Save the Date: November 5th Brooklyn Museum: Girls Read for Girls
“This hand is not the color of yours. But if I pierce it, I shall feel pain. If you pierce your hand, you also feel pain. The blood that will flow from mine will be of the same color as yours. I am a man.” -Chief Standing Bear
Last week, we joined in the national discussion about whether or not we, as a country, should celebrate Columbus Day or Indigenous People’s Day. Recently, cities like Los Angeles and Nashville decided to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous People’s Day to honor the lives of Native Americans that have been lost as a result of colonization. Students expressed many different opinions. Some believed that both Columbus and Indigenous People each needed a day. While others expressed that Native American lives need to be honored on more than just one day.
To further our conversation, we watched the Trial of Standing Bear. The story of Chief Standing Bear of the Ponca tribe who was forcibly removed from their land in Nebraska to the Indian Territory in Oklahoma in the 1870’s. Chief Standing Bear filed a lawsuit against the United States government for his freedom to leave the Indian territory and return to his ancestral land. Ask your child about the trial and join in our discussion!
We have also continued with our reading of I Am Malala. Students are asking questions as they read, making connections, and identifying themes as they emerge. We are continuing to annotate and build on our thinking. On November 5th, the Brooklyn Museum will be hosting an event inspired by Malala entitled Girls Read for Girls. BSI will be organizing a group to participate in the event as a way to show our support for equity in education. If your family would like to participate, click on the links below for more information and to register. Boys are welcome and encouraged to come too!
SAVE THE DATE: November 5th, 2017 from 3pm-5pm at the Brooklyn Museum
Click below for more details:
Register for Girls Read for Girls
Hope to see you there!
Reminders:
Information was sent out on School Loop about how to establish a Newsela account. Through Newsela, we will be reading articles and posting discussion questions for students to answer at home. If your family is unable to access school loop for any reason, please contact Jose Polanco by e-mailing him at jpolanco@bsi686.org or by calling the school directly.
Stay tuned for our next blog about the Six Thinking Hats and how we’ve been developing our critical thinking and problem solving skills.