Peace Education Lesson Plans

Rebecca Janke

One of the most helpful tools for me during my years in the classroom was having access to new write-ups of lessons. Every time I found one in an AMS or AMI publication I was thrilled to add it to my Montessori albums.

Coupling that recognition with the fact that peace education is a leading-edge movement in education today, I have decided to focus on writing peace education lessons that can stand alone or be infused into existing curricula.

My intent is to write them in the Montessori lesson format so that you can add them to your Montessori albums.

If you have peace education exercises that you would like to contribute to this collection, send them to me as an e-mail attachment to pe...@umn.edu. If you are not interested in writing but want to be on the receiving end of your colleagues' contributions, e-mail me and I'll put you on the Peace Education Network list and send them to you as they come in.

The Great Tree of Peace

Curriculum Area: Language Arts

Topic: Use of Quotation Marks

Age: 4-9

Introduction

Words contain a lot of power. It is the same kind of power that is found in a seed.. Power that makes a small plant germ take hold on an inhospitable rock ledge and grow there into a sturdy tree.. Power that causes tender green plants to rise up out of the dark graves and break through a blacktop crust.

Every time a word about peace is read or spoken, a thought of peace stirred, or an image of peace created in the mind, peace comes a little closer. Quotations are like seeds of peace that are suitable for "direct sowing." First they need to be composted in the thought process of the mind-where they can be allowed to germinate, push through the soil and make their presence known.

Many have gone before us who have contributed such "seeds of peace" through their words of wisdom based on life experience and deep reflection. It behooves us to make them come alive through study, reflection and applied living.

Goals

1. Look for peace in our daily lives and keep a record of what we see.

2. Learn how to use quotation marks.

3. Practice penmanship and absorb peace quotations through muscle memory.

4. Learn peace ideas from those who have gone before us.

5. Share insights gained from applying words of peace and how they help cultivate a culture of peace and nonviolence .

Materials

1. Supply of handwriting paper with space at top for drawing

2. Books of peace in classroom library area

3. Age-appropriate peace quotations from peacemakers of the past, each one written in cursive on handwriting paper backed on construction paper and laminated. Include one that says, "Peace is all around us," by Thich Nhat Hahn (pronounced Tic).

4. Pencils

5. Tree branch secured firmly in a pot of plaster of Paris

6. Metal insets and metal inset paper

8. Paper punch

9. String

10. Scissors

11. Glitter/and or drymarkers

12. Glue

Presentation I: Preparing the Seeds of Peace (Large Group Activity)

1. Congratulate the children on all the words they have learned to speak thus far in their lives.

2. Explain that words have power-they have the power to share kind thoughts, hurt another's feelings, share new information, teach a new skill, etc. Ask what else words have the power to do and record children's comments on large chart paper.

3. Go on to say, "One word that people have been exploring since the beginning of time has been the word 'peace.' They've been doing this because they want to know how they can make more peace in the world and solve problems in good ways. Throughout history people have recorded many ideas for peace. Some of their words have been put into quotations."

4. Read one of the peace quotes that you have prepared. "These marks at the beginning and the end of the sentence are called quotation marks. We put these marks around words that people actually say."

5. "A famous person, Thich Nhat Hanh (pronounced Tic), a Vietnamese monk, said this. (Show quote) 'Peace is all around us.' He believes that when we look around we can find peace in lots of places. For example, when we look out the window and see the sun shining on the plants, which helps the plants to grow, this is peace. When we hear birds singing we know we are in the presence of peace. When we smell the food that is being cooked in the kitchen by the people we love, that is peace."

6. "In the language area you will find a new tray of paper which has space at the top to draw a picture of peace with space at the bottom to write your quote for peace. This is what I drew and here is my peace quotation. See how I put the quotation marks at the beginning and the end of what I said." (Showing the children what you noticed when you look for peace gives them the knowledge that you are more than their teacher, you are a fellow peacemaker).

7. "Before we go to work today lets take a few minutes for those who want to share a time they saw, heard, touched, tasted or smelled something peaceful."

