full transcript

From the Ted Talk by Liz Kleinrock: How to teach kids to talk about taboo topics

Unscramble the Blue Letters


So, a few years ago, I was beginning a new unit on race with my fourth-graders. And whenever we start a new unit, I like to begin by having all the students list everything they know about it, and then we also list questions we have. And I had the type of moment that every teacher has nightmares about. One of my sttdeuns had just asked the question, "Why are some people racist?" And another student, let's call her Abby, had just raised her hand and volunteered: "Maybe some people don't like black people because their skin is the color of poop." Yeah, I know.

So, as if on cue, my entire clsas exploded. Half of them idetmiemaly started lhuiangg, and the other half started yelling at Abby and shouting things like, "Oh, my God, you can't say that, that's racist!" So just take a second to ferzee this scene in your mind. There's a class of nine- and ten-year-olds, and half of them are in hesryicts because they think Abby has said something wlildy funny, and the other half are yelling at her for saying something offensive. And then you have Abby, sitting there completely bewildered because, in her mind, she doesn't unnstdeard the weight of what she said and why everybody is reacting this way. And then you have me, the tcaeehr, standing there in the corner, like, about to have a panic actatk.

Open Cloze


So, a few years ago, I was beginning a new unit on race with my fourth-graders. And whenever we start a new unit, I like to begin by having all the students list everything they know about it, and then we also list questions we have. And I had the type of moment that every teacher has nightmares about. One of my ________ had just asked the question, "Why are some people racist?" And another student, let's call her Abby, had just raised her hand and volunteered: "Maybe some people don't like black people because their skin is the color of poop." Yeah, I know.

So, as if on cue, my entire _____ exploded. Half of them ___________ started ________, and the other half started yelling at Abby and shouting things like, "Oh, my God, you can't say that, that's racist!" So just take a second to ______ this scene in your mind. There's a class of nine- and ten-year-olds, and half of them are in _________ because they think Abby has said something ______ funny, and the other half are yelling at her for saying something offensive. And then you have Abby, sitting there completely bewildered because, in her mind, she doesn't __________ the weight of what she said and why everybody is reacting this way. And then you have me, the _______, standing there in the corner, like, about to have a panic ______.

Solution


  1. hysterics
  2. wildly
  3. students
  4. understand
  5. attack
  6. class
  7. teacher
  8. laughing
  9. freeze
  10. immediately

Original Text


So, a few years ago, I was beginning a new unit on race with my fourth-graders. And whenever we start a new unit, I like to begin by having all the students list everything they know about it, and then we also list questions we have. And I had the type of moment that every teacher has nightmares about. One of my students had just asked the question, "Why are some people racist?" And another student, let's call her Abby, had just raised her hand and volunteered: "Maybe some people don't like black people because their skin is the color of poop." Yeah, I know.

So, as if on cue, my entire class exploded. Half of them immediately started laughing, and the other half started yelling at Abby and shouting things like, "Oh, my God, you can't say that, that's racist!" So just take a second to freeze this scene in your mind. There's a class of nine- and ten-year-olds, and half of them are in hysterics because they think Abby has said something wildly funny, and the other half are yelling at her for saying something offensive. And then you have Abby, sitting there completely bewildered because, in her mind, she doesn't understand the weight of what she said and why everybody is reacting this way. And then you have me, the teacher, standing there in the corner, like, about to have a panic attack.

Frequently Occurring Word Combinations


ngrams of length 2

collocation frequency
teachable moment 2
dark skin 2
topic taboo 2
teaching kids 2
young learners 2
mass incarceration 2
speaks volumes 2


Important Words


  1. abby
  2. asked
  3. attack
  4. beginning
  5. bewildered
  6. black
  7. call
  8. class
  9. color
  10. completely
  11. corner
  12. cue
  13. entire
  14. exploded
  15. freeze
  16. funny
  17. god
  18. hand
  19. hysterics
  20. immediately
  21. laughing
  22. list
  23. mind
  24. moment
  25. nightmares
  26. offensive
  27. panic
  28. people
  29. poop
  30. question
  31. questions
  32. race
  33. racist
  34. raised
  35. reacting
  36. scene
  37. shouting
  38. sitting
  39. skin
  40. standing
  41. start
  42. started
  43. student
  44. students
  45. teacher
  46. type
  47. understand
  48. unit
  49. weight
  50. wildly
  51. yeah
  52. years
  53. yelling