My daughter Molly wiped away her own tears as she entered her grade school classroom last Wednesday morning. Molly was as prepared as she could be. Already that morning the head of Near North Montessori had sent the faculty a teaching tolerance article meant to help teachers like Molly process the election with their students. What her kids needed to know, Molly tells me, was “that they were safe, and that their feelings were valid, regardless of what they were.”
As you’ll see, they dutifully followed this instruction. A few students were too overwhelmed to write a letter, but most did. With the permission of the school and the families, Molly has shared some of them with me:
I’ve heard you were recently elected president of the united States of America. I first want to congratulate you for winning. But I also want to say that you should always listen to the little things in life. So please listen to me. I think you should follow your thoughts and do what you think is right. But you should also think again. Think if it really is right for our country, think if it really is right to arrest people just because they’re a different race. You can’t accuse someone for something they didn’t do. Being president is a big role, so do good things. You are a role model for kids like me. I know I’m just a kid but I still have a voice.
