Diving into the planning and preparing for the series Hearing Voices, I wondered how we could create space for kids to both spend some time hearing voices of our neighbors that are frequently ignored or systematically quieted and explore the ways that we can grow our brave listening skills. What does that look like from the perspective of young people whose lens of time is only a decade or less and who have less control over who is in their circles than we do as adults?

We spent the last month learning what comfort and discomfort feel like in our bodies and how we can pause to examine why. We also got to listen to the voices of children with physical and emotional challenges with the Pacer Puppets, and we explored the idea of what is fair and unfair. The overwhelming conclusion is that we have only begun to scratch the surface of the conversations that we could have around this topic. But a beginning is a beginning.

This past week we explored some books written for children that do an excellent job of tackling the subject of race and injustice in ways that kids can understand and be challenges by. The books exposed kids to the ideas of whiteness and how our race affects every corner of our lives. They tackled the tough subject of police shootings of African Americans, and the idea of white privilege. I’m proud of our leaders and kids and the openness that they listened to the stories in these books and how they were willing to ask some hard questions around these subjects.

These books deserve a second look! We have copies at the office if you would like to borrow them to read at home or I’m sure the library or local bookstore would also have them.

Looking for more ways to widen your circle as a family?

Visit the RACE exhibit at the Minnesota Science Museum!

Go see the show Ruby Bridges at Youth Performance Company!

Spend and afternoon at the Minnesota African American Heritage Museum!