Social Justice Standards

Sutherland Elementary has adopted the Social Justice Standards for this school year as part of our Equity Initiative. These standards fall under four domains: Identity, Diversity, Justice and Action. Each quarter this year, we will be adapting our lessons and instructional units to reflect the first of these domains, Identity. Watch our website for more information on Sutherland's Equity Initiative and how our school community is unifying to ensure a safe and equitable learning environment for all of our children. Additionally, we will be hosting more community conversations around our Social Justice Standards to help support our teachers and children in learning more about these critical components of engaging understanding and inclusion.

We are truly excited to bring our community together in supporting our children and families.

What does Equity and Anti-Bias Instruction look like at Sutherland?

Want more insight as to how we integrate Social Emotional Learning with Anti-Bias curriculum? Take a look at a breakdown of our three-pronged approach to ensuring that instruction, curriculum and climate are all addressed to ensure a safe and responsive learning environment for all students. Click here of a copy of our power point addressing our three areas of Social Justice Standards, Second Step SEL Curriculum and ADL Curriculum

ADL Anti-Bias Curriculum

Sutherland will be implementing the The Anti -Defamation League curriculum along with the Second Step Social Emotional Learning curriculum to support our children, families and staff in unifying our diverse community responsively and inclusively.

 

Quarter 1 - Identity

The first quarter of the year, our children explore the first standard of Identity. They will develop positive social identities based on their membership in multiple groups in society.  Children also will develop language and historical and cultural knowledge that affirm and accurately describe their membership in multiple identity groups.  Through learning tasks, discussion, research and reading, students will learn to recognize that people’s multiple identities interact and create unique and complex individuals.  Our goal is to help children develop pride, confidence and healthy self-esteem without denying the value and dignity of other people.  Students will develop an ability to recognize traits of the dominant culture, their home culture and other cultures and understand how they negotiate their own identity in multiple spaces. 

 Reading Resources and Links for Identity

Sutherland Identity Interviews

Identity ​in Practice

Dr. Pinnock has created a reading resource page with links to support children and families in extending their exploration of Identity. Click on the image to the right for access to this document.

Here are a few examples and resources our teachers and students are engaging in this quarter to grow in developing a sense of their own identity.
2nd Grade Identity and Values
https://safeyoutube.net/w/HVzW
Author Juana Martinez-Neal interview about Identity
https://youtu.be/xvuuoGzrR0s

Quarter 2 - Diversity

During this unit, students will express comfort with people who are both similar to and different from them and engage respectfully with all people. Students also will develop language and knowledge to accurately and respectfully describe how people (including themselves) are both similar to and different from each other and others in their identity groups. Our goal is to help students respectfully express curiosity about the history and lived experiences of others and will exchange ideas and beliefs in an open-minded way. We work to instill skills to support children in responding to diversity by building empathy, respect, understanding and connection. Ultimately, students will examine diversity in social, cultural, political and historical contexts rather than in ways that are superficial or oversimplified.

Quarter 3 - Justice

During this unit, our emphasis is on recognizing stereotypes and relating to people as individuals rather than representatives of groups. Students will build skills in recognizing unfairness on the individual level (e.g., biased speech) and injustice at the institutional or systemic level (e.g., discrimination). We work to analyze the harmful impact of bias and injustice on the world, historically and today. Students will recognize that power and privilege influence relationships on interpersonal, intergroup and institutional levels and consider how they have been affected by those dynamics. Additionally, we will identify figures, groups, events and a variety of strategies and philosophies relevant to the history of social justice around the world.

Quarter 4 - Action

Coming soon!