Dear White Teachers

Dear White Teachers, Are you like me, a white teacher in a classroom with mostly students of color? Do you feel secretly uncomfortable at the idea of talking about race in the classroom? Keep reading...

Equity: Why Talk About It with Children

Every child deserves the opportunity to be successful based on his or her unique gifts and talents, but not every child has equitable opportunities.

The Link Between Healthy Food and Academic Performance

Nutrition is a vital part of a child's development. For children living in poverty, there are obstacles that prevent access to healthy food, which in turn affects their performance in school. 

Are Standardized Tests Biased Against Students in Poverty?

In this post, we discuss the inherent bias in standardized tests and how students' life experiences and socioeconomic situations affect their ability to perform on standardized tests.

Does it Cost More to Educate a Child in Poverty?

How much does it cost to educate a child in poverty? We break down school funding and look at the effect of poverty on education cost.

Three Things Every Adult Should Know About Poverty

Poverty is a complex issue with many layers. In this post we outline three main things that we believe every adult should understand about how poverty affects children. 

Poverty and the Brain

Statistics show that poverty has negative outcomes on children. We explore why this is by looking at how poverty impacts brain development. 

Avoiding the Poverty Language Traps

How we talk about poverty matters. In this post, we take a look at how we define and talk about poverty. 

Let's Talk About Poverty

This next series on our Momentous Institute blog will focus on poverty. Specifically, what impact does growing up in poverty have on children?

When Home is Not a Safe Place

Each year five million children witness domestic violence in the US. Our Associate Director of Development, Tania Loenneker, discusses how domestic violence affects children. 

Queen Bees and Wannabes: A Book Club Discussion

In preparation for our upcoming Changing the Odds conference, a group of us read Queen Bees and Wannabes by guest speaker Rosalind Wiseman. Here are some of our thoughts and a bit about why we love this book. 

Three Main Differences in How Boys and Girls Bully

Both boys and girls bully and are bullied. In this post, we take a look at some key differences in how boys and girls bully.

Jacob's New Dress

Jacob's New Dress is a children's book that explore what happens when a young boy wants to wear a dress to school. Read our review to find out what we love about this book.

Disarming the Nuclear Family

The family unit is an important part of the gender discussion. This week we're sharing an article from Willow McCormick about the importance of recognizing that not all students come from a traditional nuclear family.

My Princess Boy

Discussing gender equity with children is an important part of Social Emotional Health. My Princess Boy is a children's book that discusses the challenges a gender non-conforming child faces. Read our review to learn more. 

Siblings of Gender Fluid Children

When we have conversations about a gender fluid child, we have to remember that the child is a member of a family. In this post we are looking at how a gender fluid child's experience can impact their siblings.

Movie Review: Gender Revolution

Our content specialist, Michelle, recently watched a documentary called “Gender Revolution”. Read her thoughts about how the documentary shines a light on how gender (and conversations about gender) affects everyone from young children to adults.

What I Learned When I Lined Kids Up By Gender

Taylor Freeman shares a powerful story about a time when she asked students to line up by gender... and what she learned from it. 

When Very Young Children Question Gender Identity

Continuing our discussion about gender fluid children, we answer some common questions parents face when they have a very young child questioning their gender identity.

A Parenting Journey Through Gender Questioning

Parents of children who are transgender, gender fluid or gender questioning are on their own journey of acceptance. In this post we discuss that journey and the impact it can have. 

Let's Talk Terms

When we talk about sex, sexuality, and gender, there are a lot of terms to keep track of. Even those of us who work in this space are constantly learning new titles and terms. It can feel overwhelming to make sure we’re using the right language. Read more...

Movie Review: The Mask You Live In

Our office manager, Ashley, recently watched a documentary  called “The Mask You Live In.” Read her thoughts about how the documentary affected her as a parent to a six-year-old boy. 

Boy Brains and Girl Brains: What’s the Difference?

We are continuing our discussion about differences between boys and girls and how they learn. In this post we take a look at gender differences in the most important biological component: the brain.

How Girls Learn and Lead

For today’s blog post, I spoke with Jennifer Bartkowski, the CEO of Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas. Keep reading to learn more about how the Girls Scouts are working to empower young women.

How Boys and Girls are Doing in School

As we continue with our blog series on gender, we take a moment to assess how both boys and girls are currently doing in school. We've talked about the STEM gender gap, but what other gaps need attention?

Are Classrooms and Playgrounds Serving Girls and Boys Equally?

Spaces and places, and how we move within them, are deeply rooted in gender. In this post, guest author April Larremore asks if these spaces are serving boys and girls equally. Read more...

Young Men's Leadership Academy: An All Boys Middle School

Continuing to learn about how gender plays a role in education, I recently visited Young Men's Leadership Academy, and all-boys Middle School located in Southern Dallas. Read more about my visit.

Solar Prep: An All-Girls School Review

I recently toured Solar Preparatory School for Girls, an elementary school in the Dallas Independent School District. Read my thoughts about this amazing all-girls campus!

Are Girls More Empathetic Than Boys?

Research shows that females tend to have higher levels of empathy than males. Our research team was interested in whether the same was true for elementary school students and whether there was anything we could do to change this trajectory by intervening at a young age. Read more...

Seven Ways to Get Girls Interested in STEM

It is widely accepted that careers in STEM fields are dominated by men, and that women and girls do not pursue these fields at the same level as their male peers. Through my research and practices, I want to share seven ways to help girls gain interest in STEM. Read more...

