Working Toward Peace
Inspiration Book:
Alfred Nobel : the man behind the Peace Prize by Wargin, Kathy-jo - Sleeping Bear Press, p2009, c2009--660--Int Lvl: K-3--Rd Lvl: 3.0. An illustrated exploration of Alfred Nobel's invention of dynamite and how his feelings about how it was used led him to create the Nobel Prizes.
Rationale: My son was an exchange student in Sweden when he was a junior in high school and had the opportunity to attend the award ceremony for the Nobel Peace Prize. It was the highlight of his exchange year. The emphasis in this entry will be biography research about Americans who have won the Nobel Peace Prize. Of course, you could also use a similar approach to emphasize one of the other Nobel Prizes such as economics, medicine, chemistry, literature, etc. While the Inspiration Book is suitable reading for or to primary grades, the emphasis in this blog is biography research for third grade on up.
The Peace Prize is usually presented in December which would be a good time to use the Inspiration Book as an alternative to the assorted religious and ethnic holidays of that month as part of a unit about peace. The entire 2010 August/September issue of LibrarySparks (now OP) is filled with ideas for a unit about peace. Several culminating ideas for a study of peace and Alfred Nobel could include designing the criteria for a Student Peace Prize, researching a U.S. winner of the Peace Prize, then creating an acrostic poem about the person and a collage honoring the work of the recipient.
There are two bibliographies--only includes books about peace, the other about Nobel prizes. Use the peace titles as you see fit and as you need; use the Nobel Prize bibliography to continue developing this particular lesson. In other blog posts you will find lessons about specific Nobel Prize winners such as Wangari Maathai from Kenya.
The Nobel Prize website has extensive details about the Prize and the winners. We’ll use that site to gather biographical information about the winners and follow a lessons for each individual awardee. A small donation is recommended to download the entire lesson plan booklet.
Grades 3-8: It’s About Peace
Background: December has always been a busy time in my schools with lots of interruptions. As a result I use the Nobel Peace Laureate Project lessons at http://www.nobelpeacelaureates.org/teach_peace.html There is an individual lesson for each awardee except President Obama. I chose this approach because students can work at their own rate when their class or they individually can come to the library. It also allows them to work at home. The lessons also include recommended books, questions, and activities--each is about two pages in length.
Preparation:
Run off copies of each lesson. Have students select the person they will research by drawing blindly from the run-off lessons. A list of U.S. awardees is listed below.
U.S. Peace Prize winners--Laureate Biographies and Study Materials
• Barak Obama, former President of the United States—2009
• Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States—2007
• Jimmy Carter, former President of the United States—2002
• International Campaign to Ban Landmines—1997
• Jody Williams, activist—1997
• Elie Wiesel, author of works on the Holocaust—1986
• International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War—1985
• Henry Kissinger, U. S. Secretary of State—1973
• Norman Borlaug, plant biologist—1970
• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Minister and advocate of non-violence—1964
• Linus Pauling, chemist and opponent of nuclear weapons testing—1962
• George Marshall, Secretary of State—1953
• Ralph Bunche, United Nations diplomat—1950
• American Friends Service Committee —1947
• John Mott, peace activist—1946
• Emily Balch, peace activist—1946
• Cordell Hull, Secretary of State—1945
• Nicholas Murray Butler, President of Columbia University—1931
• Jane Addams, social worker—1931
• Frank Kellogg, Secretary of State—1929
• Charles Dawes, Banker and later Vice-President of the United States—1925
• Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States—1919
• Elihu Root, Diplomat and former U. S. Secretary of State—1912
• Theodore Roosevelt, President of the United States—1906
Introduction: What is dynamite? Is using dynamite usually considered peaceful? The man who invented dynamite was Alfred Nobel. Let’s learn a little about him.
