Celebrating World Peace Day - What Can You Do For Peace
To celebrate today’s International Day of Peace, we’re looking at ways we can shape peace together and make a difference to the world.
Since 1981, United Nations (UN) has devoted 21 September to honour a day of non-violence and cease-fire around the world. This day is also commemorated through education and public awareness on matters related to peace.
This year’s theme ‘Shaping peace together’ invites everyone to unite, share your thoughts on weathering these extraordinary days, and heal our planet – changing it for the better. We may not be able to physically stand close to each other but we can still learn and dream together.
Let’s celebrate this day by spreading compassion, kindness and hope in the face of pandemic, let’s shape peace together.
Here are some ways we encourage our students to shape peace:
A good book
Reading about great peacemakers or books that centres on the idea of peace, is a good way to inspire you.
One of them is ‘Grandfather Gandhi’, a picture book for all ages written by Arun Gandhi and Bethany Hegedus, tells the remarkable story of how Mahatma Ghandi teaches his grandson to turn darkness into light in a uniquely personal and vibrantly illustrated tale that carries a message of peace.
Another book to consider is ‘A Little peace’, a book by Barbara Kerley that puts together photographs from all around the world with a simple reflective message about our responsibilities for finding and keeping peace on the planet.
The book gives thought-provoking views of the world our children will inherit, together with wise words and moving images, it offers a unique and enriching experience for every young reader.
Writing a short story on peace
Apart from reading, getting children and teenagers to write short stories on peace also gets their young minds thinking about the issues in the world and ways it can be achieved.
Sowing seeds of a world without fighting, possessions and greed from a young age will be key to our shared future. Children are like sponges that absorb new things easily, unlike us who get set in our ways and are less open to new or different ideas as we age.
That’s why introducing them to discussions of world peace and how they think it can be achieved through writing is key to our shared future.
Sing songs about peace with friends
Reading and writing doesn’t sound fun to you? Why not learn to sing about peace. Over the years, many songs have been written to evoke a feeling of how beautiful a world without wars and fighting can be.
“Imagine”, a classic by John Lennon that makes you take a moment to imagine a world without countries where there’s nothing to kill or die for, and imagine all the people living in peace.
A world without possessions, no need for greed or hunger, and imagine all the people sharing all the world. It may be a dream for one person but some day if you share that same dream, the world may just be as one.
Another you could listen to is Michael Jackson’s “Heal the world”, that calls upon the listener to heal the world, make it a better place for all of us, all over the world there are people dying and if you care enough for the living, you’d make it a better place for you and for me.
How are you celebrating today’s International Day of Peace?