Some suggestions to maximize joy and gratitude during the holidays include focusing on quality family time rather than gift giving; baking cookies, reading together, playing games or cuddling up for a special movie. The holiday season is a wonderful time to start, or continue beloved traditions. It's also a great opportunity to actively teach our children that media advertising is trying to shape our thinking to want more and more and to be mindful of that. When we do focus on gift giving it can be centered on sharing and caring with others near and far. This can look like drawing a picture for a friend, offering a smile to a neighbor, or writing a thank you note to your condo's security guard. It can also look like sharing toys and games with a child care center or pediatric unit, writing a letter to a student in another country, or helping to support an organization that works with communities that do not have the same advantages or opportunities as others.
The holiday offer us multiple ways to partake in a Spirit of Generosity. May we strive to instill a sense of solidarity (not charity) with our children. The idea of standing with others in unity. May we practice empathy (feeling with), not sympathy (feeling for), with people affected by the global issues we are learning about. We can begin this journey by making connections with how our lifestyle, behavior, power and privilege can impact others.
Below find some ways that we are practicing solidarity at UWC. We encourage you to join us!
- We will be celebrating UWCSEA's First Giving Day on December 15. The College will run a 30 hour appeal to the UWCSEA community to raise funds for our scholarship program and to support the UWC Afghan Youth Scholarship. Please watch the video below.
- UWC Scholars have been visiting our classrooms and sharing about their families and their hopes and dreams. Students are learning about different countries and cultures and different ways of life.
- This year's Write For Rights Letter Campaign will be from December 6th-10th. It will focus on UN Sustainability Goal 13- Climate Action. The Primary School Write for Rights Campaign will focus on informing our students about climate change and how they and their families can take action to help stop it.
- We are concluding our Unit of Study Is it Really Rubbish, where we are learning about sustainability and exploring how our wants and needs and choices can impact the environment. We also began composting and recycling in our pod.
- Our Festive Gifts that Give shopping event for Global Concerns will be help between Friday December 10th and Thursday December 16th in the Heritage Center, Level 2, between break and lunchtimes. As you plan your holiday gifts, please consider purchasing these ethically sourced Global Concerns products for your family and friends. Products include Tabitha silk products made in Cambodia, upcycled products from Jakarta and Cambodia, products from Sri Lanka, Guatemala, India, Eswatini and more!
As always we thank you for your support and appreciate your Sprit of Generosity.
Happy Holidays From the K2 team
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