Peace Curriculum in Action


Ideas/Activities for Peace


Introduction:

Beloved Teachers and Students of Peace,

How grateful we are that you have heard the CALL and said yes to be instruments of Peace.

Ms. Atwood and students have been in study and practicing the principles of peace since school began in September.  Their studies, enthusiasm, and practice have shown them Peace and Non-Violence is possible!

Collectively, they have moved from a place of belief to knowing peace begins with them as individuals.

Recently I spoke with the students and I will share, YES, they are true ambassadors.  They are teaching their parents, siblings, and teammates how to be in the world as Peacekeepers.

The following pages are Ms. Atwood’s design of the 64 Days/64 Ways Curriculum.  Adopted by her class and implemented as the starting point of their studies.  Ms. Atwood is currently in the process of aligning California State Standards to the Curriculum, as she knows the value of time and studies.

Marlene, you are a blessing to all.  Thank you for saying YES to teaching and peacekeeping.

Kathleen Geier, President
East Bay Season for Peace/SNVOakland
www.SNVOakland.org


Personal

Day 1, Courage
The word “courage” comes from the French word for heart.  Courage is the ability to do what is in your heart.  Do you have the courage to be nonviolent?

Day 2, Smiling
Smiling is the most basic kind of peace work.  Your smile helps the world be peaceful.  Today, smile to at least three people.

Day 3, Appreciation
Peace in the world begins inside each person.  Appreciating who you are inside helps heal our planet.  Write down ten things that you appreciate about yourself.  Read aloud what you have written.

Day 4, Caring
Nonviolence toward the self is caring for oneself.  Real caring is not just what we say, but what we do.  Make a list of at least five ways that you can take better care of yourself.  Practice at least one today.

Day 5, Believing
Our beliefs shape our lives.  Today, believe you can be peaceful ALL DAY.  Say to yourself, “I can be peaceful today.”  Write what you believe about peace.

Day 6, Simplicity
When we have a lot of stuff in our lives, a lot of video games, a lot of T.V., a lot of toys all over the house, it’s hard to be peaceful.  Close your eyes, and ask yourself, “How can I make my life simpler so I can be more peaceful and nonviolent?”  Now write down two ways you are going to make your life simpler.

Day 7, Education
Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “We must remember that intelligence is not enough.  Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.”  The complete education teaches how to live by the principles which benefit us and the people around us.  Today, find a book or go to a website and read what Gandhi or Martin Luther King, Jr. said about living a peaceful life.

Day 8, Healing
Maya Angelou is an African-American woman who turned a traumatic, violent childhood experience into a reason to be creative and bring peace to the world.  Now she is a writer, poet, activist, and professor.  Today, write down something painful and violent that happened to you or someone you know.  Now write down 2 ways you can use this painful memory to become a more creative and peaceful person.

Day 9, Dreaming
Martin Luther King, Jr. had a great dream.  What is your own dream for peace?  Write it down.

Day 10, Faith
When Caesar Chavez was organizing farm workers, he taught them to say, “Si, se puede,” “Yes, it is possible,” when they didn’t know how they would overcome an obstacle.  Today let’s say, “Yes, it is possible,” to every obstacle we meet.  Now, write down three things that are hard for you.  After each one, write “It is possible for me to overcome this obstacle and be successful.”

Day 11, Contemplation
For three minutes we are going to practice contemplation.  Close your eyes.  Relax.  Breathe deeply.  Think about good things.  Now open your eyes and write down your good thoughts.

Day 12, Groundedness
Gandhi said, “To forget how to dig the earth and tend the soil is to forget ourselves.”  This is how we are going to feel grounded, like a tree planted in the earth.  Stand up straight and close your eyes.  Imagine your body is a tree.  Send down roots into the soil, feel the sun shining from above.  Feel your branches and leaves blowing in the wind.  Now open your eyes and draw a picture of a tree.

Day 13, Creativity
You must create in order to be a whole human being.  Today you will have ten minutes to create something out of clay that expresses your feelings about nonviolence.

