As a regular feature of the blog this year, I will be posting monthly about how Quakerism is being taught throughout the School.
The September focus has been on Meeting for Worship and the Peace Testimony. We started on the first day of school when grades 1-5 gathered for Meeting at the end of the day. It is always nice to see everyone in the same place on that morning, and it is also an appropriate way to begin the year since Meeting is so central to the life of our school. I read We’re Going to Meeting for Worship (by Abby Hadley, illustrated by Diane Edwards-Lavoy) as a way of introducing what Meeting is all about, especially for those new to our school. The following week, teachers continued to talk with their classes about why we go to Meeting for Worship and introduced some centering exercises before coming over to the Meeting House.
This morning we celebrated United Nations International Day of Peace. We gathered on the lawn to sing songs of peace and to plant the pinwheels that each student made as part of the Pinwheels for Peace project – simple, beautiful expressions of our desire for calm, serenity, and freedom from conflict here at school, in our homes and communities, and around the world. The UN International Day of Peace occurs every year on September 21, which is this coming Sunday. For more ways that your family can participate, go to http://www.internationaldayofpeace.org/
We also rededicated our school’s peace pole, which needed to be relocated because of the construction of our new library and administration building. The peace pole’s new location is on the lawn near High Street and the new entrance. In this place it will be seen by students and parents coming to school every day as well as by the public going by. It is also near to one of our play spaces to remind children how to best handle those conflicts that can sometimes arise.
To wrap up this month’s focus on the Peace Testimony, Anne Moore will speak with grades 1-5 before Meeting next week about her experiences as a peace activist. A Quaker and resident of The Hickman, Anne is actively involved in the Nonviolent Peace Force.
The September focus has been on Meeting for Worship and the Peace Testimony. We started on the first day of school when grades 1-5 gathered for Meeting at the end of the day. It is always nice to see everyone in the same place on that morning, and it is also an appropriate way to begin the year since Meeting is so central to the life of our school. I read We’re Going to Meeting for Worship (by Abby Hadley, illustrated by Diane Edwards-Lavoy) as a way of introducing what Meeting is all about, especially for those new to our school. The following week, teachers continued to talk with their classes about why we go to Meeting for Worship and introduced some centering exercises before coming over to the Meeting House.
This morning we celebrated United Nations International Day of Peace. We gathered on the lawn to sing songs of peace and to plant the pinwheels that each student made as part of the Pinwheels for Peace project – simple, beautiful expressions of our desire for calm, serenity, and freedom from conflict here at school, in our homes and communities, and around the world. The UN International Day of Peace occurs every year on September 21, which is this coming Sunday. For more ways that your family can participate, go to http://www.internationaldayofpeace.org/
We also rededicated our school’s peace pole, which needed to be relocated because of the construction of our new library and administration building. The peace pole’s new location is on the lawn near High Street and the new entrance. In this place it will be seen by students and parents coming to school every day as well as by the public going by. It is also near to one of our play spaces to remind children how to best handle those conflicts that can sometimes arise.
To wrap up this month’s focus on the Peace Testimony, Anne Moore will speak with grades 1-5 before Meeting next week about her experiences as a peace activist. A Quaker and resident of The Hickman, Anne is actively involved in the Nonviolent Peace Force.
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1 comment:
I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed the Peace celebration. It was wonderful. The financial markets and the economy have been so chaotic recently, and it was such a great break to focus on the kids and a broader message of peace.
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