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Peace Mala

Main aims of Peace Mala

Education for global citizenship through the promotion of understanding, respect, friendship, tolerance and peace between all communities, cultures and enlightened, compassionate faiths.


Peace Mala supports human rights, confronts bullying and all forms of prejudice.

Peace Mala raises awareness of issues of global interdependence and encourages active compassion by learners that will effect positive changes locally and globally.

History of The Peace Mala


The Peace Mala was born in a classroom in Coedcae School, Llanelli, Wales UK. Pam Evans, Head of Religious Studies and her pupils were discussing the terrible events of September the 11th.
 She realised that something had to be done to combat the racism, religious intolerance, ignorance and lack of respect shown to certain members of our community. She thought of something simple but effective that would engage the minds of young people; a symbolic bracelet, loaded with messages, that would be fun to make and wear.

The Peace Mala double rainbow bracelet soon attracted the attention of my students who declared it a brilliant idea. Members of faith communities across South Wales welcomed it as a positive move in the right direction to encourage respect and harmony in the community. With this encouragement, her students applied for a Prince's Trust Millennium Award which we were granted in October 2002. We were awarded the best part of £15,000. This gave them what they needed to set up a wonderful youth project that could promote peace, tolerance, respect and religious harmony in our local community. http://www.peacemala.org.uk

Through working through the accreditation it made all staff at
 Crab Lane realise and appreciate what a peaceful school we are.
The accreditation required us to provide evidence for several different areas of actions.


Area 1


Becoming a Peace Mala School is part of the whole School Development Plan approved by staff and the Governing Body. This is shared with the whole school community. A chosen year group will need to study and explore Peace Mala by using the kits and educational materials during a particular term every year.  This encourages Peace Mala continuity in the school curriculum. The school will also share good practice with other schools who are members of the global community of Peace Mala.

Proceeding the work already completed within our school, Crab Lane shared our scheme with local primary schools such as Victoria Avenue. A closely linked school through our Senior Leadership Team. Furthermore, the Peace Mala scheme has been shared with the Governors, parents and all staff. On a fortnightly basis different pieces of work are sent home for children to share the knowledge learnt with their parents/carers. To keep a record and be able to share the work learnt, year 6 keep a working progress booklet. This is a collection of different pieces chosen that is added to each week. This can be found in the entrance hall to the main office for parents, staff and visitors to read.

An assembly has also taken place in our school which was has been attended by all staff, (SLT) children and governors. The children from each class took a coloured bead and we worked together as a school to outline to one another the importance of developing an understanding for all of the religions and beliefs in our school. It was an excellent opportunity to show the schools understanding of Peace Mala and helped raise awareness of the achievements made by the children. In addition to all of this our school has fantastic internet pages that illustrate the work completed throughout the school. Significant work completed for R.E is added to our web page to help raise awareness of the achievements made by the children.

Year 6 keep a working progress booklet. This is a collection of different pieces chosen that is added to each week. This can be found in the entrance hall to the main office for parents, staff and visitors to read.

Area 2


By engaging with Peace Mala the school is committed to education for global citizenship through the promotion of understanding, respect, friendship, tolerance and peace between all communities, cultures and enlightened, compassionate faiths. Peace Mala promotes and encourages community cohesion.

The Peace Mala project has highlighted the importance of global citizenship. To build on this our Year 2 class linked with a school in New York State and shared Christmas cards and shared Christmas stories. This was an extremely exciting time for all, as for many children in our shool the first time they had received post. As well as this, Crab Lane has been part of a Go Gambia schools link.

Wellingara School is situated in The Gambia and we have constant communication with Wellingara through letters sent and shared work through parcels. A favourite game of Year 6 is blow football which came from Wellingara with equipment and instructions. In return we sent art work and instructions for making the pieces. Lessons are taught with a focus on respect and tolerance for different beliefs and we always look for the peace in the culture. As part of this we have weekly assemblies that focus on the links between our schools. As part of community cohesion, we invite and take children to see different places of worship. We now have whole school trips to our local church for special times such as Christmas and Easter.

 

 

Our local area is populated with many different faiths, but in particular the Jewish Religion.

Year 3 took a trip to the Jewish Museum. The children thoroughly enjoyed the day.

Area 3


By using Peace Mala in the classroom, the school supports human rights and helps prevent bullying and all forms of prejudice.

Working with children and helping them to understand human rights happens right across the school.  An example of this is teachers talking to their classes about racism, but having to focus on football in mind to ensure that the conversation is understood but not targeted to any groups of children. (Looking to see how players from different countries play and respect each other). We have this at the forefront of our thinking. In classes you will find ‘show racism the red card’ posters. Before these go up we discuss the meaning behind them and explain to the children that we expect to hear on the playground while football is being played. Shaking hands and saying ‘good match’ to end football is the phrase we use before lining up. This is then linked to wider ways of working with everyone in school and out.
 

