As a black woman, it can be easy to enter a space like many D.C classrooms and make an assumption that you know and understand your students just because you share the same skin type. I know this assumption to be false. When we use an intersectional lens to view our identify, I can quickly identify the aspects in which my background and my culture differs from the students in front of me. 

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In front of my students and their families, I want to be humble. I don't want to be quick to make assumptions and I want to remember to always listen first. I hope to impart this lesson to my students as well. In my classroom, we have many students of different nationalities, and I want them to be able to learn and listen to the experiences and differences of their peers. 

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I hope to do this by allowing my students space to share and teach about what their home is like, the food they eat, the language the speak, etc. I want to impress upon my students that we all have something to learn from everyone and just because something is different than we are used to doesn't mean it is wrong. 

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In the next three months, I can one, continue to reflect as an individual about the biases and perspectives I am bringing in the classroom. Two, I can think about and start creating a "safe space" for my students to share aspects of their culture in the beginning of the school year. Realistically, I am thinking about how I can utilize morning meaning to be a space for this type of learning and listening.