Day 14, Humility
Making mistakes is a part of learning and growing.  Today, remember one mistake you made and think about what you learned from it.  Now draw a picture showing yourself learning from your mistake.

Day 15, Reverence
Did you ever see something so beautiful that it took your breath away?  Today we will take a five-minute walk outside and be with the sky, the grass, the trees, the flowers and the birds in silence.

Day 16, Gratitude
Write a thank-you letter to someone who deserves thanks.

Day 17, Integrity
Integrity means doing the right thing.  Write a short story about a time when you listened to your heart when the people around you were doing something else.

Day 18, Freedom
“When people decide they want to be free, there is nothing that can stop them.” - Bishop Desmond Tutu
“To be free is to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.” – Nelson Mandela
These are definitions of freedom from two famous world leaders.  What is your definition of freedom?  Write a haiku poem about freedom.

Day 19, Acceptance
Today is a day to accept yourself just as you are.  You are on the earth to do something no one has ever done before.  For each letter in your name, write an adjective describing how special you are.

Day 20, Self-Forgiveness
You are greater than any mistake you ever made.  What are some things that make you upset with yourself.  Write an apology letter to yourself for anything you have ever done to yourself that you wish you hadn’t, ways you have disappointed yourself and not fully lived up to your potential.  Mail it to yourself at home and when it arrives, read it in a quiet place.

Day 21, Inspiration
Think about somebody you know who lives a nonviolent life.  What are some of the things they do that lets you know they’re practicing nonviolence?  Write down 5 ways you can be nonviolent and inspire the people around you.

Day 22, Mission
“My life is my message,”  Gandhi said.  Gandhi’s mission was to be nonviolent.  What is your life mission?  Draw a picture of yourself living your mission.

Day 23, Prayer
“Prayer from the heart can achieve what nothing else in the world can,” said Gandhi.  Begin and end today with a prayer for peace.  Let peace begin with you.


Interpersonal

Day 24, Harmony
Choosing not to engage in any form of gossip today contributes to harmony.  Today, don’t find fault with anyone.  Look for the good in yourself and others.  If you must say something about another person, be sure it’s kind and caring.

Day 25, Friendliness
Do you know that strangers are simply friends you haven’t met yet?  This means that everyone in your school and in your community is your friend.  Go up to someone you haven’t met yet and say, “Hi friend.”

Day 26, Respect
Draw a picture of someone for whom you have a great deal of respect.  Frame the picture with words that describe this person.

Day 27, Generosity
Mother Teresa worked in India helping the poorest of the poor.  She said, “There is a hidden poverty which is worse than lack of money.  It is the poverty of the heart.”  Today, make a gift certificate for your Mom or Dad.  Offer them a free car wash, to vacuum the living room or clean the kitchen, or give them some other simple surprise that will make their day.  Watch to see how your generous gift comes back to you.

Day 28 Listening
Do you know how to really listen to another person?  Do you know how to give another person your full attention, as if nothing else matters than what the other person is saying?  Do you know how to look directly at the person who is speaking, without thinking about other things?  Do you now how to keep your body still while you’re listening?

Choose a partner.  The first person talks for 2 minutes while the other only listens.  When the speaker is finished, the listener says, “Thank you.”  Then the listener tells the speaker what he/she heard.  Then switch roles.

Day 29 Forgiveness
When we forgive, we do not say that hurtful behavior is OK.  When we realize that there is something within us that is more important than this hurtful experience, we are free to let go of the past and move on with our lives. Today, write a letter of forgiveness to someone.  You do not have to mail it.

Day 30 Amends
Making amends means apologizing to someone you hurt and really meaning it.  Choose a partner and tell this person something you think you did that may have hurt someone else.  Your partner will pretend to be the person you hurt.  Make amends, pretending to say you’re sorry and really meaning it.  Now ask your partner how that felt?  What do you believe the outcome could be if world leaders would learn to make amends?

