The beginning of the school year is always filled with excitement, but this year our school initiated a project that is still taking on a life of its own.
My school, Scarsdale Middle School in Westchester, New York, embarked on a journey to bring peace and empathy to our school culture. The school celebrated International Day of Peace [2], which was established by a United Nations resolution in 1981.
This day provides an opportunity for individuals, organizations and nations to create practical acts of peace on a shared date. Our school created a peace promise that all the students signed, stating that they will “lay down their weapons of hate”, which meant that they will try to empathize with others and think about how their words could hurt someone else. We are trying to educate our students on the negative impact that words like “[that’s so] gay” or “retard” have in our school and in our community.
My 300 students also created a giant peace sign that we assembled on the front lawn of the school. The peace sign was made out of paper pinwheels. Each student created a pinwheel that was designed to communicate to others what peace means to them. It was a beautiful sight. We are hopeful that this promise of peace will set the tone for the year and possible change the culture of our school forever.
On Nov. 10, 2009 we will be participating in another day of peace -- Mix it Up at Lunch Day [3]. We are looking forward to the day, which will continue our theme of empathy and peace. Mix It Up at Lunch should not be just “one day.” It should be the start of something that your school should cultivate throughout the school year.
The Mix It Up Day conversations and activities should continue throughout the school year with the hope that it will change your school culture into a nurturing and safe environment for all.
How are you planning to make Mix It Up a year-round event at your school?
Links:
[1] http://www.tolerance.org/author/deena-paradiso
[2] http://www.internationaldayofpeace.org
[3] http://www.mixitup.org