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My middle school students had started to use words like “bum,” “creeper,” and “hobo” to describe people who are homeless in our city. To my eighth-graders, it was comic relief.

When I was growing up, most of my friends were a lot like me. We looked a lot alike, lived in similar neighborhoods and rarely questioned the racial and cultural uniformity that was the fabric of our lives. This isn’t to say that my high school lacked all diversity. Like many high schools, our student population was fairly segregated, and I stuck with the group where I felt most comfortable. It wasn’t until college that I experienced some authentic diversity, developed friendships with people who were different from me, and began to recognize how isolated I had been in high school.

Educators are natural cheerleaders, fierce protectors, and they rally when needed. That’s why we turned to the Teaching Tolerance community of educators for advice to offer first-year teachers. More than 100 of you responded, rallying around all the newbies. The advice ranged from practical (get rest, get a flu shot, get organized) to pensive (trust your instincts, remember each student has dignity).

“I hate Jews.” That was the sentence, uttered coldly and dripping with vile undertones, from the mouth of a sixth-grader that nearly caused me to let a very powerful teachable moment slip through my fingers. Almost.

When Idaho Rep. Brent Crane characterized Rosa Parks as a champion of states’ rights in a recent debate, it was a troubling sign of what happens when a nation doesn’t work hard to remember its history.

This teacher wanted to empower her female students through literature. She boosted all students’ reading skills and self-confidence in the process.

Cultural celebrations give students a chance to shine and benefit schools all year long.

How do we celebrate the anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 when significant threats to equal voting rights still exist in the United States?