Professional Development

Religious Diversity in the Classroom


Learning for Justice, then Teaching Tolerance, and the Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding teamed up to offer educators a free webinar series: Religious Diversity in the Classroom. The five-part series and accompanying resources (described in detail below) examine how awareness of religious diversity affects global citizenship, and how teaching about religion across grade levels and subject areas can help meet academic standards.


Webinar 1: What's Law Got To Do With It? 

There’s a lot of misinformation about what teachers are allowed to do when it comes to discussing religion in public school. But the truth is it’s both legal and important to teach about religion and the diversity of religious and nonreligious worldviews. What’s Law Got To Do With It? helps educators build a deeper understanding of the legal parameters relevant to including religion in the classroom.

After-session pack: A PDF with activities and lessons.

Follow-up blogs: A four-part series that responds to participants' questions and comments.


Webinar 2: Fostering a Culture of Respect

How do you help students of all religions—or no religion—feel safe, supported and accepted? By creating a classroom culture in which religious diversity is respected. That may sound complicated, but Fostering a Culture of Respect offers suggestions on how to do just that.

After-session pack: A PDF with activities and lessons. 

Follow-up blogs: A three-part series that responds to participants' questions and comments. 


Webinar 3: Applications for Elementary Educators

Are you looking for practical suggestions on how to explore religious diversity with elementary students? Applications for Elementary Educators offers recommendations on how to teach about religion and religious differences through critical literacy strategies and developmentally appropriate lesson plans and classroom activities—all while promoting empathy and respectful curiosity among students.

A transcription for this webinar can be found here

After-session pack: A PDF with activities and lessons.

Follow-up blog: Agree to (Respectfully) Disagree


Webinar 4: Applications for Middle Level Educators

Turn what's often called "a tough age" into an age of opportunity by actively promoting respect for differences, including religious differences. Applications for Middle Level Educators offers recommendations on how to implement lesson plans that enable students to express their own identities while learning about diverse religious and nonreligious beliefs and how to use a variety of resources to explore common themes among different religious traditions.

A transcription for this webinar can be found here

After-session pack: A PDF with activities and lessons. 

Follow-up blog: Families Have Much to Share


Webinar 5: Applications for High School Educators

This webinar, designed for high school educators of all subjects, offers practical suggestions for teaching about religious diversity in ways that reduce prejudice, promote mutual respect and help students prepare for college and career. High school students will soon enter a wider world where they will engage with individuals from vastly different religious and cultural backgrounds. Applications for High School Educators can help you get them ready!

Classroom materials available in the Resource List within the webinar.

Follow-up blogs: