In #USvsHate, teachers teach an “anti-hate” lesson of choice (ideally, a short series of lessons) from a national group of partner organizations. Our lessons invite students to reject bigotry, build relationships, and explore how to counter deeper biases and injustices together to create schools and a society where all are valued. (You don’t have to use the lessons on our website to enter our national challenges. You can build anti-hate messaging into your existing curriculum.)
Then, you’ll invite students to create anti-hate messages in any media for their school communities and the broader public. (See Getting Started for all instructions.)
We have organized #USvsHate lessons into two sections below. We hope that you might go beyond a single lesson to a short series of lessons, and then, longer-term learning. (Check out Learning for Justice’s Social Justice Standards, which invite students into ongoing exploration of identity, diversity, justice and action.)
Our two #USvsHate lesson lists follow a general #USvsHate arc.
- We refuse explicit bigotry. Cruelty, bullying, and slurs are just not OK in school.
- We explore ways to counter the deeper biases and injustices under the hate – all the ways we treat “types of people” as less-than in our society, or allow folks to be so treated. (See Definitions and Concepts for more.)
- We envision the type of school and society we do want, where people are treated as equally valuable.
(#USvsHate lessons invite students to include all in ”us” and counter harm to any of “us.” To fully create a school community where all are valued, bring diverse (and joyous!) voices and experiences into class on a regular basis via curriculum and community-building activities! And the issues explored in our lessons are not exhaustive. Use #USvsHate as an onramp to address the issues your students and school need you to address.)
Refusing “hate” lays the groundwork for long-term work embracing inclusion and justice for all.
1) Lessons for Building an Inclusive School Community
These lessons help build inclusive relationships, start to challenge stereotypes, and explore overarching issues of empathy, bias, bullying, and ally behavior. Start here if the people in your group don’t know each other well.
A student-requested section, Saying No to Words That Hurt, will help give students the chance to discuss recent experiences with bigotry, exclusion, or disrespect, and to envision schools and a society where these do not happen.
2) Lessons on Countering Specific Forms of Hate, Bias, and Injustice
These lessons build a stronger foundation to explore and counter specific forms of hate, bias, and injustice needing attention in specific communities and the nation, and to envision schools and a society where all are supported instead.
Choose lessons to fit your school’s needs, your curriculum, your preparation, and your student relationships. Treat this as one step on a longer learning journey equipping yourself and your students on the issues raised.
We have lots of PD resources to help you get ready, too.
#USvsHate lays the foundation for long-term inquiry and action embracing inclusion and justice for all. Join the #Schooltalking Facebook community for ongoing support.
ABOUT OUR LESSONS
We asked a national group of participating organizations to share one or more “top” lessons designed to spark a classroom dialogue refusing hate and pursuing inclusion and justice in our diverse society. These include Learning for Justice, Facing History and Ourselves, the Anti-Defamation League, the Bully Project, the Human Rights Campaign’s Welcoming Schools, the American Federation of Teachers, including the AFT’s “Share My Lesson,” Zinn Education Project/Rethinking Schools, Teaching for Change, the National Education Association, the National Association for Multicultural Education, GLSEN, the Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility, Not In Our Town/Not In Our School, the New York Times Learning Network, and Woven Teaching, as well as #Schooltalking, the first supporter of the #USvsHate project.
Learn more with our contributing organizations via ongoing resources and trainings.
