Going to the National Association of Independent Schools' People of Color Conference (POCC) this week? Catch a session with SEED leaders, attend the book signing for the new Diversity Work in Independent Schools (which includes a contribution about SEED), or just be on the lookout for SEED leaders so you can chat or say hi.

This post is by Allison Spire, a SEED leader and K-1 teacher at Our Community School in Chatsworth, California.

Since attending SEED New Leaders’ Week, I can no longer teach the traditional pilgrim stories (the single story) I have always known. I keep hearing the voice of Chimamanda Adichie saying in her video (in that beautiful voice), "Start the story with the arrows of the Native Americans, and not with the arrival of the British, and you have an entirely different story." At first, since I had not had an opportunity to develop new curriculum, I simply focused on a general theme of "being thankful." I believed that was, at least, better than teaching the single story—until I could get my act together.

SEED Co-director Emmy Howe wrote recently at the Wellesley Centers for Women blog about "Creating Space for More Than Tolerance" in schools. We hope you'll go read about her own and her daughter's experiences, and how she believes teachers can create space for tolerance in their classrooms.