Read aloud:
Alfred Nobel : the man behind the Peace Prize by Wargin, Kathy-jo - Sleeping Bear Press, p2009, c2009--660--Int Lvl: K-3--Rd Lvl: 3.0. An illustrated exploration of Alfred Nobel's invention of dynamite and how his feelings about how it was used led him to create the Nobel Prizes.
Nobel was really a peaceful person and set aside a lot of money from his estate to promote scholarly study and the promotion of peace. Approptiately each December, when the world seems to think about peace more, one person from around the world is chosen to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, the highest honor of the year.
Many U.S. citizens have won the award over the years. During the month each of you will learn more about one of the recipients. I’ve made a short research page for each of you. Working individually, you will have the remainder of the month to complete the study of your person. You may work on it when your class comes to the library or you may ask to come to the library individually before or after school or lunch. You may also work on it as homework. Your research needs to be completed by the last day of school before vacation. After vacation, we’ll work with your research and make an acrostic poem and collage of your person.
Allow worktime.
After Vacation: Working with the language arts, social studies or classroom teacher have students write an acrostic poem during that subject classtime. Working with the art teacher, have students make a collage representing the work of the awardee. Share both projects during the library or post both outside the library.
Related Peace Books:
What does peace feel like? by Radunsky, Vladimir — Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2004--303.6; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 2.9 Simple text and illustrations portray what peace looks, sounds, tastes, feels, and smells like to children around the world.
One peace : true stories of young activists by Wilson, Janet, 1952- — Orca Book Publishers, 2008--327.1; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 5.1 Profiles the work of children activists who are working for peace, including Craig Kielburger from Free the Children, Farlis Calle from the Colombian Children's Movement for Peace, and Kimmie Weeks from Voices of the Future.
Sharing our homeland : Palestinian and Jewish children at summer peace camp by Marx, Trish — Lee & Low Books, 2010--915.69406; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 6.6 A collection of photographs that reveal the budding friendship of two Israeli children, one Jewish and the other Palestinian, showing how they were able to overcome their differences and the longstanding conflicts of the region to share and play during their summer at Camp Peace. FREE Teaching Resources available for download from Follett.
Peaceful heroes by Winter, Jonah — Arthur A. Levine Books, 2009--920.02; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 6.9 Jesus of Nazareth -- Mahatma Gandhi -- Martin Luther King, Jr. -- Sojourner Truth -- Clara Barton -- Corrie ten Boom -- Ginetta Sagan -- Abdul Ghaffar Khan -- Oscar Romero -- Paul Rusesabagina -- Aung San Suu Kyi -- Meena Keshwar Kamal -- Marla Ruzicka -- William Feehan. Illustrations and text describe peaceful heroes, which are those who are willing to die for a cause, but not kill; and includes Jesus of Nazareth, Paul Rusesabagina, and others.
Paths to peace : people who changed the world by Zalben, Jane Breskin — Dutton Children's Books, 2006--920; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 7.5 Ralph Waldo Emerson -- Mahatma Gandhi -- Albert Einstein -- Eleanor Roosevelt -- Ralph Bunche -- Mother Teresa -- John Fitzgerald Kennedy -- Anwar El-Sadat -- Cesar Chavez -- Elie Wiesel -- Martin Luther King Jr -- Anne Frank -- The Dalai Lama -- Wangari Maathai -- Aung San Suu Kyi -- Princess Diana. Presents a collection of sixteen brief profiles of people who have helped make the world a better place, including Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Eleanor Roosevelt, Cesar Chavez, and more.
Women inventors who changed the world (Great Women Of Achievement) by Braun, Sandra — Rosen Central, 2012. Dewey: 609.2; Int Lvl: 5-8; Rd Lvl: 7.6. Madam C.J. Walker (Sarah Breedlove) -- Lise Meitner -- Lillian Moller Gilbreth -- Elizabeth Muriel MacGill -- Hedy Lamarr -- Gertrude Belle Elion -- Stephanie Kwolek -- Bette Nesmith Graham -- Patricia Bath -- Wendy Murphy -- Laurie Tandrup -- Glossary. Examines the lives of women inventors who changed the world, including Lise Meitner, Hedy Lamarr, and Laurie Tandrup.
