PAWS Equity and Inclusion Statement

 

Woodburn PAWS is an inclusive organization that welcomes and supports all of our students and families. All parents and legal guardians of children currently enrolled at Woodburn Elementary School are regular, full voting members of the Parents Association of Woodburn Students and may vote at any General Membership Meeting.

 

PAWS does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, gender or gender expression, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. Our group has no dues and families are automatically members because we don’t want any family to be excluded. Our organization is aligned with Camas School District's Equity and Inclusion policies, found here:

 

This statement was formally voted on and adopted by the PAWS Board during our April 2021 General Meeting.

 

 

Resources

Woodburn PAWS recognizes that our families are having valuable and important conversations around race, equity, belonging, disability, identity, and privilege. Because everyone can benefit from hearing each other's stories, we are including some links to resources and stories.

 

NOTICE: These resources contain links to websites operated by third parties. These links are provided for your convenience only and do not constitute or imply any endorsement or monitoring by PAWS. This list will be periodically updated.

 

  • Resources from our own Woodburn Librarian, Mrs. Sturges, include:
    • Her Virtual Bookshelf
    • Celebrate Us All (stories are chosen in hopes of providing opportunities for conversations and encouraging connectedness and framework and discussion questions are provided)
    • In addition, our school library has many great books from the reading lists linked below that students may check out. You can contact Mrs. Sturges for recommendations/availability.
  • Sites that address a variety of topics from racism to disability to identity and more:
    • The Camas Equity Team has created a website which includes a page for Family Resources
    • Learning for Justice (formerly Teaching Tolerance) has resources on a variety of topics for educators, but they are also great for parents
    • The Zinn Education Project promotes and supports the teaching of people’s history with free, downloadable lessons and articles organized by theme, time period, and grade level
    • A Kids Book About is a good book series to start family discussions on a number of topics, and now they also have A Kids Podcast About, all from A Kids Company About
    • A helpful article about microagressions (also available as audio) as "the ‘micro’ in microaggression doesn't mean that these acts can't have big, life-changing impacts. They can, which is all the more reason to address them when you see them."
    • This word bank from The Student Ignition Society offers kid-friendly definitions of social justice words like "ally" vs "accomplice"
  • Many groups publish children's book lists and/or where to find diverse books that feature characters from a variety of backgrounds and/or address a variety of topics and some of our favorites include: *Look at what titles you currently own or check out from the library, are all the books featuring diverse characters heavy or about trauma and hardship? Look for titles that also show kids from all different backgrounds and experiences also just being kids and experiencing and celebrating joy. And this Twitter thread started by @heisereads did a great job highlighting how we need to examine not only a book's message but also its illustrations with a critical eye because while it may be strong in message in one area (representation/an inclusive cast of characters, an important message, etc.), stereotypes/microaggressions/harm can be perpetuated in other areas (see talk in the thread about the eyes, but also the wheelchair, clothing, and adornment). Sometimes the whole book is a loss, but sometimes it can be a worthwhile exercise to engage with your young reader to help them examine the work critically and learn.

 

As we all learn and grow together, please reach out and share resources that you've found valuable and we may link to them here!