There can be no peace on earth until we are at peace with the earth. Please join in singing this song with your students, your neighbors, your friends, your relatives, and your children. Then take action. Save the Whales Save the Rainforest Save the Polar Bears Save the Elephants Plastic in our Oceans Ban Fracking […]
Cooperation is Tricky
Working cooperatively has been shown to be a highly effective teaching strategy in the classroom. Results from numerous research studies have shown improvement in academic performance, behavior, motivation, attendance, thinking skills, and peer relationships with those who are different from them. According to Roger and David Johnson of the Cooperative Learning Center, an effective cooperative […]
A Resolution for Peace
It’s a new year. Following in the tradition of the ancient Babylonians and Romans, it is time to make those pesky resolutions. What will you resolve to improve this coming year? Research by Richard Weisman on Quirkology has shown that the failure rate is 88%. However, when men set small goals such as losing 10 […]
The Gift of Mindfulness
A recent study done by the New York University College of Nursing found that after only 4 months of mindfulness training incarcerated boys between the ages of 16 and 18 improved their ability to pay attention and deal with social situations in positive way. This is the largest study yet on the effect of mindfulness training […]
Nelson Mandela: A Life from which to Learn
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Nelson Mandela Nelson Mandela has passed from this world leaving it a better place for having lived and fought for freedom and peace. He stands as a model for us all as a person who saw injustice and dedicated […]
A Season of Peace
At this time of year people think about peace. They send holiday cards with peace written on them in attractive lettering and seasonal colors or which have idyllic scenes of snowy nights and animals in the woods or which have gleeful snowman or motorcycle riding Santas. And yet there is no peace on earth. Joshua […]
What are you thankful for?
Robert Emmons in his book Thanks! How Practicing Gratitude Can Make You Happier cites research that shows that thinking about being thankful can raise happiness levels by 25% and that writing thankful thoughts in a journal leads to better sleep habits and an increase in energy. Wow! Let’s share that happiness with our children. The […]
We are Watching
We are watching. What would you do if you saw someone bullying someone else or someone hurting another person and that person was calling for help? There are three possibilities. Do nothing. Call for help. Take action. The first choice is to make no choice at all. Nothing changes. You have done nothing. The second choice is to call for help. […]
How to be an Ally
What does it mean to be an effective ally in a social movement? To be an ally means to be someone from outside an oppressed group who comes to help those who are discriminated against. The following ideas are summarized from a roundtable discussion broadcast on the radio program Making Contact and reprinted this week […]
What if they gave a war and nobody came?
What does it take to have a war? Soldiers – men and women willing to kill. A cause – any will do. Hatred – You can’t kill someone you love. Some times a children’s picture book can be more profound than the greatest philosopher. A children’s book puts into pictures and words concepts that are […]
3 Poetry Books for April
April is National Poetry Month. What books are you reading to your children? Are they full of hippity hoppity bunnies and spring flowers? Nothing wrong with that. But how about trying one or more of these. Here are three poetic books to share with your children. Each one is completely different from the other, but […]