Day 31 Praising
Appreciation helps people grow.  Turn to the person to your right and tell them something you like and appreciate about them.  Now turn to the person to your left and tell this person something you like and appreciate about them.

Day 32, Patience
Caesar Chavez said, “Nonviolence is not inaction.  It is hard work.  It is the patience to win.”  Think of something you would really like to accomplish.  Now choose to be patient by writing down 3 ways you can use your waiting time in a positive way.

Day 33, Acknowledgment
Write a short story about someone you know who has made a difference in your life.  Be sure you write about the qualities that make this person special.  Now give your story to this special person.

Day 34, Love
Gandhi wrote, “Nonviolence is based on the assumption that people respond to love and kindness.”  Today, write a short story about enemies who become friends.

Day 35, Understanding
The Vietnamese teacher Thich Nhat Hanh says, “When you understand, you cannot help but love.”  Use watercolors to describe the feeling of understanding.  When the page is filled with color, write a sentence about a time when you were understood.  Display your drawing so other people can see it.

Day 36, Mindfulness
Mindfulness is thinking about what you’re doing and knowing why you’re doing it.  Choose something simple to do, such as eating a piece of fruit.  Bring you complete attention to it.  Don’t allow yourself to talk to anyone or think of anything else except  what you’re doing.  Notice what your hands do, the way the food feels in your mouth, the taste, the texture, the idea of nourishing your body.  Is this different from the way you normally eat?  Practice being mindful in everything you do today.

Day 37, Graciousness
Create a skit with at least 3 other people to show the difference between graciousness and selfishness.  Can you see how graciousness adds to nonviolence?

Day 38, Kindness
Today, practice random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty.  Do something kind for someone for no reason other than to be kind; bring beauty to a place where it is needed without letting anyone know that you
were the one who did it.  Then write a short paper on how it felt.

Day 39, Dialogue
We might not always agree with other people, but when we really listen to what they have to say we are having a dialogue.  We never argue in a dialogue.  We say what we think and then we listen to the other person so we can understand what they think and learn from them.  Choose a partner and talk about something you usually disagree about.  Have a dialogue instead of a disagreement or argument.

Day 40, Unity
Oakland is made of a diverse group of people who have different opinions, who look different, and who speak many different languages.  Today, think of someone who looks different from you.  Now look beyond these outer differences for the unity which is inside.  There is peace and nonviolence in unity.

Day 41, Openness
There is a Turkish proverb which says, “He who builds himself a fence, fences out more than he fences in.”  If you don’t listen to someone because they look different or have different ideas than you, you’re building a fence around yourself and you’re missing out on having a new friend and learning something new.  Find somebody who you never wanted to talk to before.  Find a way to have a conversation with them.

Day 42, Accountability
Be accountable for your words today.  Make a list of the thoughts you think and the words you speak that are violent.  Every time you become aware of your violent thoughts or words, say to yourself “delete” and start again.

Day 43, Uniqueness
Do something that shows how unique you are.  Draw a picture.  Sing a song.  Dance.  Write a story.

Day 44, Cooperation
When we work together we are stronger than when we work alone.  Find a very heavy object.  Try to pick it up by yourself.  Now pick it up with 3 or 4 other people.  How did working together with other people help make this task easier for you?

Day 45, Mastery
To practice nonviolence you must learn to master your anger.  Here’s how to practice:  think of something that gets you angry.  Say to yourself, “I must not say or do anything until I become calm.  I will calm myself down by counting backwards from 10.”  Now breathe deeply, silently counting backwards from 10.  Now decide what action to take.  If you do this whenever you become angry, you’ll become a master of your emotions and a master of nonviolence.

Day 46, Compassion
Mother Teresa told us to “find someone who thinks he is alone and let him know that he is not.”  Today, do as Mother Teresa suggests.  Find someone who is alone during recess and ask him or her if you can be their friend.

Community

Day 47, Disarmament
Find a partner.  Talk to him or her about what the world would be like if there were no weapons nor any need for them.  Draw a picture showing life without weapons.

