Be safe in winter and don’t forget to have fun!!!

Hi. I'm Mahara, and I have some tips to follow if you want to stay safe during winter weather.

Click on the picture, and then click play, to hear my podcast!

The Birth of Change: Quote Contest and Watch Obama's Inaugural Speech

"Rosa Parks sat so Martin Luther King could walk. Martin Luther King walked so Obama could run. Obama ran so we can all fly."
by Jay-Z

From the text and your own ideas, using RASER, explain what the quote means to you.
Ballot buckets for every grade division are located in the office on the front counter for students to drop off their answers.
Elizabeth will announce winners at the end of the week!
Thanks everyone for your participation!

The department of our own school board who want to make sure that own schools become more and more equitable are encouraging us to see Barack Obama's inaugural speech.

It is said, on their website:

"The events south of the border give us cause to celebrate the triumph of human decency over personal attack, social justice over implicit bias, and hope over fear. I believe that out of this unique experience comes an appreciation that difference is the lifeblood of a dynamic society. We do not merely tolerate diversity, but accept, respect, and celebrate it, recognizing that in an increasingly global society, it is our diversity that will be the underpinning of our social and economic success. Are we up to the challenge of addressing the attitudes, beliefs, and actions we know create barriers for certain segments of our population in order to inspire success in our most marginalized students? ---YES WE CAN!!"

To link up to this website, and to view the speech, click on the post title, above. Please leave us a sense of how this speech affected your thinking about your life, here in Regent Park, Toronto, Ontario, Canada - or wherever you live in this global village. Click on comments, below to join our discussion.

Mandela kids observe Martin Luther King Jr. Day

To view students' I Have a Dream Poems!

.........click comments, below

Martin Luther King Jr. Day was established to honour Martin Luther King Jr. because he worked to make sure that the rights of African-Americans and other minorities were put into place.

After his death, legislation was put forward to make a day to honour King. Many people liked the idea but lots of people didn’t because they felt he should not be the only person who was honoured for fighting against racism.

When the day wasn’t made, many people protested by signing a petition. Six million signed it!

The first Martin Luther King Jr. Day was on January 20, 1986. Arizona only approved the holiday after a tourist boycott to protest because Arizona did not have the day.

Why don’t you make a poster about Martin Luther King Jr. to display in our hallways?

by Nadia and Aisha

Speak Out! in Poetry

Writing a poem is a powerful way to express your thoughts - quickly, persuasively, dramatically and uniquely. As we learned, The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child absolutely gives you the right to think for yourself and speak out when you have something important on your mind. It says you have the right to be heard.

Here, you have a forum, which means a discussion space.

In my mind, 3 things make a mockery of the rights of children in many places in the world:

1] Poverty
2] War
3] Devastation of the Earth

Use your own VOICE, "loud and clear" to make others understand what one of these issues means to YOU.

Or choose another world concern that you feel passionate about.

Post your poem here for others around the world to read.

Room 4 and the Peace Tree

A Special Visit to Room 8!

We were reading a story called The Mitten.

There was a hedgehog in the story.

We didn't know what a hedgehog was, because there aren't any of them in Canada.

So WIMZ brought us two hedgehogs, Ruby and Roscoe, to visit.

We touched them, and they felt like hairbrushes!

We get to do cool things in our class!

Click on the post title to find out facts about hedgehogs.......

Children Everywhere Have Rights

In 1989, the United Nations (see video) decided to officially decree that children everywhere in the world have the same indisputable rights.
Click on Nelson Mandela's picture, . Read his words.



Click on this poster to read what CHILDREN reported in 2005 about the world's progress on their behalf.


Get together in pairs. Using what you have just learned, talk to each other and
1] list the rights you remember
2] decide the most important part of what Mr. Mandela said....
3] recount what the CHILDREN say still needs to happen....

Write these things down in a way that suits you both.

------- ------- ------- -------

Now, it is 2008. You are a thoughtful, intelligent student in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Compose a note to Mr. Mandela and adults all over the world. (Remember, you are speaking to the whole WWW.) In it, state what is most important to you, what your own experiences have made you believe, and what you think needs to happen. (Remember to use R.A.S.E.R. as you reply.)

Put this note in "comments" below. Make sure to proof your note, and use you first name only.

Through Shaka's Lens: Gym Time, Fall '08

Catch a glimpse of the fun and spirit of Mandela Kids (kindergarten to grade 5) as they learn and play during phys. ed. with Mr. Abdul-Rashid.