Each year on November 11, in many countries around the world, we spend time thinking about world conflict, the men and women who serve in our militaries, and the importance of peace. Here in Canada, we observe Remembrance Day – where we reflect on the world wars and in particular on the lives that were lost during these terrible battles.
These are all heavy topics for young children and I have struggled this year between wanting my 3 year old son, Onetime, to understand what is going on – and the desire to protect him from a premature knowledge of war and concepts that are over his head. So – instead of a visit to a cenotaph, something that can wait for a year or two more, we will be focusing on learning about peace.
Creating the Peace Book
To that end, I created a book to read with my son about peace and what it means and looks like in our daily lives. Each page in the book begins with the words, “Peace Is…” and ends with a different idea.
I’ve included the following concepts: sharing, working together, helping each other, compromising, dealing with conflict using words and not hands, accepting differences, making amends, and loving each other!
To catch my son’s attention, I took some pictures of his favourite “Little People” characters posed in different situations. Here is a screenshot to give you an idea of how each page looks.
Doing the Peace Book
At the end of each page, I included a question to get my son actively reflecting about peace and what HE can DO to help create peace in our family and lives.
After the reflection question, there is space where you can record your child’s answers or have them draw a picture if they like.
When we first read the book together, I was pleasantly surprised by many of my son’s answers to the reflection questions. They really got him thinking!
We did have to discuss what compromise means, but we’ve been working on this concept at home lately – so it was a great review.
I’d love to hear what you think about the book and even better, how your child responded to reading it! Leave a comment below.
Click on this link to download your copy of this FREE printable peace book.
If you’re looking for other Remembrance Day/Veterans Day resources for kids, check out our Pinterest board:
Follow One Time Through’s board Remembrance Day/Veterans Day on Pinterest.
Best,
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