Blackall is the illustrator for this book that has become controversial because of its depiction of slavery as being easier and more pleasant than it was in reality – due to the enslaved mother and daughter being together, the smiles on their faces, and the page where they are eating the dessert in the closet. I was surprised to see Sophie Blackall’s name in this context of controversy about her drawings after listening to her speak during her visit to the University of Richmond. From her visit, I learned about her work with UNICEF and her advocacy for students from other cultures and the significant amount of research that she dedicates to each of her books. For this reason, I was taken aback to see her name as a target for criticism of her depiction of race issues. On the other hand, I can also understand and appreciate the concerns raised by critics. This is the perfect example to illustrate how sensitive slavery is as a topic to teach to children and how important it is to know all of the facts and to stick solely to the facts.