A country in crisis - a lesson in humanity
It is hard not to hear the news about the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti and although the pictures and stories are heart-wrenching some good can come out of the devastation. This would be a great time for a lesson based on helping others.
A geography lesson could be first, acknowledging where Haiti is on a map, understanding its culture and socio-economic status. A science lesson about how earthquakes are formed could be next. It would also be good to have a lesson about the Red Cross, how and why it was founded. A discussion about the word humanitarianism could then be followed by what we can do to help.
Obviously, depending on the age of the child, the lessons will only cover what their age group could handle. The important part of the lesson is to help them learn that they can get involved in helping others. Money can be saved whenever a certain task is done, or not done. For example, everytime you get a glass of water put a penny in the jar. This money can then be donated to the cause. A child could create a poster about a bottle drive or some other fundraising activity that will help them earn money to donate. They could even write a letter to relief workers who are involved in helping the country in crisis. An encouraging letter, or a letter of thanks could be a great comfort to all those volunteers!
It is good for children to learn about disasters although they don’t need to know all the horrible details. They should understand that things like this do happen, they should have an emergency disaster plan and they should understand that even the smallest of help can be a great comfort for those suffering.
The children of today can be the future leaders of tomorrow