Service Learning for All in May 2017
The PAT Service Learning Committee invites members of the BFS community to participate in the following special events in May 2017:
Saturday, May 13th – Children’s March – 11am-2pm – Cadman Plaza
(with a Thursday, May 11th Poster-Making Party – 3:30pm-5pm – in an Art Room at Pearl Street)
Lets’ give those who can’t vote yet a voice and a chance to feel empowered. This is a march for independent thought. This march is a space for kids to talk about issues in their own terms – and to teach them that they can have an influence on their future. We’re hoping to create a space for this community to celebrate inclusivity – of people, ideas…everything. Join us as we celebrate our children’s vision of the future and encourage independent thought for our youth! #childrensmarchnyc
We’re working to create a repository of resources for talking with our children – of all ages – in a way that gets them to ask questions – questions that go beyond what they’re hearing in the news, in their school yards, and at their kitchen tables. We are working with educators and other professionals from a variety of backgrounds and interests to support this endeavor. We’re planning to hear from some inspired kids and teens and sing along with several entertainers at the rally. If you’d like to participate with a group of BFS families, please contact PATServiceLearning@brooklynfriends.org
Sunday, May 21st – AIDS Walk
As part of their service learning and civic engagement curriculum this year, BFS 8th graders have been learning more about HIV/AIDS. Since their screening of a documentary about the activism of ACT-UP and a student-led collection for World AIDS Day in December, students have engaged in direct service by preparing a meal for the TOUCH dinner or conducting oral history interviews. Additionally, some 8th graders will be participating in the AIDS Walk on Sunday, May 21st and they welcome all members of the BFS community to participate on their team! More information will be shared by the 8th graders in the coming weeks. If you’d like to participate with your child, please save the date!
Thursday, May 25th – Joel Westheimer event
We are also very excited that our faculty and staff will engage in Professional Development on May 26, 2017 with internationally-acclaimed scholar Joel Westheimer, author of What Kind of Citizen? Educating Our Children for the Common Good. Joel Westheimer’s current research focuses on social studies education, citizenship education, social justice, and politics and education.
Our faculty will examine Westheimer’s model of three kinds of citizenship –Personally Responsible, Participatory, and Justice-oriented — as well as how each aligns with our work at Brooklyn Friends School. Should you be interested in attending a presentation for parents by Joel Westheimer the prior evening, on Thursday, May 25, 2017 from 6-7pm at the school, please contact Natania Kremer at nkremer@brooklynfriends.org.
ABOUT JOEL WESTHEIMER
Joel Westheimer is University Research Chair in Democracy and Education at the University of Ottawa. He is also the education columnist for CBC Radio’s Ottawa Morning and Ontario Today shows. He began his career teaching in the New York City Public School system before obtaining a Ph.D. from Stanford University. Westheimer’s award-winning books include Pledging Allegiance: The Politics of Patriotism in America’s Schools (foreword by the late Howard Zinn) and Among School Teachers: Community, Autonomy and Ideology in Teachers’ Work. His newest critically acclaimed book is What Kind of Citizen? Educating Our Children for the Common Good (Teachers College Press, 2015).