Day 48, Ecology
Value the earth today by using at least one recycled product or by recycling a product.  Practice reducing, reusing, and recycling the products you use.

Day 49, Honor
Before each meal today, stop to think about  all the people who brought the food to you.  Silently say to them, “I honor your.”  Bless the earth for its wonderful food.  Silently tell the earth, “Thank you.”

Day 50, Choice
“We always have a choice.”  Do you think this statement is true?  Do you ever feel as if you don’t have a choice?  Do you ever feel you must be violent?  Write about your thoughts.  What do you need to always choose nonviolence?

Day 51, Advocacy
“When someone stands up to violence,” says Thich Nhat Hanh, “a force for change is released.”  Today, choose to be an advocate for nonviolence.  Whenever you see someone being treated unfairly, think of a way to speak up for the person.  Decide right now that you will be the one to stop the violence and release peace into the world.

Day 52, Equality
The Constitution of the United States says that all people are equal, and all people have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  Do you think everyone in Oakland is treated equally?  If not, what can you do to change this?  Discuss this with your partner.

Day 53, Action
Robert Kennedy, a United States politician who was assassinated, said, “Each of us can work to change a small portion of events and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation.”  Today, think of one small way to make a change that will contribute to the well-being of Oakland.  Make a commitment to yourself to do it.

Day 54, Giving
Practice giving by sharing time, energy and things with those in need.  As soon as you get home today, clean your room and look for things you don’t use anymore.  Then give those things to someone who can use them.

Day 55, Responsibility
The quality of Oakland starts with you.  Take responsibility for the quality of our community.  Today, pick up trash that is not yours.  Every little bit helps.

Day 56, Self-Sufficiency
People need the dignity of work and the opportunity to provide for themselves.  Economic self-sufficiency is a requirement for a nonviolent world.  Today, think about the job you will have when you grew up.  Now, decide to work hard in school so you can achieve this goal and become self-sufficient.

Day 57, Service
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "Everybody can be great, because anybody can serve.  You only need a heart full of grace and a soul generated by love."  Choose one thing you will do today to help somebody at home, in school, or in your community.  Write a paragraph about it.  Remember to do it!

Day 58, Citizenship
To be a citizen means to help your community be the best it can be.  You are a member of many communities:  your family, your class, your school, your place of worship, Oakland, the United States.  Write a paragraph about one way you will help improve your community today.  Remember to do it!

Day 59, Intervention
Alcohol abuse and drug abuse both cause violence and are a consequence of violence.  If you know someone who is abusing alcohol or drugs, can you encourage them to get educated, get help, get sober and get free from drugs?

Day 60, Witnessing
Those who practice nonviolence look at injustice or cruelty and think, it is possible for this situation to be different.  When you see injustice, what can you say or do to bring about a peaceful change?  Write down your thoughts.

Day 61, Peace
Thich Nhat Hanh wrote, “Practice watering seeds of joy and peace and not just seeds of anger and violence, and the elements of war in all of us will be transformed.”  You water seeds of anger and violence by deciding to stay angry and act violently.  You water seeds of joy and peace by deciding to be peaceful, no matter what is happening to you.  Draw a picture of yourself watering seeds of joy and peace.

Day 62, Commitment
Spend a minute thinking about your commitment to nonviolence.  Now turn to the person next to you and tell them what you are willing to do to always be nonviolent.

Day 63, Release
Today look back on how far we have come during this 64 day practice of nonviolence.  Release the weight of your old judgments of yourself and others, and the idea that world peace is not possible.  Now say out loud, “I DO MAKE A DIFFERNECE!”

Day 64, Celebration
Rejoice in the work that you have done.  Celebrate the journey that you have made with countless others who believe that every individual can move the world in the direction of peace with their nonviolent choices and actions.  Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.



Copyright @ 2004 Marlene Klein-Atwood

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the written permission of the author.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Permission granted to SNVOakland to further the teachings of Peace