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As I head back to the classroom, I think about the last school year. In the second-to-last week of school, my fifth-grade classroom was 90 degrees, with no air conditioning. My students were sitting together, helping each other, laughing, struggling and having fun. At the beginning of the year, they were unsure of each other. They smiled politely but kept to themselves or the friends they knew and never asked for help. So what had changed?

Leslie, a 38-year-old social worker who counsels children with stressful life situations, found her 4-year-old daughter, Sophia, engaged in animated play with her dolls. She watched incredulously as Sophia invited the four white dolls with blonde hair to a tea party while the dark-skinned doll with black hair lay alone across the room.

I had coffee with a colleague recently and we discussed plans for lessons on Sept. 11. Robin outlined her discussion and writing plan based on George Orwell’s 1984—specifically on the “Two Minutes’ Hate” he describes.

Whether close to home or far away, hands-on experience brings history to life.

The Supreme Court has upheld affirmative action but, one educator points out, we still have a long way to go to achieve equity in college admissions.

Critical literacy can expose the assumption that whiteness is “normal” and provide students support for talking about difficult topics.

The first turbaned and bearded editorial cartoonist in the United States shares his journey as a survivor of bullying.

One after-school programmer reflects on the criminalization of youth.

A trip to Haiti gives Joseph a new perspective on his identity and his adoption.

Understanding political divides can help students learn to bridge them.