Stories That Inspire
September 15th through October 15th marks Hispanic Heritage Month. This is a celebration and recognition of Hispanic American thought leaders who inspire. From music and art to journalism and activism, there are important leaders in our country whose perspectives and motivations are important for us to pay attention to. There is so much to learn. This week, I will share one young leader's story that inspires me and discuss how we can use stories to cultivate compassion.
Hispanic Heritage Month
Sara Mora is 22 years old. She is using the power of storytelling to advocate for equal rights for immigrants. This resonates with me so deeply because stories evoke feelings and instill a sense of common humanity. When we really feel another person's experience (pain, fear, hopes, and dreams), it becomes hard not to meet them with compassion.
Stories help us recognize our sameness as humans. To me, this is foundational to social-emotional learning and we can use stories and diverse perspectives to build on this foundation with children. For example, share a story with your students this month and ask them to relate to the feelings behind this story. Not only does this instill a sense of compassion for others, and from what I can see reduces bullying, but it also helps us embody self-compassion and acceptance for who we are and our difficulties. Right now, this is critical to supporting the growing number of youth struggling with mental health.
I love how Sara is using storytelling to inspire change. We are learning more and more that when we can connect to one another through our personal stories, we can more easily put our differences aside and resolve conflict. This is because we are connecting to what it means to be HUMAN.
This week, take time to read about a Hispanic American’s personal story (check out the links in the blog) with your class. Encourage them to relate to the person’s experience and feelings behind it as a way to cultivate common humanity and compassion.
Resource: DoSomething.org