“Future Husbands, Fathers and Leaders” - An All-Boys School Profile

Today's conversation is with Mr. Jim Taylor, director of admissions at Cistercian Preparatory School, a small, private, all-boys school in Irving, Texas. Read more about what makes a boy's school unique...

How Men and Women Respond to Stress

We often talk about the stress response "fight, flight or freeze". But there's a twist: it might not apply for women. Read more...

Gender Microaggressions - We're All Guilty of Them

Gender microaggressions are small, seemingly innocuous comments that can pile up over time and affect a person’s sense of self and identity. These microaggressions can become so commonplace that we don’t even notice them. Here are a few examples of common gender-related microaggressions... Read more.

Good Morning, Boys and Girls!

It’s common to walk into an elementary school classroom and hear a teacher say, “Good morning, boys and girls!”  Is there any harm in this approach? Let's take a look at the research. 

Let's Talk about Gender

In this next series on our blog, we will be exploring the topic of gender. We want to know what makes boys and girls different. How do they learn? How are they treated by adults? Join us as we explore a new series.

Teaching Young People How to Dream

"When I work with young Latinos from at-risk backgrounds, one of the themes that eventually arises are long-term goals. They are often asked to dream big – to consider options outside of their current environment or circumstances. This can be very challenging." Keep reading...

Prioritizing Students' Cultural Identity

This post comes from former Momentous School teacher, Jorgelina Marin, on helping students' develop a strong sense of self. 

Working with Undocumented Families

As adults, one of our first instincts is to protect and comfort children who are afraid. But that instinct can be challenging when a child’s fear is real, and there’s nothing we can do to protect them from it. One big area where we see this fear is around the topic of immigration. Keep reading...

Why Mindfulness is Essential for Racial Healing

"With great external work in society comes great work within ourselves, too. As we are confronted with emotions that seem too large to hold, it is easy to feel overwhelmed and to let rage drive us." Read more...

What About Reverse Racism?

Have you heard the term “reverse racism”? Let’s break it down.

“What’s Trust Got to Do with It?” Overcoming Barriers to Mental Health Access for African American Communities

In African American communities, you might hear phrases like, “Therapy is for White people” or “We don’t do therapy.” Read more about how to overcome barriers to mental health access for African American communities...

Make Space for Race

"Many educators, including myself, have failed to make the children we work with feel seen—because for many years, we have not acknowledged race as a fundamental element of identity.  We need to make space for race.  But how?" Read more...

Talking to Teens about Race

Parents have the opportunity to help teens explore these racial differences. It may sound intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. Keep reading...

On Raising Bi-Racial Children

Minerva Holmes asked her mixed-race family members to weigh in on what it's like growing up bi-racial. Here's what they had to say...

Authentic Diversity

Read our four considerations for creating meaningful diversity opportunities for children.

Language Matters

We make many assumptions about the race and ethnicity of others. Let's talk about some commonly misused and misunderstood identifiers. Keep reading...

When Kids Make Racist Comments

There’s nothing quite as upsetting or challenging as a child making a racist comment. How do we respond? Read more. 

Talking about Race and Ethnicity in the Classroom

Misconceptions and misinformation can quickly become the norm if educators do not address differences within a classroom. Here are some tips for how teachers can be proactive in the process of talking about race and ethnicity in the classroom. 

How (and Why) to Talk to Kids About Race

Race is a topic that many parents shy away from. However, parents must realize that when nothing is said about race, a lot is actually being communicated.  Read more...

#Me Too: In Our Classrooms

"We were on a seventh grade class field trip. I don’t remember where. I do however, remember being in the elevator. He stood behind me and touched my body, without my consent." Read on...

"Where are you From?" - An Introduction to Microaggressions

If you’ve been in any conversations about race, you’ve likely heard the term “microaggressions”. You may be wondering two things – what are they, and what is the big deal? Keep reading...

Why Stereotypes are Harmful

We all have stereotypes. But the reality is, they can be very harmful. Read on.

If Not Colorblindness... Then What?

We’ve talked about how the “colorblindness” approach is not the most helpful way to interact with people of different races and cultures. Now you may be wondering… but what is the best approach? 

I Don't Think of You as Black

A published letter from Naomi Tutu, daughter of South African president Desmond Tutu, further explains why her friend's comment, “I don’t think of you as Black” was offensive to her. Read the excerpt and reflect.

"I Don't See Color"

One pervasive approach to working in communities of color is the so-called “colorblind” approach. We’ve all heard the line, “I don’t see color.” 

But there’s a fatal flaw in this approach. 

What is White Privilege?

The term “white privilege” has entered the common vocabulary when discussing issues related to race. We hear it all the time, but today we want to take a minute to really explore the topic. What is “white privilege” and what can we do about it? 

Think about the Kids

In the coming weeks, we will share strategies about how to have these difficult conversations with kids. But before any conversations take place, let’s do some reflecting about race and the children in our lives.

It Starts Here

Before we go any further on discussions about race, we have to talk about the starting line. 

Let's Talk About Race

Like with all things, silence speaks loudly. When we don’t talk about subjects that matter, we’re explicitly making a choice to be silent.

So, let’s talk about race.

On Raising Boys in this World

We've talked about raising girls. But there's a lot to say about raising boys, too. Dr. Matt Leahy weighs in.

On Raising Girls in this World

Raising a girl to be strong, competent and engaged can feel like a daunting task. These strategies might help.