What if classrooms were envisioned as a small democracy? What if our students practiced democracy in their classroom year after year? Further, what if they knew they deserved it? Kate Sipe, ’02, Seattle MA in Education with Graduate Teacher Preparation and an adjunct faculty who teaches Classroom Management courses, published a timely post in Medium in the wake of the 2020 Presidential election about the importance of democratic schools and teaching civics to our children: “Psst… Hey teachers… Let’s teach civics in our classrooms every single day.”
Start today. Start small. Just start. Let your classroom be a microcosm of American life and society, not just through the diversity of the children who make up your class, but also in the way your class is run. Value every child and her voice. Teach civics and allow your students to live it daily in your care. Be a great teacher and give us a citizenry that understands our unique form of governance. Every child; every day; every one of us.
Kate Snipe, Medium, November 7, 2020
