First activity:  Recognizing diversity - For a better world

Age: 6-7 years old

Criteria: 

Objectives and skills

• To identify / understand feelings and be able to manage them

• To develop empathy and a critical attitude

• To recognize and  respect diversity

• To develop strategies to tackle racism

• To become aware that we all need to be active citizens and seek justice and peace in the world

• To become familiar with the concepts of justice, solidarity and mutual benefit

• To be actively involved in decision making

Activity in steps

• Students are divided into pairs and look for three differences and three similarities
• They paint them
• The children recognize diversity and conceptualize it as variety in appearance, preferences
• Based on the readings of the books and the film we create a collage (eg the collage of friendship
• We write on craft paper words selected by the students in different languages, emphasizing their home languages ​​as well.
• They learn and play with these words in different languages.
• Based on the story of Irini (Peace), they draw scenes of story and re-narrate it
• They understand the feelings of the heroes/heroines of each story and portray them with their own paintings in a different language
• They do role playing and recognize the feelings of others
• After the questions on the story elements (How  did the  persons of the story behave towards Irini (Peace)?…How did the Good-hearted begave?…Why did they call him like that?..) the children are led to the recognition that the story may look like a fairy tale but through the question .. could it be true ... and so they find it out 
• A discussion follows about the racist attitudes which the refugee girl was faced with and the concept of racism is clarified  (is she inferior due to origin, religion, is she foreign or just different?) ... what makes us racists ... the consequences ... how we fight it... what we can do... write a poem ... let's read this first
• We read the poem by G. Ritsos "A Prayer"

 

Κάνε, καλέ Θεούλη, εμείς `μαστε καλά.
Κάνε, καλέ Θεούλη να `χουν όλα τα παιδάκια
ένα ποταμάκι γάλα,
να `χουν μπόλικα τραγούδια, αστεράκια
Κάνε να είναι όλοι καλά
Κάνε να έχουν όλα τα παιδιά
να μην ντρεπόμαστε για τη χαρά μας 

 

"May, dear God, we all be well

May , dear God, all children have

 a stream of milk,

have a lot of songs, little stars

May everyone be well

May all children have

let us not be ashamed of our joy"

 

We give the beginning:

"Dear God, we are well

May, dear God

all children have.."

And they continue ... writing their own poems

 

• They create drawing poems with a pigeon of Peace

• They create a poster entitled …"When Love Comes" where they draw beautiful acts of love and write messages - words (love, friendship, respect, support, help, acceptance ...).

• They write the recipe for volunteering or love with ingredients and procedure.

• They write the Alphabet of offering

• They create their  own "It's OK" (e.g. It's OK to be from Greece ... it's OK to be from another country ..)

 

• Games for Empathy :

 

"Silent Greetings"

The children walk around and exchange greetings, without talking, with a smile, with a small hand waving, with head movement, by looking at each other or moving their hand ... accompanied by music from different cultures.

"Show Me How You Feel"

The children are in a circle. They come one by one to the center and show with movement how they feel today, and then they say their name in a way that reveals their emotion without specifying it. The others interpret.

«Mirroring»

The children are in couples. One imitates the movement of the other, as if in a mirror, as closely as possible.

«I Walk Like You»

The leader walks as a giant, elderly, trained, tired, etc. and the others imitate him. The leader rings a bell and everyone freezes up. Someone else takes over as leader.

Possible further improvement/development

We invite parents who have come other countries to tell us about their experiences.

They talk about their culture and culture.

We locate the place of origin of each child on the map.

Technological support

Projector, maps, pictures

Link to the detailed program

Social and Environmental Studies, Social Education, Art, Language

Connect with sources

http://collections.internetmemory.org/unhcr/20171002021437/http://www.unhcr.gr/ekpaideysi/ekpaideytiko-yliko/eirini.html

http://collections.internetmemory.org/unhcr/20171002021437/http://www.unhcr.gr/fileadmin/Greece/Extras/education_symbiosis/Symbiosis_project_manual_final.pdf

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfoN2pSn2nU