Back to School: Fall Resource Roundup
As sponsors of Welcoming Week 2025, we’ve pulled together a collection of six standout resources to support community leaders, educators, and students this fall. With a new school year underway, schools and communities face both fresh opportunities and pressing challenges in supporting young people from immigrant and refugee backgrounds. These resources—from lesson plans and classroom strategies to community audits and policy guides—offer practical tools to strengthen belonging, build resilience, and expand understanding across classrooms and neighborhoods.
Recommended Resources
Community Belonging Audit: A Tool for Fostering Inclusive Environments
What it is:
A practical tool that helps community members evaluate and strengthen the sense of belonging in their towns or cities. It pays special attention to the experiences of young people, newcomers, and immigrant-origin individuals, offering a framework for reflection and action.
Why we recommend it:
A young person’s sense of belonging extends beyond the classroom. This audit is a valuable resource for educators, community leaders, and policymakers working toward more welcoming communities.
Explore Your Community’s Migration Stories
What it is:
A 2.5-day lesson that turns students into “story explorers” uncovering both visible and hidden migration narratives in their neighborhoods. Designed for grades 5–8, this hands’on curriculum blends mapping, observation, and critical inquiry to connect classroom learning with the surrounding community.
Why we recommend it:
The lesson equips students with tools for primary source analysis, structured observation, and historical thinking. By examining which migration stories are highlighted and which remain overlooked, young people gain a deeper awareness of how communities remember—and sometimes forget—their past.
Supporting Immigrant Students: Trauma-Informed, Relationship-Centered Strategies for Teachers
What it is:
This guide is built around an interview with Dr. Maryam Kia-Keating, a clinical psychologist who specializes in trauma and resilience. It offers educators practical, relationship-centered approaches for supporting immigrant-origin students, along with prompts for further reflection and action.
Why we recommend it:
Immigrant students are under severe stress, from worries about family safety to the chilling effects of enforcement actions on school attendance. These pressures can undermine their ability to focus and learn. This guide translates research into classroom-tested strategies, giving teachers concrete ways to create stability and care for students experiencing trauma.
Moving Stories: Building Connection and Belonging in Times of Division
What it is:
A trauma-informed curriculum guide that helps educators use migration narratives as a tool for strengthening classroom connections during times of division. It provides a framework for building community while keeping student safety at the forefront.
Why we recommend it:
The updated Moving Stories approach uses indirect storytelling techniques to protect student well-being while still drawing on the transformative power of personal narratives.
Introducing Belonging Alliance Clubs: A Call to Educators and Students
What it is:
This resource invites schools to pilot Belonging Alliance Clubs, student-led initiatives that build connection across differences. Inspired by Re-Imagining Migration’s approach, these clubs emphasize empathy, cultural exchange, and mutual respect as ways to strengthen community bonds.
Why we recommend it:
Research shows that alliance clubs can improve students’ sense of belonging and lead to better academic and social outcomes. By creating spaces for young people to share experiences and learn from one another, these clubs help break down barriers and build understanding.
Resources and Insights from National Newcomer Network (NNN) Leaders
What it is:
This collection brings together practical tools and guidance from the National Newcomer Network (NNN) and spotlighted resources curated by FWD.us. It features educator checklists, “know your rights” guides, safe-space strategies, legal explainers, and college access materials.
Why we recommend it:
Now more than ever, educators and community leaders need to keep pace with shifting policies and practices at both the local and national levels.
These six resources are just a starting point for the new school year. At Re-Imagining Migration, we’re continually curating tools, stories, and strategies to support educators and communities. If you’d like to keep receiving fresh insights and resources, we invite you to join our newsletter and be part of our growing network!
