Action Strategies for Younger Folks
By Christie McCullen, Headlands Institute, 2003
Theme "Taking Action: Getting Ideas, Getting Inspiration!"
Objectives
f Students will realize what it means to be an active citizen.
f Students will understand the breadth of actions one can take to make change in their community.
f Students will think critically to solve problems and learn different action strategies for combating environmental and social issues.
f Students will gather inspiration from Òyouth heroes.Ó
Grade Level 5-12
Outline
Activity 1- Raise Your Hands UpÉ (5-10 minutes)
As soon as all the students have sat down in the room, ask for total silence. Tell them they have a mission to find out what this EP is all about. You will be asking them a set of questions. They should follow the directions without talking, and at the end of the questions, they can raise their hand if they have an idea of what the main idea of the questions was. Feel free to skip any of the following or clarify them by giving examples. Then, as if youÕre the preacher trying to raise the spirits of a gospel congregation, begin by asking; ÒRaise your hands up if you wouldÉÓ
á Wear a button, ribbon, or T-shirt supporting a cause
á Think about where your food was grown.
á Write poetry or stories to express how you feel about something.
á Share your opinion with others, even if they disagree with you.
á Smile at people when you walk past them.
á Volunteer your free time to help an organization or a person in need.
á Take shorter showers to save water.
á Turn off the lights or machines when not in use to save energy
á Carpool, take the bus, bike, or walk to decrease pollution.
á Carry a re-usable cloth bag to the grocery store to save paper or plastic.
á Reuse the blank side of a piece of paper.
á Live in a tree to save it from being cut down.
á Help a blind person cross the street.
á Buy products made of recycled material, even if they were more expensive.
á Pick up litter in your neighborhood.
á Pick up someone elseÕs litter.
á Grow your own food.
á Be willing to be arrested for something you believe in.
á Fill out an evaluation or write a note for a suggestion box.
á Write a letter to a government official.
á Participate in a protest or a march to demonstrate what you believe in.
á Stop buying things from a company that did something you did not believe in.
Ask the students to turn to someone next to them and discuss what all these actions had in common. Have them raise their hand when they know. They will hopefully share comments like, "They are things you can do to show how you feel."
Make sure to mention that people have many choices in demonstrating how they feel, some choose more risky actions, like getting arrested. On the other hand, you can make an equal point by just talking to others. Martin Luther King Jr. is an example of someone who did both of these to express himself. Highlight that these were just a small list of ways people can create change in their communities, and that there are many more ways to make a difference. Ask them if anyone has a different example that they would like to share.
Hold up a sign that defines "democracy." Explain that in a democracy like the US, it is important for people to express how they feel. That way their opinions will affect how their representatives vote and create laws. Using a variety of techniques to express oneself is an especially effective tool for youth because they cannot vote for representatives or ballot measures yet. (For example, K-Mart used to sell bullets for guns. K-Mart owners decided to stop selling bullets when they were visited by two boys who were shot by bullets purchased in K-Mart. The boys, along with a news camera and a reporter, asked K-Mart to stop selling bullets. Because of their protest, K-Mart decided to stop selling bullets.) Perhaps insert a different story that is environment related, rather than violence/ gun control-related.
Explain that the next activity will allow them to express multiple ways to express how they feel about difficult issues and experiment with how to take action on those issues.
Activity 2- Situation Skits (40 minutes)
This activity allows the students to explore different ways of addressing different situations or issues and discovering the power of change. You tell the students that they will be broken up into groups of 4-7 (preferably 4) and each given a different situation. The group needs to think of at least three different ways one could confront such a situation, and then act out a skit to show everyone else. The skit should include all three different approaches to dealing with the situation.
You should also tone set for a non-offensive atmosphere. Some of the situations involve issues that students may have a difficult time approaching (e.g.; racism, religious discrimination, and physical disability discrimination). You should go to each group that is assigned to one of those intense situations, and reinforce your expectation for appropriate behavior.
Assign at least one chaperone to each skit group to help the students decipher appropriate and reasonable actions, in addition to keeping them on task and on time. Ask them to keep the skit to one minute, that way theyÕll last 2 minutes.
Also, assign one student per group a role of "Skit Director." This student narrates whenever necessary, by introducing the situation to the whole group, as well as each take. For example: "Take one-the passive approachÉTake two-the aggressive approachÉTake three-the educational approach." You may want to do a quick example skit to clarify. Give them 15 minutes to do so.
**Ideas for situations are on the last page**
After each skit group has practiced, bring all the groups together to share their skits, with the Skit Directors narrating (15-20 minutes total). In between each skit ask if anyone has any comments or different ideas on how to approach each situation. Ask if any of the skits were similar to a problem that they have had in real life. Remind the students that these are just examples of different issues that people have spoken out about. The purpose of this activity is to give you ideas about how to speak out about any of the different issues you feel strongly about in your community. Explain that these situations are based on true stories and that the following activity stars young people who became famous from confronting situations and issues and acting to make the change they wished to see.
Activity 3- Hero Pop-Up! (5 minutes)
On the back of each hero card is a short story. Have one student per hero read the story on the back of the card. You can do it as a pop-up by M.C.ing in between each story, cueing the students to read their story by saying the underlined word in their story. Wrap up by saying that all these folk are young people, from 5th graders to college-aged. Tell them that you have faith in them to express how they feel about issues and to take action in making the change they wish to see in the world. As Gandhi said, ÒBe the change you wish to see in the world.Ó When they walk out, have them parade around to check out the pictures of all the heroes.
Have a moment of silence for each student to think of one thing they can do when they leave to make their community and the world a better place.
End with this quote: "Obviously, there's no one way to save the world. There are billions of ways, and we need every single one of them. Most of them haven't been dreamed up yet." -William Upski Wimsatt
SCENARIOS:
You see someone throw a cigarette butt on the ground. You know that the cigarette butt will wash into the storm drain by the side of the road and drain into the bay. From there, the cigarette butt may choke a fish or a bird that mistakes it for food. What are three different ways you can deal with this situation?
You overhear two students in your class telling a racist joke that offends you or someone in your class. What are three different ways you can deal with this situation?
You watch your neighbor change the oil in their car. They take the waste oil and pour it into the garden to kill the weeds. You have also seen their dog eating plants from the garden, and you think that it will be poisoned by the oil next time it tries to eat the garden plants. You also know that that used motor oil can be recycled at the local recycling center. What are three different ways you can deal with this situation?
You visit the beach and see people feeding the birds and seals. You know that when people feed wild animals they may stop finding food for themselves and rely on people instead. You also know that people food contains many ingredients that are not nutritious for wild animals. What are three different ways you can deal with this situation?
During December, your school puts up many Christmas decorations, but not decorations for other holidays. You are a Muslim, and you know that there are other students who celebrate holidays other than Christmas. You want to see decorations that represent all those other holidays. What are three different ways you can deal with this situation?
You notice that your school lunch uses a lot of packaging and you want to reduce the packaging waste. For example, the cheeseburger and salad are each wrapped in plastic and a cardboard box, the milk is in a cardboard container, and the fork, spoon, and knife are all plastic and inside a plastic bag. You donÕt actually use the fork or knife and you know most of the packaging is thrown away after it is used once. What are three different ways you can deal with this situation?
You break your leg and are on crutches. At school, you get frustrated because the restroom is difficult to get into. You wonder if the students in wheelchairs feel the same way as you do. You want to make these restrooms at school easier to use for everyone. What are three different ways you can deal with this situation?