LBmuskoka
We Day
Posted on: 09/27/2011 07:22
From the We Day Website
Free The Children's We Day is more than just one day of celebration and inspiration. We Day is the movement of our time - a movement of young people leading local and global change.
Harnessing the energy and passion of a young community of changemakers, We Day brings youth together in an unparalleled setting to show them that they are not alone in their journey to make a difference.
Within stadiums full of cheering young people, We Day brings some of the greatest social issues of today to the forefront, and - no matter the cause, no matter the issue - provides ways in which every young person can find their place within the movement to create global change.
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From a letter to the Kielburgers in the Globe and Mail
So how does a parent harness all that excitement? We prescribe a heavy dose of engagement on that first evening. Hear them out and ask follow-up questions to show your support and to better understand where they’re at. Check in with them the next morning and offer your help with an action plan or whatever they need in the weeks ahead.
Ultimately, you want to channel their passion into a healthy and lasting appetite for social involvement. We’ve found success using a simple formula that works with even the most anti-algebra teen: Spark + Gift = Change. That is, match a child’s interest in a specific issue with something they’re good at and love to do, and it will lead to a fun and successful project for a better world.
Ask the Kielburgers: My daughter's excited to change the world. Now what?
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Then let them loose and change the world!
While we try to teach our children all about life,
Our children teach us what life is all about.
Angela Schwindt
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Comments
gecko46
Posted on: 09/27/2011 08:45
Maybe along the same lines - watched the interview of Michael Moore by Piers Morgan on CNN last evening. Michael talked about the youth movement that is part of the Wall Street Protests. He sees a growing youth movement across the country. Probably and hopefully will spark a similar movement in Canada.
Our youth see their future eroding and are speaking out....that's a very good thing.
LBmuskoka
Posted on: 09/28/2011 05:54
Gecko, I believe our youth are desperate to speak out. Our children absorb our adult fears and seek an outlet. If we do not provide a healthy one, they will find an alternative that may not be good for any of us.
On the local front, a public school student visiting my workplace yesterday excitedly asked me "Have you heard about We Day!" and I was happy to say that I had. He told me how some of his fellow students had won the chance, by writing a letter, to attend the Toronto event and with a sad tone said his wasn't chosen. I told him that next year I would help him with his letter - not write it, he had to do that but I would be his editor because "behind every great author, is an editor!"
So it is not just parents or teachers that can encourage our young people, it is all of us. Don't dismiss that child when he/she wants to talk about changing the world. Don't dash their idealism with adult cynicism. Listen to them because maybe they do have the answers - for it is clear that we adults don't.
LB
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We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today.
Stacia Tauscher