Standing Up for Change: A Community Story from Delaware

Sometimes, children notice things that feel unfair.

In this episode, we meet an 8-year-old girl named Shirley whose bus rides—and school experiences—were very different from others in her town.

We follow Shirley and her mother, Sarah, as they look for help in solving a problem in their community. Through careful looking and reflection, children explore real photographs and a powerful letter to uncover how this family stood up for fairness—and how their actions helped spark a big change.

As they examine clues, children practice asking questions, noticing details, and thinking deeply about what life was like for children long ago. They consider how people worked together to make things better, and how small actions—like writing a letter—can lead to big changes.

"Standing Up for Change: A Community Story from Delaware" is designed for K-3 children and typically takes about 8-10 minutes to play.

It’s ideal for teacher-facilitated interactions in small groups or whole class settings, with options for students to revisit individually or in small groups. For educators, the Teacher’s Guide offers ideas for implementation and additional resources.

This episode, like all KidCitizen episodes, is free for students and teachers with support from the Library of Congress.

It is available on Macs, PCs, Chromebooks, and iOS or Android tablets—no sign-in required!

This episode was produced as a collaboration between KidCitizen, the Social Studies Coalition of Delaware, and the Brandywine, Christina and Red Clay Delaware school districts. The project is supported by a grant from the Teaching with Primary Sources program of the Library of Congress.

Citations: Berson, I. R., Berson, M. J., Golder, H., Prueter, E., Szymanski, J., & Snow, B. (2026). Standing up for change: A community story from Delaware [App]. Newburyport, MA: Bert Snow & Co. Retrieved from KidCitizen, a Congress, Civic Participation, and Primary Sources Project from the Library of Congress, https://www.kidcitizen.net/