Nobel Peace Prize Bibliography
As good as anybody : Martin Luther King Jr. and Abraham Joshua Heschel's amazing march towards freedom by Michelson, Richard — Alfred A. Knopf, 2008--323; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 4.1 Describes the experiences that influenced Martin Luther King, Jr., and Abraham Joshua Heschels's civil rights activism and discusses the friendship between the two men.
The girl from Chimel by Menchu, Rigoberta — Groundwood Books ,Distributed in the USA by Publishers Group West, 2005--972.8105; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 4.5 Presents a collection of illustrated stories that describe the world of the Mayan people of Guatemala before the time of the Conquest.
Seeds of change : planting a path to peace by Johnson, Jen Cullerton — Lee & Low Books, 2010--333.72; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 4.8 Examines the life of Kenyan Nobel Peace Prize-winner and environmentalist Wangari Maathai, who made a stand in the face of opposition to women's rights and started an effort to restore Kenya's ecosystem. FREE Teaching Resources available for download from Follett.
Wangari Maathai : the woman who planted millions of trees by Prevot, Franck — Charlesbridge, 2015. Dewey: 333.75; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 5.7. Tells the story of environmentalist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai.
Mandela : the rebel who led his nation to freedom by Kramer, Ann — National Geographic, c2005 p2008--968.06; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 6.5 Childhood on the Veldt -- Xhosa : a noble background -- Starting school -- Leaving Qunu -- Life in the Great Place -- European domination -- Becoming a man -- Boarding school -- Running away -- Johannesburg -- Politics and marriage -- Apartheid -- Defiance and treason -- On the run -- Life imprisonment -- Free Mandela! -- Release from prison -- Free elections -- Becoming President -- Retirement. Tells the life story of South African political leader Nelson Mandela, discussing the villages of his childhood, the Xhosa people, his education, his fight to end apartheid, his many years in prison, and his victory as president in South Africa's first democratic elections. FREE Teaching Resources available for download from Follett.
Twenty-two cents : Muhammad Yunus and the Village Bank by Yoo, Paula — Lee & Low Books Inc., 2014. Dewey: 332.1; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 6.5. A biography of Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, who from a young age was determined to make difference in the world and eventually revolutionized global antipoverty efforts by developing the innovative economic concept of micro-lending. Includes an afterword and author's sources
Nelson Mandela : South African revolutionary (Real-Life Story) by Gormley, Beatrice — Aladdin, 2015. Dewey: 968.06; Int Lvl: 5-8; Rd Lvl: 7.3. Chronicles the life and career of Nelson Mandela, a South African lawyer who became president of South Africa after fighting against years of injustices to his people.
Nobel's women of peace (Women's Hall Of Fame) by Benjamin, Michelle — Second Story Press, 2008. Dewey: 303.6; Int Lvl: 5-8; Rd Lvl: 8.9. Presents brief biographies of the twelve women who have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, including Wangari Maathai, Aung San Suu Kyi, and Mother Teresa.
Teacher Resources
Idea--collage to honor a recipient http://www.pizap.com
Teaching Guide at www.sleepingbearpress.com
-- Click on Teacher’s Guides tab, then search for specific title. Sleeping Bear provides detailed lesson plans (PDF) suitable for guided reading instruction and/or extensive study of one book.
Official Nobel Prize web site--Review of Winners and background of prize http://www.nobelprize.org/
evaluate the purpose and criteria for awarding the Nobel Peace Prize. ... This lesson contains a service project.
AHA Today: Nobel Peace Prize Curriculum Available on the Web
The materials consist of an introduction to the lesson plans for teachers, and an introduction to the Nobel Peace Prize.
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