Educator Feature: Stories in Courage by Amanda West, ELA Educator at Penquis Valley Middle School

How It All Began    
A book introduction to one of my favorite group books Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate led to one of the most challenging conversations of my career.    
    Rural Maine students are not strangers to trauma and poverty. Research shows that low- income students in Maine account for 10% of the total population (Statista, 2023). This number may be small, but when the total population is approximately 1.3 million, 130,000 students are not having their physiological needs met. The percentage of students living in poverty in Piscataquis County is 14% (U.S Census QuickFacts, 2022). 
77% of my students are considered economically disadvantaged and 8% are homeless. 
Many more are raised by single parents or by legal (hopefully) guardians. Many face food insecurity. They frequently do not have access to running water or electricity. However, they could not get past their one difference in a 92% white school, race. 
The Conversation
    “Ms. West, I get what you’re trying to say but why are we supposed to care?” uttered John.
    “Why don’t you care?” I responded in shock.
    “He isn’t like us,” another responded. 
    “Yes, he is. Kek is in 6th grade. He’s trying to manage the chaos known as middle school. He is dealing with circumstances that are beyond his control.”
    “But, he’s black!”
    I was stunned speechless. I had never been challenged like this before. After a very long sip of coffee, I composed myself. This conversation was going to happen whether I liked it or not.
    “Readers, we need to have a very serious conversation. Please put your books down and meet me at the rocking chair. A person’s race is immaterial in this book and in life. When it comes to making connections and building relationships, a person’s race is immaterial. People are people and MUST be treated with respect. Once you analyze him as a person not a color, you will realize you have more in common than you think. Find your reading buddy and finish part one. After that, we will meet again and find you similarities.”
    Students quickly found their buddy and started reading. I walked the room listening to them read and asking myself if I did the right thing. I’m glad coffee creates clarity. The looks on their faces further solidified the need for our conversation. After 15 minutes of feverish reading, the class began to migrate back to the rocking chair.
    “Readers, what connections were you able to make?”
    “My mom is in jail. I don’t know when she will get out. Kek doesn’t know if he will see his mother again,” Mae added.
    Sara put her hand up but wouldn’t look at me. “My dad died when I was in third grade. I was in the hospital with him that day. Kek had to watch his dad die too.” She put her head on my knee and cried. I was having a hard time holding back tears myself. Leave it to my class clown to add the moment of levity we all needed. Jason shared the hilarious story of when he was carrying groceries with his mom and slipped on the ice and all the eggs landed on his face. He could picture Kek slipping on the ice, minus the egg yolks of course.

Closing
I assumed my students would easily empathize with the protagonist Kek. It was an emotional class for sure but one of my most memorable. It’s hard to face abject racism while being white in a white community in an all white classroom. It may not be one of the standards, but it is a lesson that I will continue to teach. Acceptance and tolerance cannot be taught soon enough in a community that lacks diversity. Maybe their newfound tolerance will spread throughout the community.