An Educator's Guide to Creating Culturally Responsive Classrooms
This teaching guidebook will help educators navigate emerging best practices to center historically marginalized voices and perspectives in middle, secondary, and post-secondary learning spaces. The author provides an accessible blueprint for utilizing histories, culturally responsive teaching, and community responsive pedagogy to build collaborative and equitable classrooms. Inspired by research steeped in oral histories, Bunch brings forth lessons from educators, merged with voices of students, to share impactful classroom practices. The un/HUSH framework asks us to unlearn the “hush” often associated with marginalized histories and stories. The framework considers the following guiding principles: (H) using histories not told to inform teaching practices, (U) unlearning behaviors and practices that do not empower marginalized voices, (S) creating classrooms and spaces that allow for stories to be shared, and (H) encouraging healing to occur from connection, collaboration, and relationships. Part narrative, part guidebook, this resource harnesses the collective power of us to improve outcomes for students.
Book Features:
- Guidance for novice and veteran teachers, with elements specifically designed for preservice educators.
- The use of histories and student voices to inform best practices for creating lessons and activities for middle, high school, and college classrooms.
- A teaching framework for amplifying student voices through perspective sharing and cultural responsiveness.
- An abundance of user-friendly scaffolding, graphics, lesson plans, and resources for implementation.
- Poetry by renowned poets Claudia Rankine, Evie Shockley, Ashley Jones, Jordan Stempleman, Cole Swensen, Emily Pettit, and others.
The Magnitude of Us Micro-credential Learning Series
The Magnitude of Us is a micro-credential learning series through the Illinois State Board of Education. This micro-credential allows educators to receive professional development hours for completing the learning series. Click here for more information.
Magnitude of Us Poem
Poem Credit: The Magnitude of Us poem by Will Adams (former student)
Videos
Praise for The Magnitude of Us
National Council for Teachers of English (NCTE) David H. Russell Award for Distinguished Research in the Teaching of English Award 2025
Society of Professors of Education Outstanding Book Award 2025
Foreword Review INDIES Book Award Winner 2025
“Bunch’s un/HUSH framework and guidebook can help all educators be guided by the voices of past educators. History, stories, unlearning, and healing are all aspects that work toward empowering children and sustaining them to not only learn unimpeded but gives them encouragement to be deeply involved in their own education and learning.”
—Dr. Joyce Ladner, Civil Rights Activist, Educator, Sociologist
“I learned early on what it meant to be misunderstood and miseducated, this is why I looked to teachers for guidance. I am confident that my experiences in Dr. Bunch’s classroom have shaped me into the curious and knowledgeable woman I strive to be. I believe that this book will help create similar experiences for students across the world and help shape the future of our educators.”
—Xyanne Purnell, Former Student
“The Magnitude of Us is a masterful text that brings to light once marginalized stories of the past to inspire our work in classrooms. Magisterially written and replete with resources and inspiring histories, Dr. Marlee Bunch weaves a rich tapestry of struggle, celebration, and inspiration that few scholars can achieve in a book that promises to improve our praxis.”