In my reporting of teaching 9/11, I felt so fortunate. Not to just be in a job where I get to deconstruct one of the most pivotal events of the last century, but to do so with some really smart people.
The teachers I interviewed weren’t content with pat answers or a moment of silence. They pushed their students — most of whom were toddlers on that tragic day — to make connections. To really understand how nothing happens in a vacuum and that 9/11 continues to impact their own lives, from airport security to the repercussions felt by their classmates who wear head scarves. Their curriculum crackled with such wide-ranging topics as aggression, respect, remembrance, politics, safety, and civil liberties.
Most of all, I was struck with how much they felt a responsibility to not just teach these young people the facts – the flight paths of the four planes, the number of victims, etc. But they also felt compelled to challenge them to make this world a better place by working for peace and being resilient. Not just lesson plans, but lessons for life.
“This is where students start developing their identity about their place in the world,” said Kelly Goldberg, a social studies teacher at Bannockburn School. “If the seeds are planted correctly, these kids might be community leaders or policy-makers or study religions. “It’s exciting to watch them go from not knowing much about this day…to watching the light bulb go on.”
More Top Picks Best 40 To 49 Inch Tvs
Join Trib Nation on Facebook for more of the how and why of Tribune journalism.