In terms of prevention of bullying, the school has clear behaviour and anti-bullying policy that is shared with all adults and children. It is written in child friendly language and the parents sign the policy to show they support the school with our thinking. Bullying, as we know can take many forms. Our school raises awareness of appropriate behaviour inside and outside the classroom through a number of ways: cyber bullying day, E-Safety afternoon.

To ensure that all children are happy and safe within our care we have a buddy system for break and lunch that ensures all children have a friend to play with.




Area 4


Peace Mala encourages the school to raise awareness of issues of global interdependence and encourages active compassion by learners that will lead to positive changes locally and globally.

At Crab Lane Primary School we take pride in helping ourselves in order to help the local community around us. We know that in order to have an improved global community, we need to work from within. In our school this takes the form as follows: children, parents and teachers bring in tinned food to celebrate harvest. The tins are collected and sent to the local nursing homes through the church. When all the food is gathered we have a special assembly to celebrate giving and take time to appreciate what we have. In addition to this, we really push the boat out on Red Nose Day and Children in Need. One activity that all classes do is design something to sell. The money raised is collected and put together with the donations given for wearing their own clothes and sent to different charities.
 

As mentioned earlier we have a link with the school in The Gambia. To help raise money for Wellingara different classes sold various items in order to help build the school a kitchen. For example. Year 1 and 2 sold friendship bracelets.




Area 5


Peace Mala encourages the school to raise awareness of issues of global interdependence and encourages active compassion by learners that will lead to positive changes locally and globally.

This is an area that I feel our school is strongest at. Crab Lane Primary School celebrates religious festivals as they come up through the school year. For example, Year 3 celebrated Rosh Hashannah by setting goals for the coming year and eating apple and honey to ensure it is a sweet one. Nursery through to Reception celebrated Chinese New Year by making dragons and lanterns. Year 4 celebrated Chinese New Year by listening to Chinese music and creating willow plates.

Last month our choir took part in the Young Voices Choir at the MEN. This was a fantastic opportunity for children from our school to learn, share and sing songs with many, many different primary schools. It was a day that the children and teachers will never forget. The parents that came to support our school were so proud of their children.

Area 6

With Peace Mala the school actively promotes environmental sustainability, healthy eating, and respect for all animals and wildlife.

 Years 5 and 6 learn through Manchester’s Art Education Initiative (MAEI). This year the focus is on the Tudors. The children will be looking at the development of the Church of England.

 

 

Crab Lane Primary School has an up and running Eco Warrior team. The children that form this team ensure that the lights, interactive whiteboard and computers are switched off in order to save electricity. They read and monitor electricity readings and empty paper recycle bins. We are at present working towards an Eco school. Part of working towards an Eco School is the development of our school grounds. We have separated an area for growing our own fruits and vegetables. As well as this, we collect rainwater to water the plants and have separate food bins to add to the compost heap. While working in our gardens we have looked at how we can best respect wildlife that we find. The children have been fascinated by the amount of worms that we have and where beetles and bugs live. We have tried our very hardest to leave their natural homes alone and treat the insects with respect.

Greenpeace has made an appearance in our school through Eco Week. Different classes looked at different global issues, e.g. the effects of melting ice caps. We learnt about how Greenpeace work to help our environment.

PDSA is the UK's leading veterinary charity, caring for more than 350,000 pet patients belonging to people in need. The PDSA visited our school in January and provided an educational workshop which taught the children about the importance of caring for all animals and pets. Last year the school also worked with a mobile farm organisation which is run by staff at Fishers Farm Livery Yard at Charnock Richard. They keep all of their animals for the mobile farm and they visited the whole school for two days.

The company believe very strongly that all children should have the opportunity to interact with animals, especially children from inner cities and it gave all the children at Crab Lane the opportunity to get close to the animals and find out about the care and welfare that goes into their upkeep. The children also learnt about how important farming is to the economy and were able to ask questions about how farming has developed and changed through history.

Area 7

With Peace Mala the school encourages Peace Education by forming a School Peace Council and engaging in peace activities.

During Valentine's, Year 6 completed activities based on the valentines peace project. The children decided to make two flowers, one for home and another for teachers. We discussed that the greatest gift a person can give is giving itself. Giving time, love and support for one another. Crab Lane is part of a scheme called Calm Spaces. This is where certain groups of children have time out of class and receive support with their emotions. The teacher in charge of the scheme also rotates her time on a Wednesday to go into different classes and practising with the children different meditation and relaxation techniques. The children love this part of the week.

Year 6 receive the Peace Mala scheme. We always end the lesson with a peace prayer and take a minute or two to think about how we can be the best person we can be and help our wider community. This also happens during our weekly religion assemblies when we make a routine promise to each other to help ourselves therefore helping the wider environment.
Being best we can be.