March gives teachers a double whammy with Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day — both opportunities to break down gender biases that creep into the classroom no matter how hard we try to keep them out. International Women’s Day will be celebrated on March 8 around the world this year, and there are fairly simple ways to mark the occasion for your students that can have a long-lasting impact.
The role teachers have in breaking down gender biases is significant — studies have shown that gender stereotypes conveyed not just by parents but by teachers too can have an impact on kids’ own feelings about how gender will affect someone’s success in specific subjects. Facing some students who believe boys are more inclined to excel in STEM subjects and girls in the languages? This commonly held myth is one you can help dispel, along with myriad other issues women and girls face every day.
But how do you explain International Women’s Day to children, and how can you keep the work of one day going all year long? Let’s get started with the theme.
Short on time? Head straight to the International Women’s Day printables!
Honoring International Women’s Day in the Classroom
Explain Why We Have an International Women’s Day
The United Nations officially recognized International Women’s Day in 1975, and it’s been honored around the world ever since. But why do we set this day aside every March here in the US, and what can our kids learn from it? Explore the history and importance of setting aside a day to talk about the impact of women on society and ways to ensure there is gender equality in your own classroom.
To help you get started, we have some free teaching resources:
- Download a free International Women’s Day teaching presentation to help explain to kids why we have the holiday and what they can do to honor the day’s intentions.
- While you’re at it, this free International Women’s Day fact sheet can be printed for students to take home in their folders if they want to talk about what they learned with their families.
Redecorate the Classroom (Sort of)
We’re not asking you to start from scratch — we know how hard it is to get all those little adhesive foam bits off a classroom cabinet! — but this is a good time to put a critical eye on your current decor.
Take a look around your room. Are there any vestiges of the old-fashioned “blue for boys” and “pink for girls” color scheme? Give yourself some grace if there are — often we do things unconsciously. But International Women’s Day is a good time to substitute purple, green, and white in places where gender stereotypes have slipped into the classroom colors. These are the three official colors of International Women’s Day, inspired by the colors used by the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) in the UK in 1908.
The reason isn’t simply that the three shades are different from blue and pink either. Each symbolizes something specific:
- Purple: Dignity and justice
- White: Purity (this is a controversial concept, so be careful how you use this color — it should be a neutral rather than a symbol of actual purity)
- Green: Hope
Perfect Your Praise
There’s ample evidence that many elementary school teachers unconsciously punish boys more than girls and also provide their male students with more positive feedback. But in the wise words of an ’80s cartoon, knowing is half the battle!
Use International Women’s Day as a chance to practice mindfully providing equal amounts of positive feedback to all the children in your class as well as being mindful of who you are calling on and how often, and how you’re encouraging participation in small group work.
Studies of a variety of classrooms over the years have shown that boys tend to be more likely to speak up during a class discussion, whether or not they know the content as well as their peers and whether or not they’re being called on. Be mindful of this tendency, and make a point to focus on more equal class participation.
Be aware too that studies show boys, on average, have a tendency to ignore girls’ comments and contributions when working in small groups — no doubt setting the stage for this behavior in corporate board rooms down the line. Be clear about classroom expectations and what it means to be a team player, and stress the importance of everyone’s opinions mattering.
Update Your Classroom Library
Research shows there are plenty of books out there for kids that are reinforcing gender stereotypes, and a few may be lurking on the shelves in your classroom. One analysis of 247 popular, contemporary books for kids found they were rife with problems from associating femininity with emotions and masculinity with the use of tools to furthering the outdated idea that girls are better at reading and boys at math. Another review of popular books from The Gruffalo to The Day the Crayons Came Home revealed an alarming lack of female characters. By themselves, the books may not be spreading bad messages, but if they’re the only books kids access, they certainly present a male-dominated view of the world.
Do you have a planning period on International Women’s Day? Put off the grading or other projects you were going to do — for now! — and use the time to comb through your bookshelf to make sure everything meets your high standards.
Looking for some books with powerful female protagonists to add? Check out this list of empowering books about girls, including activities that can accompany each title.
What about International Women’s Day Activities for your students?
Brainstorm Gender Stereotypes
One of the easiest ways to debunk those gender stereotypes is to talk about them openly in the classroom. Define the word stereotype for your students, and break them into small groups.
Assign each group “boy” or “girl,” and challenge the groups to come up with as many stereotypes as they can think of related to their assigned gender. After giving your students some time to work, invite volunteers to share some of the stereotypes they thought of, listing them on your whiteboard.
Next, challenge your groups to come up with ways that people do not always fit the stereotypes listed on the board. For example, if one of the listed stereotypes is “women are good cooks,” students may use personal experience and note that a father in their home does all the cooking.
As an extension activity, consider assigning a quick write, setting aside 10 minutes for students to write about one time they fit or did not fit a stereotype.
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