CRE Teachers & Trainers

If you are interested in integrating peacemaking and conflict resolution content into your higher education offerings AND you happen to live within driving distance of Philadelphia, then you are going to want to check out this Conflict Resolution Day event hosted by the Association for Conflict Resolution Great Philadelphia Chapter. The event provides a networking opportunity and a chance to hear the latest news from keynote presenter David Smith, editor of Peacebuilding in Community Colleges: A Teaching Resource. The event will be held October 17 from 1:30-3:30 at Chestnut Hill College. See the attached flyer (click on image) for details and additional contact information.

Check out these Wordsearch Games from the new Democracyis.us website.

In the Classroom
Relationship Skills
Conflict Management Approaches
Democracy Terms

Note of caution, at the moment they don’t work on iPads or touch devices. Hope to fix that soon. If you have an iPad, similar games are available inside our great and free CRE iPad app.

The Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention (stopbullying.gov) are inviting youth ages 13 to 18 to create 30- to 60-second public service announcements as part of the Stop Bullying Video Challenge.

Videos should showcase ways the youth are taking action against bullying and promoting kindness and respect within their communities. The grand prize is $2,000 and two runner-ups will each receive $500. The three winning videos will be featured on stopbullying.gov. Entries must be received by 11 pm E.T. on October 14, 2012.

The aim of the Animations for Peace Award is to create a compilation of animated films related with peace culture and to promote awareness on peace education. This year’s slogan is, “We create peace day by day.” The award has two modalities (Spot, for animations of 1 minute maximum and Short, for animations of 1 minute minimum) and two categories (Junior, for people under 18, and Senior, for people who are 18 or above). There’s also the Public award. Winners will be included in a DVD that will be published on the Internet and on TV, and exhibited in cinema and animation festivals. The economic prize is of 300 Euros for the Spot category, of 600 Euros for Shorts and 200 Euros for the Public award. Works in all languages will be accepted, with subtitles in at least one of the following languages: Catalan, Spanish, English. The deadline for submissions is May 30, 2012. Get more details at the Peace Award Website.

MTV auditions for teens – Dec. 14, 2011
Now casting teens in high school who had a falling out with another high school teen or classmate.

MTV is casting for a new teen docu-series that helps high school students solve problems with their friends and schoolmates. The new MTV show will use a trained mediator to talk to the teens and try to get them to resolve their issues with each other.

MTV is now casting teens that are 16 to 19 years old for this show.

If you are in an ongoing dispute with a friend, ex-friend, or classmate, MTV would like to hear your story and maybe you and your story will be featured on the new MTV show.

Here are examples of the types of stories that MTV and the shows producers are looking for:

* Do you have a friend that always borrows money and never pays you back?
* Did someone start a rumor about you that has had lasting effects?
* Did a fellow student bring uninvited guests to your party then they trashed your home or disrespected you?
* Did an ex vandalize your property, like keying your car?
* Have you been defamed on-line by someone in your school and your reputation will never be the same?

Are you looking for a resolution between you and your friend? MTV may be able to help!

To be considered for the show, you MUST be in high school, have a great personality and have a genuine, real-life issue at-hand that could benefit from mediation and that other people could learn from. You should also appear to be between the ages of 16 and 19 years old.

To apply for the show you will need to email the following information as well as a photograph of both you and the person you are having a problem with.

*Your Name, Phone Number and Email Address

*Your School/Location/City/State

*Every story has two sides, right? What’s your story? What is the issue at hand? What happened?

*Please give DETAILS:
-where and when the incident took place (if it’s one particular event);
-who the other person involved is and what your relation is to that person;
-why this issue is a big deal to you;
-whether or not it’s a big deal to the other person and if you think they would be willing to participate in the mediation process;
-what you would hope to get out of the mediation experience, etc..

*Are there other people in your lives who have an opinion on the matter? Who? How are they involved? Would they be willing to share their perspective and participate in this project? Again, please give details.

*Why is it important for your story to be told? Why would you want to participate in this show?

Email all the above to castingmediation@gmail.com. Also, don’t forget to email the 2 photos(one of you and one of your foe). To improve your chances of getting selected by MTV producers, be as descriptive as possible about your situation, what happened and any other details that you think may be helpful.

You are invited to join Teachers Without Borders for a webinar on Peace Education!

Topic: Alternatives to Bullying and Intolerance
Presented by: Laurie Woodward
When: Monday, December 19, 2011 at 10:00am Pacific Standard Time
Where: Web Ex
Cost: FREE!
Sign up here.

