First things first (said in my best Biggie voice), let’s talk about the elephant in the room: Teaching social studies to English language learners can be challenging. Not only are you trying to convey complex historical and cultural concepts. But you’re also trying to do it in a language that may not be their first. […]

Dream with me for a minute. Imagine we didn’t relegate teaching “non-white” history to designated “History Months?” I remember when I was a student teaching. My cooperating teacher was like, “it’s February, teach Black History. Next month teach Women’s History.” So that’s what I did. Black History Month is essential. It brings attention to and […]

The Haitian Revolution in 1804 is the most important revolution in human history. Yet, most people don’t know anything about it. (The defeated United States and European powers made sure of that). Ok, you might be thinking, “That’s a bold statement, Noelle.” It is and I stand by it. The Haitian Revolution is so important […]

Warning, this isn’t like my usual upbeat and positive posts. I’m gettin’ real. A note: when I’m mentioning white people, I am talking about the racist white people of the time I am discussing. Now that that’s out of the way… Back in late Spring of 2020, (you know, when people said they cared about […]

I’m proud that my school district changed Columbus Day to Indigenous People’s Day. It’s important to recognize indigenous people. I’m sure there were a ton of people who had an atomic wedgie over it, but… It was the right move. That got me thinking. What did I learn about indigenous people in my K-12 education? […]

Think back to what you learned about the Civil Rights Movement. My bet is that you learned that it started in the 1950s when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus. I mean, why wouldn’t she? She was a tired old lady who was trying to get home from work. Then […]

Imperialism in Africa is one of my favorite things to teach. Not only is it interesting, but it’s the perfect time to tackle misconceptions about Africa. You know, like the one where people call Africa a country. News flash. Africa is the most diverse place on the planet. It has 54 distinct countries and thousands […]

Imagine this. You’re standing in front of your class. You’re about to teach start your lesson about segregation by law. You know, de jure segregation. You’re looking out at your students. Ok, let’s be real. You’re most likely sitting in front of your computer looking at your students on Zoom. Or in my case, Google […]

“Finally!” I said to myself as I walked up to the counter. This was my third time at the DMV to get a Tennessee license. Yup, you read that right. THIRD. I try to stay positive most of the time, but I couldn’t help thinking, “no wonder everyone hates the DMV.”  Long story short,  I […]