PBS KIDS Talk About Race & Racism
This half-hour program features authentic conversations between real children and their parents, and includes content from trusted PBS KIDS children's shows.
This is a collection of educational resources from PBS LearningMedia to support educators and families while discussing issues pertaining to civil rights, protesting, Black history and historical individuals, past and current events, and more. These resources are free and open for all to use.
Please note:
This is not an exhaustive list of resources.
These resources are appropriate for middle and high school students, unless otherwise noted.
These educational materials are to be used in conjunction with other resources, conversations, and instruction to provide the most complete context for students.
As with all educational materials, please preview these resources prior to utilizing with students to check for appropriateness.
PROGRAMS/WEBINARS
Deepening Your Understanding of Race and Racism: Virtual PD
Explore the role media plays in our understanding of race & racism. Hear from experts who share advice on how educators can use media to create anti-racist classroom environme
Amplify Student Voice | Tools for Anti-Racist Teaching
This webinar explores ways in which educators can use media to support and amplify students who are on their own anti-racist-learning journey.
Talking to Children Authentically about Race and Racism
This PBS Parents-hosted conversation features fellow parents, educators, child development experts who share tips for how to talk with young children about racial injustice.
Frontline Dispatch: Race, Police & the Pandemic
How do you change a troubled police force? Get a rare look inside a police department being forced to reform, in FRONTLINE’s 2016 documentary.
Using Media to Know Better, Teach Better
In this webinar, a panel of experts discuss how teachers can evaluate media to provide important context for students and support anti-racist classroom planning and practices.
Focusing on Young Learners | Tools for Anti-Racist Teaching
Learn ways to integrate media into classroom lessons, practice, or literature as a method of guiding students in developmentally appropriate, anti-racist learning.
PBS Black Culture Connection
We invite you to explore the PBS Black Culture Connection: Your resource and guide to the films, stories and voices across public television centered around Black history.
Against All Odds: The Fight for a Black Middle Class
Acclaimed journalist Bob Herbert explores the often heroic efforts of black families to pursue the American dream in the face of unrelenting barriers
East Lake Meadows
This feature-length film raises critical questions about how we, as a nation, have created limited housing opportunity for African Americans, & what can be done to address it.
CURRICULUM RESOURCES
Civil Rights
- Civil Rights: Then & Now
- The Supreme Court: Civil Rights & Civil Liberties
- Civil Rights
- American Experience: Civil Rights
- The Lowdown: The Unfinished Business from the March on Washington and the Civil Rights Movement
- The Civil Rights Landscape Today for People of Color
- The Economic Impact of Racial Discrimination
- Project C: Lessons from the American Civil Rights Movement
Black History & Historical Individuals
- Reconstruction: America After the Civil War with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
- The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross
- Georgia’s Black History Collection
- Black America Since MLK: And Still I Rise
- Coded Geographies: The Green Book | South Central Civic Action
- Lorraine Hansberry | A Raisin in the Sun: Jim Crow, Home Ownership, and the American Dream
- East Lake Meadows: Redlining | Stereotyping and the Narrative of the Welfare Queen
- How Many Americans Live in Poverty, and What Does That Actually Mean?
- What You Need to Know About Gentrification
- A New Gilded Age: Income Inequality in the United States Today
- Finding Your Roots: Ruth Simmons | Maya Rudolph | Sean Combs | Valerie Jarrett | Derek Jeter | Courtney B. Vance | Condoleeza Rice | Samuel L. Jackson | John Lewis | Wanda Sykes
- American Icons: Malcom X | Rosa Parks | Muhammed Ali | Sojourner Truth | George Washington Carver | Martin Luther King Jr. | Jackie Robinson
- American Masters: James Baldwin | Maya Angelou | Lorraine Hansberry | August Wilson | Zora Neale Hurston | Bill T. Jones | Sammy Davis Jr. | Ralph Ellison
Non-PBS Resources
Teaching Tolerance
The Conscious Kid
The Equal Justice Initiative
American Academy of Pediatrics’ HealthyChildren
We Need Diverse Books
- Resources for Race, Equity, Anti-Racism, & Inclusion
- Where to Find Diverse Books
- African American Literature Book Club
- The Brown Bookshelf
The Zinn Education Project
Social Justice Books
- Curated Booklists
- See What We See: Children’s and Young Adult Book Reviews
- Guide for Selecting Anti-Bias Children’s Books
Zero to Three
NAEYC
- Becoming Upended: Teaching and Learning about Race and Racism with Young Children and Their Families
- Understanding Anti-Bias Education: Bringing the Four Core Goals to Every Facet of Your Curriculum
- Equity Resources: Living the Statement
- Reading Your Way to a Culturally Responsive Classroom
- Building Anti-Bias Early Childhood Programs: The Role of the Leader
- Moving Beyond Anti-Bias Activities: Supporting the Development of Anti-Bias Practices
EmbraceRace.org
Current Events & News
- Memphis Police Take Specialized Approach to Mental Illness
- A Conversation with My Black Son: Understanding the History Behind Modern Racial Profiling
Frontline
- How the Deck is Stacked?
- Investigating the Newark Police Department
- Perspectives on Police Encounters
- The Return of School Segregation in Eight Charts
- Separate and Unequal | School Integration
- Exploring Racial Barriers at NASA
- PBS NewsHour Daily News Story
- Above the Noise
- Affirmative Action: Should Race Be a Factor in College Admissions?
- Why are Schools Still So Segregated?
- How Do Algorithms Predict Criminal Behavior?
- News and Media Literacy
- NYC in Mourning After Gunman Kills NYPD Officers
Protests
- Peaceful Protests
- Protest and Politics
- American Experience: Freedom Riders | The Tactic
- Freedom Rides of 1961
- March on Washington | Racial Equity: How Far Have We Come and How Far Do We Still Need to Go?
- The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution
- Theatre as Protest
- Protests at the White House
- Youth Explain Why They March
- Art for Change
- Decisions in the Streets
- Whose Streets?
Race
Bias
Resources for Adults Working with Young Children
PBS Parents
- How to Teach Young Children about Cultural Awareness & Diversity
- Learning to Appreciate Diversity Through Play
- Celebrate Family Diversity
- Talking to Kids: Families Come in All Shapes and Sizes
- Play Pretend: How to Include Others
- How to Teach Your Child to Be An “Includer”
- 7 Ways for Kids to Learn Empathy Through Acting
- Creating an Emotionally Supportive Home Environment
PBS LearningMedia (resources to share with young children)
- Collection: World Cultures Collection
- Video: Same/Different with Abby & Elmo
- Lesson: Arthur’s World Neighborhood
- Media Gallery: Alike & Different | Daniel Tiger’s Life’s Little Lessons
- Song: Count Me In | Sesame Street
- Song: What I Am | Sesame Street
- Song: You Are Special | Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood
- Arthur All About Community
- Appreciating & Understanding Diversity
- Civics: Making a Difference
PBS NewsHour
- 6 Books to Read with Your Kids That Celebrate Differences and Diversity
- 13-year old Found of #1000blackgirlbooks Shares Some of Her Favorite Reads
The Talk
- It’s Never too Early to Talk to Your Kids About Race
- How One Parent Talks to His Biracial Kids About Race