Webinar Description: The goal of this presentation is to explore the idea of expanding roles for teachers to include the facilitating of empowerment of children; as well as providing at least two lessons participants can bring to their own classrooms. Using the Dean and JoJo Alternatives to Bullying and Intolerance DVD, which tells the story of one man’s friendship with and advocacy for a wild bottlenose dolphin named JoJo, as an opener, strategies to promote compassion in children are introduced. When children view the scenes of the dolphin being attacked by bullies or Dean cradling the injured animal, they immediately can relate the experience to their own lives.

This gives students the opportunity to find positive ways to resolve conflict while encouraging healthy dialogue amongst them. They learn to accept differences, improve listening skills, break the re-active cycle, and learn to disagree without animosity. This builds confidence in recognizing win-win solutions, helps them process anger and other emotions, and solve problems.

One activity tilted Peace Cards empowers students to use art as a means of communication if they have a disagreement with a classmate. The webinar also features student volunteers in their role as Dolphin Ambassadors for Peace using the skills they had learned along with the Peace Cards, DVD, and a script specifically written for the program these children go into other classes to teach their fellow students how to use the program to resolve conflicts peacefully.

About the Presenter:
Before becoming an elementary school teacher, Laurie Woodward earned a social work degree and worked as a coordinator for a rape crisis agency. In addition to being bilingual in Spanish and English, she is CLAD certified and Montessori trained. She has always believed in creating a positive environment and redirecting her students to make good choices, but it wasn’t until she teamed up with Dean Bernal two years ago to collaborate on his Alternatives to Bullying and Intolerance DVD, that she was able to share her ideas with other teachers. After a featured article in 2010 about her work, Laurie received a Care and Share grant and used the funds to bring the program to all Santa Maria schools. She currently is leading a strategy team for peace resolution in the classroom. Laurie also recently completed the TWB Introduction to Peace Education online course, in conjunction with the National Peace Academy.

If you have questions about this webinar, please email stephanie@twb.org.

As part of Bullying Prevention Month, Bitstrips for Schools is teaming up with the Cartoon Network to host a comic-based challenge on preventing bullying. The event is being called the “Stop Bullying: Speak Up Comic Challenge.” As Suzie Boss reports in a blog post over at Edutopia,

Each week during the campaign, Bitstrips will release a new comic template that sets up a different situation, such as cyberbullying or cell phone bullying. Students start by using online drawing tools to create their own avatar, which is dropped into the template as the “star” of the strip. Students then respond to the situation by finishing the comic strip with dialogue, new characters, or special effects. Different activities might cast students’ avatars in the role of bystander, victim, or even a bully who has to face the consequences.

The initiative is geared toward students in grades 3-8.

We are pleased to announce that the 3rd Edition of the Conflict Resolution Education Activity Calendar (starting with September 2011) is now available. A heartfelt thanks goes out to our talented volunteer editorial team from MappingChange.com and the Conflict Resolution Program at the University of Delaware. You can view the 2011-2012 calendar online or grab a smartboard-friendly pdf copy with active weblinks.

Hard copies can be ordered online from the Association for Conflict Resolution or by using this form. Individuals and schools and youth serving organizations qualify to receive free calendars (1 per individual or 5-pack for educational orgs) and everyone is invited to sponsor the distribution of calendars by donating $15 for a 5-pack to be sent to yourself or a deserving organization. Help “Spread the CREd” today!

The Conflict Resolution Day annual poetry contest theme has been set for the 2011 contest held during October.
Details below.

Participate in the third annual Conflict Resolution Day Poetry Contest!
The Conflict Resolution Day Poetry Contest is Accepting Entries Oct 1 – Nov 1, 2011
Students are invited to submit a poem on the theme:
“Demonstrating Respect – at home, in school, or in the community”

Examples may include:
– Gaining respect peacefully
– Showing consideration when we disagree
– Importance of respect
– Connecting peace and respect
– Peaceful conflict resolution when we are disrespected
– What it feels like to be respected

Win Cash Prizes!!!
Poems will be judged Prizes will be awarded in three Grade Categories 3-5th; 6-8th; and 9-12th
1st Place in each category wins $100
2nd Place in each category wins $75
All Poems must be submitted in English Maximum of 20 Lines

Full contest rules available at http://www.acrnet.org/crday or
https://creducation.net/crday/poetrycontest/