Week 4

Week 4 Theme: Wiping the slate clean - at a personal level and at a world level.

Suggested Activities

Messages: Key Stage 1 Key Stage 2

Activity/Assembly idea: Introduce two bags - one old and tatty, one brand new. The old one is to hold what we want to leave behind in this millennium, the new one is to hold whatever we want to see in the new millennium. Personal decisions of things we want to leave behind can go into the tatty bag - perhaps for a symbolic burning later. A final assembly could be fashioned around an exploration of the contents of the bags when each class has had a chance to contribute to them.

It feels really good when there's nothing niggling in your mind or weighing on your conscience.

There is a way we can stop this niggling feeling when it comes? Saying sorry, giving back what we have wrongfully taken. We can wipe our slates clean and make a fresh start.

Demonstration: On chalk/whilte board to show what wiping a slate clean means.

Discussion: When people break the rules or do things which are wrong it makes a mess. Refer to previous week and problems with friendships. How can we put things right again and wipe the slate clean? Saying sorry, giving back, asking forgiveness, forgiving. What kinds of things might we want to wipe off our slates? Ideally at this point the teacher will lead by example and share something they'd like to put right (or a story such as the one on the Clean Slate pamphlet) Then ask the children to write about or draw something they'd like to wipe off their slates. They must then decide whether they want to share it with the class or just teacher or parents, or bin it. Suggestion: as many as possible to go into the tatty bag (see above).

Demonstration: On chalk/whilte board to show what wiping a slate clean means.

Discussion: When people break the rules or do things which are wrong it makes a mess. How can we put things right again and wipe the slate clean? Saying sorry, giving back, asking forgiveness, forgiving. What kinds of things might we want to wipe off our slates? e.g. harassment, bullying, feuding, telling lies, stealing, breaking the social conventions. Ideally at this point the teacher will lead by example and share something they'd like to put right (or a story such as the one on the Clearn-Slate pamphlet) Then ask the children to write about something they'd like to wipe off their slates. They must then decide whether they want to share it with the class or just teacher or parents, or bin it. Suggestion: as many as possible to go into the tatty bag (see above).

As human beings we each have a responsibility as a member of our world to build a new millennium with a clean slate. Discussion: How can we wipe our slates clean on a larger scale?
- Kindness towards and justice for other nations - discuss Kosovo, Jubilee 2000 (see below), things our country may have done wrong in Ireland.
- Recycling - putting the world's resources to better use How can we as a class do this? As a school? In our families? Where are our recycling points? (Key -stage 2 may like to explore this more - looking at how recycling could become part of the daily routine - e.g. separating rubbish into different bins, composting peelings etc.)
(Jubilee 2000 info: In the 1960s the world's banks had surplus currency which they irresponsibly lent to developing countries, often for inappropriate "prestige" projects. Much of the money disappeared due to corruption. Since then these developing countries have been paying just the interest on these loans and therefore can't develop their infrastructure/ health-care etc. For every £1 sent by Comic Relief £9 comes back in interest payments. Jubilee 2000 is a movement appealing to Western governments to write off this debt and allow these nations to develop their potential.)

Week 4	Theme: Wiping the slate clean - at a personal level and at a world level.
	Suggested Activities
Messages:	Key Stage 1	Key Stage 2
	Activity/Assembly idea: Introduce two bags - one old and tatty, one brand new. The old one is to hold what we want to leave behind in this millennium, the new one is to hold whatever we want to see in the new millennium. Personal decisions of things we want to leave behind can go into the tatty bag - perhaps for a symbolic burning later. A final assembly could be fashioned around an exploration of the contents of the bags when each class has had a chance to contribute to them.
It feels really good when there's nothing niggling in your mind or weighing on your conscience. There is a way we can stop this niggling feeling when it comes? Saying sorry, giving back what we have wrongfully taken. We can wipe our slates clean and make a fresh start.	Demonstration: On chalk/whilte board to show what wiping a slate clean means. Discussion: When people break the rules or do things which are wrong it makes a mess. Refer to previous week and problems with friendships. How can we put things right again and wipe the slate clean? Saying sorry, giving back, asking forgiveness, forgiving. What kinds of things might we want to wipe off our slates? Ideally at this point the teacher will lead by example and share something they'd like to put right (or a story such as the one on the Clean Slate pamphlet) Then ask the children to write about or draw something they'd like to wipe off their slates. They must then decide whether they want to share it with the class or just teacher or parents, or bin it. Suggestion: as many as possible to go into the tatty bag (see above).	Demonstration: On chalk/whilte board to show what wiping a slate clean means. Discussion: When people break the rules or do things which are wrong it makes a mess. How can we put things right again and wipe the slate clean? Saying sorry, giving back, asking forgiveness, forgiving. What kinds of things might we want to wipe off our slates? e.g. harassment, bullying, feuding, telling lies, stealing, breaking the social conventions. Ideally at this point the teacher will lead by example and share something they'd like to put right (or a story such as the one on the Clearn-Slate pamphlet) Then ask the children to write about something they'd like to wipe off their slates. They must then decide whether they want to share it with the class or just teacher or parents, or bin it. Suggestion: as many as possible to go into the tatty bag (see above).
As human beings we each have a responsibility as a member of our world to build a new millennium with a clean slate.	Discussion: How can we wipe our slates clean on a larger scale? - Kindness towards and justice for other nations - discuss Kosovo, Jubilee 2000 (see below), things our country may have done wrong in Ireland. - Recycling - putting the world's resources to better use How can we as a class do this? As a school? In our families? Where are our recycling points? (Key -stage 2 may like to explore this more - looking at how recycling could become part of the daily routine - e.g. separating rubbish into different bins, composting peelings etc.) (Jubilee 2000 info: In the 1960s the world's banks had surplus currency which they irresponsibly lent to developing countries, often for inappropriate "prestige" projects. Much of the money disappeared due to corruption. Since then these developing countries have been paying just the interest on these loans and therefore can't develop their infrastructure/ health-care etc. For every £1 sent by Comic Relief £9 comes back in interest payments. Jubilee 2000 is a movement appealing to Western governments to write off this debt and allow these nations to develop their potential.)