Discussing Civil Rights: Resources for Families, Educators, and Students

A collection of resources to support families and educators while discussing: racism, protesting, civil rights, Black history and historical individuals, bias, past and current events and more. 

Newest Resources!

Sesame Street: How to be an Upstander to Racism Song. Join Elmo, Abby Cadabby, Gabrielle, and Tamir to learn what you can say and do when you see someone being treated unfairly because of the color of their skin or fur.

Four images of adults speaking to their children, overlayed with the text PBS KIDS Talk About Race and Racism" "

“PBS KIDS Talk About: Race and Racism” The half-hour program features authentic conversations between real children and their parents, and includes content from PBS KIDS series DANIEL TIGER’S NEIGHBORHOOD, ARTHUR and XAVIER RIDDLE AND THE SECRET MUSEUM. The show features kids and their parents talking about race and racial justice-related topics in an age-appropriate way, such as noticing differences in race, understanding what racism can look like, and embracing the role we all have to play in standing up for ourselves and each other -- offering viewers ideas to build on as they continue these important conversations at home.

Watch the show on demand on the PBS KIDS YouTube chanel; on PBS KIDS Video or on PBS LearningMedia.

Furry muppet hands clasp one another against a yellow brick background. In the center of the image, it says "The Power of We Special". The Sesame Street logo appears to the left, #ComingTogether appears to the right, and at the bottom it says "New Special October 15" beside the HBO Max logo and PBS KIDS logo.
"The Power of We: A Sesame Street Special," to help children stand up to racism. “The Power of We” features Elmo and Abby Cadabby, who are joined by 6-year-old Muppet Gabrielle and her cousin, 8-year-old Tamir, as they learn how to become “upstanders” to unfair treatment based on skin – or fur – color.

Sesame Workshop has created a companion guide for families and caregivers to use as they discuss the special with children, available at https://www.sesamestreet.org/powerofwe

Meet the Helpers - the newest video in the collection, Kids Can Be Changemakers, talks about how changemakers can be activists, non-profit workers, volunteers, and even kids!

PBS Resources for Adults Working with Young Children

Parents & Caregivers 

Headshot of children's author Anika Aldamuy Denise and the covers of two of her books, accompanied by the PBS Books logo, event name, date and time as listed below this image in text.

Resources Appropriate for Small Children 

Graphic advertising a read-along with author Christian Robinson for his book "You Matter"
Click the image to watch the recording. 

Professional Learning Tools for Educators

 

Curriculum Resources for Educators on the PBS LearningMedia platform

Please note: 

  • This is not an exhaustive list of resources. 
  • These resources are appropriate for middle and high school students, unless otherwise noted. 
  • These educational materials are to be used in conjunction with other resources, conversations, and instruction to provide the most complete context for students. 
  • As with all educational materials, please preview these resources prior to utilizing with students to check for appropriateness.

Protests: 

For a list of episodes from popular PBS series about Black Lives Matter, Black history and more, click here