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Teachers
spread Peace Builder Campaign to student body Armour Heights Public School pupils make their pledges One student promised not to argue with a sibling. Another pledged to say hello to a neighbour. Others got out their crayons and drew pictures to capture their visions of a peaceful community. When a local elementary school teacher became aware of the Peterborough Peace Builder Campaign, he saw an opportunity to engage pupils in peace-building efforts in their homes, in their schools and in their community. Paul Quinn also envisioned students making peace-building promises in connection with Remembrance Day celebrations held recently at Armour Heights Public School. The Peterborough Peace Builder Campaign calls on residents to make promises of non-violence and community building. The Peaceful Communities steering committee, which is made up of representatives from various city and county organizations, launched the campaign in October. A member of the steering committee mentioned the campaign to Paul, who then visited this news site to find out more. “We took it upon ourselves” to do something to rouse students into action, says Paul, a Grade 7 teacher. He and Grade 7 teacher Melanie Smedes decided to tie the Peace Builder Campaign into the Nov. 11 assembly at the school. “Remembrance Day is a time to remember those who gave up their lives for the sake of our freedom. What better way to commemorate those (than) to live the way they would like us to,” says Paul. The assembly began with a dramatic presentation of tableau, music and dance to illustrate the contrast between anger and peace. Students first presented messages of anger and aggression and then contradicted those with displays of co-operation and friendliness. Following the assembly, which captured the attention of younger students, Paul and Melanie handed out Peace Builder pledge forms to teachers in Kindergarten through to Grade 7 to discuss and distribute in their classrooms. Teachers talked to students “about the importance of peace in their day,” says Paul. Teachers asked students questions like, “What does a peaceful community look like?” Kindergarten and Grade 1 students drew pictures of peaceful communities while students in older grades made Peace Builder promises and submitted them to their teachers. Paul estimates about 200 students took part, including all of the students in his classroom. The school will be making a display for the drawings and promises in coming months. |
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