Resources for Teachers
The resources below are gathered for you to use when preparing your future classroom, teaching in your future classroom, and interacting with your future students. The lesson plans range from elementary level to the high school level and with a few adaptations, these can be used in any level that you are teaching. The videos and links will take you to outside sources such as supplemental articles or informational videos. The phone numbers given can possibly be shared with your students but will provide you with an outside resource if needed. This page was created with your needs in mind. To combat stereotyping in your classroom, use these resources and more when dealing with the associated issues.
Lesson Plans: The lesson plans below are targeted for elementary, middle, and secondary education classrooms. The lessons can be used in Language Arts classrooms, Social Studies classrooms, and any social or ethical study classrooms. The lesson plans include both introductory level information as well as more specific and in depth information regarding stereotyping.
Lesson Plans for Middle and Secondary Education
Teaching About Stereotypes 2.0
While this lesson plan is not broken down like normal lesson plans, I think it is very valuable and could be used in a history class to really impact students about the history of stereotyping in our society. This lesson could be used for both middle and secondary education classrooms but will require the teacher to do a bit of set up work for the lesson. I also really like how the teacher chose to write this lesson plan in a way that allows him to respond in a dialogue with other teachers who may view the lesson. This provides opportunities for teachers who are thinking about using the lesson plan to see how students respond to the lesson and what they may need to change.
TV Stereotypes
This lesson says that it can be used for grades 2-6; however, I included it in the middle to secondary category of lessons because I think it is more targeted for this age group of students. I really think this lesson would be powerful for students of this age because they are starting to become more interested in media and therefore more exposed the stereotypes involved in media. Particularly, these students would be experiencing and exploring stereotypes present in the popular TV shows they watch with their peers. Teachers would definitely keep students engaged during this lesson.
Understanding Stereotpyes
This lesson is great for teachers who want to teach their students a basic, introductory level lesson about stereotyping. I like this lesson because it includes the background information pertaining to the foundations of stereotyping. I think this lesson plan is most appropriate for grades 9-12 but could be easily adapted for younger grades. To make these adaptations, I would suggest removing some of the steps of the lesson, for example the central learning task. I think this would make the lesson more understandable for younger grades. I think this lesson is great for introducing stereotyping as an important topic for discussion in the classroom.
Harmony Day Lesson Plan
I think this lesson plan is especially important to include as a resource because it shows just how harmful stereotyping can be to other people. This lesson plan, while not targeted toward any grade level, could be used for both young and older students. The thing I like most about this lesson is that it requires students to experience the negative consequences of stereotyping first hand through real-life experiences.
Prejudice and Stereotypes
I decided to include this lesson as an additional resource because it does a good job of explicitly explaining some of the basic information surrounding gender role stereotyping. I also appreciate how the lesson delves into some specific information surrounding particular stereotyping issues but also touches on some base level information. For this reason, I think this lesson would be useful for secondary education classrooms. I do think teachers could use it for younger grades but some of the more explicit parts of the lesson plan may need to be cut out.
Lesson Plans for Elementary Education
Teaching Young Children About Bias, Diversity, and Social Justice
What I particularly like about this site is that it combines multiple ideas of how to teach elementary students about elements of stereotyping such as bias, diversity, and social justice. Some of these examples were using children's literature, using news media examples, and teaching anti bias lessons. I think this is a great resource for teachers because taking these levels down to a level that elementary students can understand can sometimes be the hardest part of the planning. Some of these topics, such as social justice issues, can feel overwhelming or complicated to elementary students. In turn, I included this resource because it combines multiple lesson planning ideas that could be used together.
Activities for Kids about Stereotyping
I included this link in the elementary education section of lesson plans because there are many different ideas on this website of lesson plans to use with young children. The first one for example, "Role Playing with Young Children", explores the benefits of role playing with students as young as kindergarten. In this descriptions, teachers are exploring the idea of gender roles among their students using the example of a young male student thinking a young female student cannot play soccer because she is in fact a girl. I think this combination of lesson plans for elementary students are very beneficial and age appropriate for this age of students.
"Bursting" Stereotypes
I chose to include this lesson plan in the additional resources because it can be adapted for many different levels of students. I chose to include it in the elementary section because I think it would be most impacting for this age of students. I believe this lesson would be impacting for younger students because it combines both base level information with more specific information about stereotyping. The lesson also involves a lot of physical representatives of stereotypes including sheets of paper and balloons. These physical repesentations will create a lasting memory for students as they "burst" the balloons and "burst" the stereotypes.
Stereotyping Lesson Plan for Elementary School Students
I chose to include this lesson plan for elementary level students because it does a great job of using introductory level information to get students thinking about what stereotyping even is. I think students in grades 1-5 are so young and innocent that they struggle to even think of the consequences of their actions. Therefore, this lesson begins to show those students how harmful their actions can really be. I think this lesson is an appropriate level for younger students.
What are Gender Stereotypes?
I really enjoyed going through this lesson plan because it explores what is involved when looking at someone's gender. The students are introduced to the elements involved in gender role stereotyping. This lesson explores the different roles assigned to each gender and the consequences of those roles. I think this lesson plan is at an appropriate level for students grades 1-5 because gender can be a very fluid thing at this age. Students are exploring what it means to be a "girl or boy". This lesson does a great job of exploring a very sensitive subject.
