Sesame Street Introduces Resources for Promoting Equal Rights and Racial Equality
The Military Families Learning Network (MFLN) and Sesame Street have joined forces to create resources and webinars aimed at building racial literacy and addressing racism in children. These materials are designed to help military families and caregivers engage young children in conversations about race, diversity, and inclusion in age-appropriate and constructive ways.
MFLN, a cooperative project involving the University of Minnesota, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture, offers webinars and professional development courses that provide strategies for helping children understand racial equity and social justice concepts. These strategies are tailored for military families who face unique challenges with frequent moves and diverse community integration.
On the other hand, Sesame Street has developed multimedia resources, including videos and storybooks featuring beloved characters, to introduce children to racial literacy topics. These resources encourage empathy and confront racism in ways accessible for early childhood audiences.
The collaboration between MFLN and Sesame Street provides webinars that combine expert knowledge with practical parenting and caregiving techniques to foster anti-racist attitudes from a young age. The age-appropriate educational content and activities engage children in recognizing and appreciating diversity, understanding fairness, and standing against discrimination.
These resources are often housed on platforms such as the MFLN website and Sesame Workshop’s Sesame Street site, where families and professionals can access them for free to support early childhood development related to racial literacy.
The webinar, held in late July, introduced these resources. It focuses on building racial literacy among children, which includes the skills needed to talk thoughtfully about race and to identify and respond to racism. The webinar recording is available for viewing for those who missed the live session.
The collaboration aims to prepare children for building a better world by standing up, standing tall, and standing together. It also aims to introduce military family service providers to resources for children's understanding, curiosity, resilience, and empathy.
Racism negatively impacts our entire society, and it hurts the healthy development of both individual and group identity. Engaging honestly and directly with children is the beginning of building racial literacy.
Previously, MFLN has collaborated with Sesame Street on webinars such as "Sesame Street and You: Caring for Each Other During COVID-19 and Other Emergencies" and the Kids Serve Too! Series. This latest collaboration is a testament to their ongoing commitment to supporting military families and promoting early childhood development.
For more information about specific webinar titles or resource packages, visiting the Military Families Learning Network site or Sesame Street’s ready-to-use educational sections would be the best next step.
This collaboration between MFLN and Sesame Street provides webinars that encompass lifestyle education on racial literacy and self-development in early childhood education. The resources, including webinars and multimedia materials, are designed to foster anti-racist attitudes, promote diversity, and build understanding of fairness, all aimed at preparing children for a better future. These materials are available on the MFLN website and Sesame Street's site, readily accessible to families and professionals for supporting early childhood development.
