Ask Maria: Discussing Politics with Your 2e Child

If you had asked me last month about the 2020 Presidential Election, I would have responded that I cannot wait for it to be over. I think most people would also have included that they cannot wait for 2020 to come to an end. 2020 has been a year not only punctuated by the usual natural disasters, earthquakes, wildfires, hurricanes, and tsunamis, but it has also been a year of many questions about human rights. The global civil unrest has been an opportunity for discussions about the rights of the seen and often unseen person. Do all lives matter? If they do, should we be doing things differently? This year we also added COVID-19 to the list of stressful, catastrophic occurrences.

What about the presidential election? For some, it also falls into this category because, during the process, the results and their consequences are also unknown. It is natural for adults to feel overwhelmed by the process, the news coverage of the debates, who did what, and how terrible the world will be if a person is elected or a prop is passed.

On Election Day, I noticed a man standing on the street corner with a sign that said, “No matter which party wins, let us come together and move forward as a nation!” Great idea, and one I hope will come to fruition. As an outsider, I have heard the arguments from both sides. What concerns me most is the rhetoric used to describe the politicians. These types of conversations impact the adults having them and the children listening to them. For 2e children who are often sensitive to the feelings and fears of those around them, this can increase their anxiety.

Many 2e students find politics fascinating, which makes an election year the perfect time to explore political issues and the propositio...

 

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About Maria Kennedy

Maria M. Kennedy first joined the Bridges Academy staff as the director of the Phoenix Program. After successfully growing the program each year, she has taken on the position of director of the Bridges Educational Group. A speaker, author, and advocate, Maria has been featured on "Bright and Quirky," as a panelist and educational expert. Several schools have used her webcast, 'Strengths, Challenges, and my journey as my son’s advocate," for teacher training. An educator for almost 30 years, Maria received her B.Ed. and M.Ed. in education from Manchester University (U.K). She earned Advanced Teacher Status from the Manchester Department of Education for her ability to develop curriculum and her skills within the classroom. She traveled internationally, teaching students and training teachers how to tap into the strengths of their gifted and challenged students. As a result of her work she has received several awards: “Teacher of the Year,” in North Carolina, “Golden Apple, Elementary Teacher of the Year,” in the Cayman Islands, and “New American Hero, an award for teaching and leadership excellence,” in Louisiana. Maria believes that to be an effective educator you must continue to learn and grow as a person. With this in mind, she constantly reads and works closely with leading educators in the field of 2e education. She enjoys writing and her first children’s book, "Do you see me? The diary of a 2e kid," will be available shortly.