8. Once your quotation paper is finished you can put it in our workbasket and I'll put them up in the classroom so we can celebrate all the ways we can find peace in our lives and the visitors to our communities will be able to see and celebrate peace in new ways from your work.

Presentation II-Growing the Great Tree of Peace

1. Now that the children have a deeper understanding of peace and have generated their own peace quotes, it is time to expose them to others' writing.

2. "It's exciting to see all the different ways there are to experience peace." (Refer to the children's posted work from presentation 1). "In addition to peace quotes, some people have written whole books about peace. Some of them are now in our classroom library. This one is titled, ____________ and is written by _____________." (See Additional Reading below or www.humanrightsandpeacestore.org for suggested peace education titles)

3. "Let's see what this author has to say about peace." (Read the story.) After reading the story ask the children, "What did this story lead you to think about? What words did you like in this story? How did the words in this story help make peace?"

4. "I like to save words and quotations about peace. I have put some of my favorites on these laminated handwriting sheets. They say _________, _________, _______, _____, _______. They will be on the _______ shelf so you have another way to practice your handwriting. Just imagine. You can practice your handwriting with peace!"

5. "From now on, whenever you find or hear a word about peace that you like, you can add it to our Great Tree of Peace."(Show the tree branch planted firmly in plaster of Paris with a label on the container that says Great Tree of Peace). Demonstrate and say, "You can draw a metal inset shape, cut it out and write your word on it. Take the paper punch and put a hole in the top. Put a string through it. If you like, you can add glitter or drymarker around the edges and then hang it on our Great Tree of Peace."

Empowerment of the Children

1. Becoming aware of the power of language to cultivate a culture of peace

2. Being able to see and celebrate peace which research shows contributes to one's resiliency

3. Comfort in knowing that people all over the world write about peace and find ways to solve problems nonviolently

Points of Interest

1. Learning a new punctuation mark

2. Making quotation marks

3. Communicating through writing what one sees, hears, tastes, smells and touches regarding peace

4. Having one's peace work contribute to the culture of peace in the community

5. Helping the Great Tree of Peace grow through their efforts

6. Decorating their words of peace

7. Discovering and reading others words of peace in the peace library

Language Development

1. Peace

2. Great Tree of Peace

3. Nonviolence

4. Quotes

5. Quotation marks

6. Culture of Peace

7. Seeds of peace with our words

8. Thich Nhat Hanh

9. Look for peace

10. Celebrate peace

Extensions and Variations

1. Tell the story of Deganawidah who planted the Great Tree of Peace. (See Peacemaker's A,B.C's for Young Children: A Guide for Teaching Conflict Resolution with a Peace Table by Rebecca Janke and Julie Peterson, 1994, pp. 23-24. Available from Montessori Services or www.humanrightsandpeacestore.org.

2. Make the children's quotations about peace into a book for the school or classroom library. Children select a name for their published book.

3. Use children's peace quotes and drawings in parent newsletters and invitations to school events.

4. Children make cards or a calendar of their work that can be sold as a fundraiser.

5. Plant a white oak tree that is like the one in the Deganawidah story.

6. Children do public speaking about their experiences when they applied a peace quote to their lives at home.

7. Children write stories about peace.

8. Children rewrite stories to make them into peace stories.

Additional Reading

(Available at www.humanrightsandpeacestore.org)

Peace Begins with You by Katherine Scholls

Our Gandhi , retold by Mylo Schaaf and illustrated by the kids of the Marin Friends First Day School

Places of Power by Michael Demunn

All Around Me I See by Laya Steinberg

Playing Wa r by Tilbury House

Say Something by Peggy Moss

Each Breath a Smile by Sister Susan based on teachings by Thich Nhat Hanh.

Rebecca Janke, M.Ed. and Montessori educator, is the co-founder and executive director of Growing Communities for Peace, a non-profit organization specializing in PreK-12 peace education. As a trainer, speaker and author she works directly in classrooms with children and provides peace education teacher pre-service and in-service opportunities nation-wide. She can be reached at 651-214-8282 or pe...@umn.edu.