1.  Biddy Mason had to encourage herself, and surround herself with people who had a common desire to achieve notable good things in her life.
2.  Identify at least one action she had to take to stay on-task to achieve the accomplishments that she achieved.
3.  Do you have any short term goals that you are working on right now? (things you want to accomplish before graduating from elementary school?  Middle schoool? or High school?

Shaping experiences that help children to find their true voice, ideas or opinions can be achieved through presenting authentic situational thinking that allows for “looking within” about what matters.

I taught primary grades at the Crescent Heights Blvd. Elementary Language Arts and Social Justice Magnet School for 17 years.  I received a fellowship to study at the Ahimsa Institute, Cal Poly University, Pomona.  The theme was 'Gandhi, Sustainability, and Happiness".  I also implemented a "Season for Non-Violence" celebrating the contributions of Ghandi and Martin Luther King, between January 30th thru April 4th (annually) by engaging my students in reflecting on the "64 Ways to Practice Non-Violence" Curriculum.  I was encouraged to feel that the required curriculum topics we taught may not have been easily understood by some, but overall "living life" yields more ability to understand what's going on for our young ones (sponges) than one might imagine.

I also teach the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, is an opportunity to help children organize and compartmentalize their worlds in ways which often may be overlooked in the "busyness" of our technological lifestyles.  Even though this may be a fact, helping our children put life into perspective by having a combination of caring, trusted adults, their own evaluation of life through use of prior knowledge every day, and we trust, they have much to gain by being equipped for this ever-changing world. 

With recent events that have happened in historical situations we have faced over the past 2 years, Biddy Mason's Umbrella is another opportunity to offer young students to put on the lenses of an "other" to see more clearly what the concerns may be, and the options they all have to follow a train of thinking that thy can understand, if they are given information that will not persuade, but rather educate them to "the truth that is already existing in history". 

We all share one fact…. "we" are Human Beings with Rights and stories to be told and heard as a compilation of historical facts we should individually be aware of!  

*(1) Learning For Justice.org, Spring 2022
     - Article:  Ask Learning For Justice Pg. 9
     - Article:  Why I Teach Pg. 11
Wikipedia, Biddy Mason
With Open Hands, A Story About Biddy Mason - A Creative Mind Biography  by Jerri C. Ferris
Biddy Mason Memorial:  https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/biddy-mason-memorial-park