More world food day resources

For every grain of rice
we are thankful
for thousands of workers.
For every drop of rain
we are thankful
for the earth's many blessings
 ~ one of our mealtime blessings

I came across the Kids Can Make a Difference website the other day.
Inspiring kids to end hunger and poverty in their communities, their country, and their world.

KIDS is a program of iEARN (International Education and Resource Network) the world's largest non-profit global network that enables teachers and youth to use the Internet and other technologies to collaborate on projects that enhance learning and make a difference in the world.

If you are looking for activities to do with kids make sure that you check out the Classroom Initiatives to see what some educators have done around the issue of hunger awareness with their students.

And this excellent resource from Mother's Acting Up outlines a classroom Hunger Banquet along with ideas for other activism education.
The World Food Day USA website has a great selection of links and activities including the UN's online fame called Food Force.

And this blog has some children's story books related ethical eating (mostly vegetarianism)
Some other ideas for families for World Food Day:
~ Tour a farm, CSA, or farmer's market and learn more about where our food comes from and why it is so important to support local food suppliers.
~ Deliver donations directly to the food bank.
~ Have an around-the-world-dinner with recipes from various regions of the world.
~ Try Grassroots International's challenge to eat for a day in your community for just $2 or investigate how food accessibility and poverty are intertwined even in North America through movements like Put Food In the Budget.
~ Discuss with your kids and then sign the Petition to End Hunger and the Starved for Attention Petition
~ Before your meal take a moment to try to think of and honour every set of hands your food may have passed through to reach your table.  Choose a blessing for your meal that reflects that. (I've listed some of our favourites below.)


Before we eat,
we turn our attention
to the bounty before us;
We are truly thankful for the gift of this meal
and for the richness of our lives.
May this food nourish our bodies
And the company of those we love
Nourish our spirits.

Thanks to the earth
thanks to the sun
thanks to the rain
for all they have done.
Thanks to the work
of heart and hand
That made this meal 
from the gifts of the land.

The great kindness challenge - August 14

From here:
The Great Kindness Challenge is one day devoted to performing as many acts of kindness as possible. Our goal this year is to have over one million children participate. It is our hope that this day will inspire a lifelong commitment to service and kindness.
From sunup to sundown, children around the world will accomplish simple, kind deeds using The Great Kindness Challenge Checklist.
The checklist features 50 acts of kindness to choose from. Click here to download the checklist. Then just do what you can on August 14. Even the simplest acts can make a big difference in someone's life. And you just might be amazed at how fun it can be.
Do you belong to a group that could participate, or would you like to form one? We invite you to use The Great Kindness Challenge to perform group acts of kindness and have your own events to honor this special day.

Let's make our world a more kind, loving and compassionate place for all.
 
Check the Great Kindness Challenge website for more ideas and this post for some resources.

Martin Luther King Jr Day

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.
~ Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Day is a wonderful time to talk to your children about racial issues - those in the past and those we still collectively face. It's also a great springboard for discussion peaceful methods of protest, and the power of dreams.

Resources
~ In remembrance of Martin [videorecording DVD]
Books:
~ Paths to peace : people who changed the world by Jane Breskin Zalben
~ Ten amazing people : and how they changed the world by Maura D Shaw
~ Martin's big words : the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. by Doreen Rappaport
~ Coretta Scott: Poetry by Ntozake Shange
~ As Good As Anybody by Richard Michelson
~ Our children can soar: a celebration of Rosa, Barack, and the pioneers of change by Michelle Cook
~ A Sweet Smell of Roses by Angela Johnson


Links:
holiday zone pages - excellent resource for activities and discussion starters for children
I have a Dream speech - transcript
link to video of I Have  a Dream speech
Seattle Times Education Pages - excellent resource for older children, includes timeline, background, articles and study guide
long list of links for teacher's lesson plans
more lesson plans
New York Times resource page

Celebrating MLK Day respectfully

Some links from Teaching Tolerance:


A Dream We Can All Share
Like King's dream, the events and people celebrated during February's Black History Month belong to all of us — they are lessons we all can learn from and take pride in.
For all children to appreciate this shared history, parents and caregivers must regularly reinforce those lessons at home.
No matter your color or background, here are suggestions to help you and your family embrace the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and Black History Month — beyond any single day or single month.

Do's and Don'ts of Celebrating MLK Day
The holiday must be substantive as well as symbolic. It must be more than a day of celebration . . . Let this holiday be a day of reflection, a day of teaching nonviolent philosophy and strategy, a day of getting involved in nonviolent action for social and economic progress."
~ Coretta Scott King