Ideas This Week
Ideas This Week is your hub for updates on all things Facing History—from announcements and featured press to expert interviews, impact stories, and essays on the ideas driving our work.
9 of Our Favorite Back-to-School Activities and Resources
Try these classroom activities and resources at the start of the year to build a foundation for learning all year long.
![Students and educator work on an assignment](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-08/221116-0215.jpg?h=56d0ca2e&itok=R-Z5CpUh)
Building Belonging with New Classroom Activities for Back to School
Use our updated Back-to-School Toolkit to help you build community with students and lay the foundation for building a brave, inclusive classroom.
![Rear view of high school students walking into college building together](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-08/BTS.jpg?h=4168c8c5&itok=anVPMSEO)
Teachers Share How They Are Ending the School Year with Intention
Members of our ELA educator Advisory Board highlight their favorite activities to help end the school year with care and celebration.
![Facing History students standing and talking](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-06/DSC_0652%20%281%29.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=HsEg8Cmx)
Poetry and Identity
Bringing poetry into the classroom introduces a model for creative expression and self-reflection that can help students find their voice.
![Poetry Graffiti](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-06/Poetry_Graffiti_StockPhoto_FH2190020.jpg?h=1021c639&itok=68mmYNfa)
Talking to Students about Tyre Nichols
Facing History’s Dimitry Anselme talks to The 74 about how teachers can address Tyre Nichols’s death in the classroom while affirming students’ grief and anger.
![Stack of newspapers.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-02/Stack_Of_Newspapers_FH2187431.jpg?h=8d106eaa&itok=xJ_NR5Mz)
What is Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)?
Start integrating Social-Emotional Learning in the classroom with this high-level look at what SEL is, along with some helpful intro tools.
![Boy watching video on laptop.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-01/Boy_Watching_Video_on_Laptop_FH2186913.jpg?h=56d0ca2e&itok=oomqL9hU)
Introducing Ideas This Week
Welcome! We've created a list to help you explore the best of what we have to offer. It covers topics including educator competencies, classroom resources, inspiring stories, and more.
![Picture of teacher in classroom.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-03/2019_UK_Classroom_FH2177573.jpeg?h=56d0ca2e&itok=Zs3pE68x)
On Living Deliberately
Kaitlin Smith offers personal reflections on what it means to live deliberately.
![Kaitlin Smith kneeling in front of a rock pile and cairns left by visitors at the original site of Henry David Thoreau's cabin at Walden Pond State Reservation in Concord, Massachusetts.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-10/waldenKS3.jpg?h=818f1ba2&itok=S_RIxh3h)
Exploring Audre Lorde’s Intersectionality
Audre Lorde was a Black lesbian scholar, feminist, mother, and poet who challenged us to think about the intersectionality of politics and identity.
![A headshot of Audre Lorde taken in 1980; her finger rests on her chin, and she is looking down](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-09/Audre%20Lorde.jpg?h=e9403ca4&itok=ckSP80ub)
The Afterdeath of the Holocaust: A Conversation with Dr. Lawrence L. Langer
Eminent Holocaust scholar Lawrence L. Langer raises critical questions about the narratives and languages used to characterize the Holocaust.
![A lit candle shines against a dark background](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-10/david-tomaseti-AaZlf5FgUws-unsplash_0.jpg?h=6acbff97&itok=yVR4YQYg)
Black Women Educators' Roundtable on Teaching and Current Events
What is the impact of racial violence and tensions on Black educators? We explore the challenges, joys, and opportunities in education with our panel of Black women educators.
![A black female educator smiles as her elementary school class writes at their desks.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2024-01/iStock-522138534.jpg?h=4362216e&itok=vgm7mdB0)