Canandaigua PTSA Newsletter

January 2021 Newsletter

To our membership

A new year is here, and though we are not halfway through January yet, circumstances continue to challenge all of us. Below, you will find resources for talking with your students or your families about current events, as well as resources for the upcoming Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. PTSA continues to stay connected to our district and our community, though we look forward to the day when we can all gather together again for meetings, events, and conversations.

Take care and be well,

Canandaigua PTSA

NYS PTA: An open message to our communities and PTA family - 1/6/2021

The mission, values, vision and beliefs of NYS PTA are clear: to support every child with one voice, to be the leading advocates for children, to make every child’s potential a reality, and to be a powerful voice for all children. We believe in collaboration, commitment, accountability, respect, inclusivity, diversity, differences, and in integrity.

NYS PTA has supported children, families and educators in NYS for the last 124 years. In those 124 years, and certainly today, there has been, and will continue to be, absolutely no place for hate, bias, or violence in PTA.

NYS PTA continues to stand ready to support every child, with one voice: no matter their race, ethnicity, zip code, income, gender identity, sexual orientation, or immigration status. PTA will be there for them, for ALL, always.

We understand that these are divisive times; however, all PTA leaders and members should believe in and remember our mission, values, vision and beliefs. We encourage our communities to do the same.

We truly hope all will continue on this journey with us. Together, we will make every child’s potential a reality. There is no other more important work.

https://nyspta.org/2021/01/06/an-open-message-to-our-communities-and-pta-family/

What To Say To Kids When The News Is Scary

Click the title button above for a helpful article and NPR Life Kit podcast link surrounding how to talk to kids about current events that are frightening.

Helpful Resources

Books to Help Kids Make Sense of Current Events

The above link has a great list of children's literature related to addressing challenging current events, with many different topic categories. Many of these titles can be found at https://owwl.org/

Tolerance.org resources

When Bad Things Are Happening

When news breaks of disaster or violence, your students may want to discuss a crisis as it unfolds. Here’s how.

TEACHING TOLERANCE STAFF

MAY 18, 2018

https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/when-bad-things-are-happening

Leading Conversations After the Insurrection in Washington D.C.

In the coming days and weeks, we hope you'll offer students important context for the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol—and we'll keep sharing resources to help you do so. But we know you're likely already talking with students about what happened. We hope these resources help.

https://www.tolerance.org/the-moment/january-7-2021-leading-conversations-after-the-insurrection-in-washington-dc

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Day Resources

How To Talk To Kids About Martin Luther King Jr.

The above link leads to a Scholastic article, as well as books that can be ordered from their catalogue, on talking to children about Martin Luther King Jr. and the history of the Civil Rights Movement.

The Best of Our Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Resources

Collected by tolerance.org, click the button above for a comprehensive list.