Videos: The videos below combine many different types of productions both by students and professionals. These videos cover specific types of stereotyping, the negative effects of stereotyping, as well as other harmful actions such as bullying and segregation. These videos are great for pre-service teachers to explore themselves when thinking about how stereotyping may affect their future classrooms. These videos are also great for teachers to share with their students as additions to lesson plans or maybe even as an opening to each day's class. These videos are appropriate enough to use down to the elementary level with some explanation. However, they are powerful enough to impact those students at the middle and secondary levels. I chose to include the following videos because they are powerful. They leave the audience feeling impacted and causes the viewer to step away thinking about their own actions.
Gender Stereotypes in the Media
I chose to include this video because it explores the very popular topic of stereotypes in media. Students are exposed to so many different types of media in their every day lives such as music, movies, TV, and print media. These influence their everyday opinions of each other as well as their opinions of themselves. I think this video is especially relative to the website since it explores Gender Role Stereotyping which is one of the specific types of stereotypes explored in the website.
I Am Not A Stereotype
While short, this video is very impacting. This video could be used when introducing stereotyping in the classroom. It could work very well as a video that gets students brainstorming about the topic of stereotyping. I also like this video because it combines both issues of Gender Role Stereotyping and Minority Group stereotyping, both issues that are discussed in the website. I love all of the different characters in the video and what they stand for. I think this video would be very powerful in both lower level and higher level education classes.
I'm Muslim, But I'm Not...
I included this video because it explores the stereotypes surrounding the Muslim religion. Various people in the video who are of different races repeat the saying, "I'm Muslim but I'm not a..." and then they list various things assumed about Muslims. This video is great to include in a lesson about Minority Group Stereotyping which focuses on those religions that are not the majority in the given population. This video is really important to share with students because so often they hear stereotypes surrounding certain religions in the media and in turn start to believe those stereotypes themselves.
What is a Stereotype?
I chose to include this video because it interviews real life, every day people of the street. These people are of all different races, careers, and religions yet they all reported some negative connotation surrounding stereotyping. My favorite thing about this video is when the host asks the interviewees if they have ever been stereotyped. I thought it was interesting to hear each of their experiences; most of them referred to their careers as the main place where or why the stereotyping took place. I think this video would be great to add to a lesson plan in in a middle or secondary education classroom since some of the careers and terminology used by the interviewees might be hard to understand for the younger grades.
If someone doesn't understand privilege, show them this...
This is my favorite video of the resource page and while it does not directly deal with the subject of stereotyping, there is a foundation of stereotyping that causes different races to have "privilege" or not. For example, in the video, the host gives statements he knows only the white men and women will be able to attest to. Therefore, those that view the video will consider the predetermined stereotypes they have about the African Americans shown in the video. In turn, while this video is discussing the subject of privilege, the predetermined stereotypes present have effect on the privilege of each person.
Don't Let Stereotypes Define You
This video is very relative for teenagers in the high school classroom. Some of the students portrayed in this video with the designated stereotype people normally associate with them are very similar to the students in the everyday classroom. Some students may be considered "nerds" because they get good grades and turn in all their work. While these behaviors may be true for the student, they may much rather be referred to as hard workers instead of nerds. The stereotypes presented in this video may very well be some of the stereotypes that preservice teachers may experience in their classrooms. This video would be great to include in a high school lesson about stereotyping. The language may be a bit restricted for middle or elementary students but I think this video has power.
What is a Stereotpye? By Peter Enescu
I think this video would be great to include as a supplemental material to an introductory level lesson plan. The video kind of breaks apart the dictionary definition of stereotype and forms a new definition that really shows some of the negative connotation surrounding predetermined stereotypes. I also really appreciate how the video is broken down and spelled out for the viewer. I think this video would be beneficial for any classroom teacher that was trying to give their students a base level amount of information about stereotyping as well as delving into the underlying implications of being a stereotyper or someone who is stereotyped.
Stereotypes and Prejudices
This video explores a stereotype we don't often think about and that is the act of stereotyping people based on their country of origin. In the video, students from France, Israel, and South Korea are represented. This video could be shows to secondary education students who may or may not be aware of the different stereotypes mentioned.
Ten Year Olds Tackle the Lie of Stereotyping
This video is appropriate for all audiences and is featured on another page of the site. These powerful ten year old students take on the lies that others have created about them to prove to society that they are more than the stereotypes people create about them.
Phone Numbers: The phone numbers below are very important resources for teachers to keep in mind when thinking about how to support their students. These phone numbers include the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, a bullying hotline, as well as other phone numbers students can call to receive help during hard times. While it may seem drastic and unlikely that a teacher may need these resources, the negative effects of stereotyping can send students into deep depression and relentless anxiety. Always be aware of your students' mental well-being to the best of your ability. For more information about how stereotyping can negatively affect your students and their ability to learn, check out these pages of the site.
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-8255
This 24 hour, 7 days a week number will link you with a professional who will guide you through the difficult times. These professionals can give you advice on how to help those who have suicidal thoughts as well. Share this information with your students as a valuable resource.
Cyber Bully Hotline 1-800-420-1479
This program allows callers to report anonymous issues surrounding bullying. It is a program that can be put into place within a school and then students attending that school can use the number to report instances of bullying. This could be a wonderful resource to suggest in your own school or to provide for your students.
Crisis Text Line (Text) 741741
This Crisis Text Line is for anyone experiencing a difficult time in their lives. This could include issues with depression or anxiety, bullying or stereotyping, or thoughts of suicide. Professional Crisis Counselors are available at the other end of the text message to guide and help. Share this resource with your students to provide them with a valuable resource.