community

December 4, 2024

Patterns of Colonization

admin 4th Grade, SJE Units community, critical thinking, development, diversity, environment, letter writing, questioning

Grade: 4th Grade
Topics: Colonization, gentrification
Social Justice Skills: Critical thinking, effective communication, advocating for systemic change
Created by: Tania Lopez

This unit bridges the novel Buffalo Bird Girl and lessons on Native American assimilation with the effects of economic development in Newark. Students explore how gentrification and displacement mirror historical patterns of colonization. By examining Newark’s evolving landscape, they critically assess both the benefits and harms of urban development. Through themes like power and colonization, students build vocabulary (e.g., displacement, reservations) and conclude by writing letters to Newark’s Mayor, offering their perspectives on economic development, supported by insights from their lessons.

View the PDF: Lopez Unit Plan – Tania Lopez

February 28, 2023

Where the Blame Lies: America’s Relationship with Migrants in Times of Crisis

admin 11th Grade, SJE Units, Social Studies, Uncategorized action, community, immigration, protest

Grade: 11th Grade
Topics: Migrant Scapegoating
Social Justice Skills: Immigration reform, Advocacy, Student/Community action
Created by: Brian Milara

This unit will focus on the ideology of migrant scapegoating (especially when those migrants are people of color) and how this blame has produced a carceral pattern based not on punishment, but presupposition, of crime. It follows up on a district curricular lesson arc in which students study the internment of Japanese-Americans and extends the theme of scapegoating to current examples, such as refugees from Afghanistan and Central America. This unit will scaffold research methods with a curated set of sources, including news stories, video clips, interviews, and opinion polling, as well as websites of reform groups like NJ Alliance for Immigrant Justice and American Friends Service Committee. This, in turn, will support students in creating presentations using widely-accessible media (e.g., TikTok videos, drafts of murals and street art, music, newspaper guest op-ed, speech at state senator/assembly member town hall) with the goal of collective advocacy and spurring the community and urging policymakers to view the changes to migrant detention in Newark either as a model to be followed or avoided.

View the PDF: Where the Blame Lies

September 28, 2017

Community Pride

admin 1st Grade, Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, SJE Units, Social Studies, The Arts, Uncategorized community, critical thinking, diversity, environment, history

Grade: 1st Grade
Topics: Communities
Social Justice Skills: Critical thinking, advocacy, self-determination, discovery
Created by: Corey Juarez

Throughout this unit students will explore what a community is and learn more about their specific community, Newark. We will discuss what defines a community and explore the idea that the students are part of a school and classroom community. As we begin to learn about the students’ community we will work as a class to describe what they know about their community as well as questions they have about their community. We will also learn about the rich history of their community and city and even have visitors from the Newark Museum come in, in order to help contextualize this information with actual artifacts for the students to observe. We will also discuss change students would like to see happen in their community.

View the PDF:Community Pride

September 28, 2017

The Fulfillment Project

admin 3rd Grade, Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, SJE Units, Social Studies, The Arts community, culture, diversity, environment, self-esteem

Grade: 3rd
Topics: Self, community and city love
Social Justice Skills: Critical thinking, self-confidence, community, community involvement
Created by: Catherine Payne-Lewis/Jorge Villacreses

In this unit, the students were given a platform to uplift and provide them with enough confidence to motivate them to prepare, propel and equip them with resilience in effort to make sweeping changes in their local communities.

View the PDF: The Fulfillment Project

September 28, 2017

Our Community

admin Kindergarten, Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, SJE Units, Social Studies, The Arts change, community, diversity, environment, letter writing

Grade: Kindergarten
Topics: Pride for our community
Social Justice Skills: Critical thinking, advocacy, self-determination, fairness, equality, support, community, letter writing

Created by: Regina Polzella

Throughout the unit students will explore what a community is and learn more about their school community. The unit will focus on how workers within the school community come together to support our school community and bring positive change. The students will understand that there is strength in unity and that together we can accomplish more in our school community

View the PDF:Our Community

September 28, 2017

We are… Comm-unity

admin Language Arts, Mathematics, Pre-K, Science, SJE Units, Social Studies, The Arts community, diversity, environment

Grade: Preschool
Topics: Our Classroom, Our City, Our Community
Social Justice Skills: Critical thinking, respect fairness, equality
Created by: Lauren Gormley

In this unit students learned about their classroom, school and neighborhood community through class discussions, read-alouds, shared writings and technology. Students were able to define community and compare and contrast Newark to other cities around the country. They were given the chance to develop an appreciation for their classroom, school and the buildings and places they visit. After the completion of the unit, students were able to understand why it is important to take care of and ultimately try to better the community the have grown to love

View the PDF: We are…Comm-unity

September 28, 2017

admin Kindergarten, Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, SJE Units, Social Studies, The Arts community, diversity, environment, Identity

Grade: Kindergarten
Topics: Communities, Neighborhoods
Social Justice Skills: Critical thinking, self-identity, diversity, resources
Created by: Shannon Schommer

In this unit, students will examine the components of a community, look at how communities can be similar or different, and dissect ways in which external systems or functions may impact a community and the people living in it. The unit focuses on students’ own community and sense of identity, as well as how their own experiences might inform their ideas about community.

View the PDF: Community

May 9, 2017

All Voices, All Stories

admin 1st Grade access, community, current events, differences, disability, diversity

Grade: 1st Grade
Topics: diversity, inclusion, representation

Social Justice Skills: advocacy, equality, critical thinking, investigating school-wide issues
Created by: Students of South Orange and Maplewood School District

The school is looking to expand their classroom and school libraries so that they reflect the rich diversity and backgrounds of the students within their schools and community. The school would like to create diverse classroom library that share stories with a wide array of viewpoints, and can be a mirror into each student’s own experiences and a window into the lives of people who may seem different, whether they live next door or across the world.

Check out their webpage and video!

http://www.somsd.k12.nj.us/site/default.aspxPageType=3&DomainID=1&ModuleInstanceID=997&ViewID=047E6BE3-6D87-4130-8424D8E4E9ED6C2A&RenderLoc=0&FlexDataID=15976&PageID=1

http://www.somsd.k12.nj.us/cms/lib7/NJ01001050/Centricity/Domain/1/SJ%20Project%20Pitch.pdf

April 12, 2017

Creating a Fair Space

admin Language Arts, Mathematics, Pre-K, Science, SJE Units, Social Studies, Subjects Integrated, The Arts access, community, disability, diversity

Grade: Preschool
Topics: Fairness, disability
Social Justice Skills: Critical thinking, advocacy, self-determination, fairness, equality, creating signs to make awareness
Created by: Annmarie DeMarzo

In this unit, children will be guided toward an understanding of what it means to be fair. Students will explore and discuss what they believe to be fair and unfair in their daily lives, but will also focus on what make the environment fair and unfair for students with disabilities. Students will engage in discussions, explore different forms of adaptation and assistive technology, and generate solutions for making their classroom/school more accessible to children of all abilities.

View the PDF: Creating a Fair Space