Timely resources to help K-12 educators encourage social responsibility and foster social & emotional learning. Find out more.
TeachableMoment Lessons
Featured Lessons
In honor of Teacher Appreciation week, Morningside Center offers this Circle-based lesson as an invitation for students and Circle keepers to reflect on the impactful teachers and “teachers” in their lives; what lessons were learned; and ways they’ve passed this learning forward.
Spring is a natural time for transformation, for embracing new beginnings while shedding those attitudes or mindsets that no longer serve us. It’s also an ideal time to consider the changes in our lives and their impact. In this lesson students reflect on change, grief, and loss through a scrawl wall, a circle, and building a collective playlist.
In this lesson students examine New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s inauguration speech to learn what a speech can reveal about a leader’s values, priorities and vision for democracy—and how a speech can shape how people see themselves and others in a community.
SEL & RP
Activities to support students' social and emotional learning and restorative practices
Current Issues
Classroom activities to engage students in learning about and discussing issues in the news
Tips & Ideas
Guidance and inspiration to help build skills and community in your classroom and school
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Student readings examine Senate dysfunction (including anachronistic rules, endless fundraising, and delaying tactics) and the issue of cloture and filibuster. Discussion questions
As midterm elections approach, three student readings, discussion questions, and suggestions for inquiry engage students in exploring the role of money in politics.
Student readings explore the scientific evidence on global warming, the views of climate change deniers, and ideas for student action on climate change, including a day of action
This lesson asks children to watch and discuss three public service announcements by the Council on American Islamic Relations featuring Muslims who were part of the 9/11 rescue
Students talk about their cultural heritage, watch an online video about American Muslims, discuss their understanding of Islam and Muslims, and share their own experiences of
A student reading provides an excerpt from Judge Walker's ruling that California's Prop 8 is unconstitutional and describes competing opinions on gay marriage. A critical thinking
A brief student reading suggesting the dimensions of the crisis is followed by suggestions for student discussion and inquiry, and ways to translate compassion into action.
Three student readings describe plans for the controversial center, multiple perspectives about it, and an overview of mosque protests in New York City and elsewhere. Suggestions
Alan Shapiro's essay challenges us to consider current education policies and what real reform might look like.
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Twenty-five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, students learn about the wall's rise and fall, and consider the legacy of the Cold War. (See also our companion lesson on
In small and large group reading and discussion, students consider the U.S. response to Ebola and the need to develop a sense of our interconnectness and responsibility to each
This lesson provides factual information to students about Ebola. Providing accurate information about the disease may help prevent misinformed students from targeting classmates
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa and irrational reactions to it in the U.S. are creating challenges in some schools. Here are some suggestions and resources to help school staff
Eleven suggestions to help adults address oppressive behavior by students.
Students read and discuss a brief history of the Polish Solidarity movement, and consider how an unarmed group was able to overcome a powerful and heavily militarized government.