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Reflecting Back on 9/11/01 FostersDiscussion on Heroism and Values and
Opportunities for Service
Example 1:
I. Research Personal Stories, Family Stories of the Heroes of 9/11/01
What are the qualities of the “heroes” related to 9/11/01?
What makes them “Responsible and Involved Citizens?”
What makes them have “Strong Character?”
(i.e., perseverance, risk-taking, caring about their community, getting involved, teamwork skills, having skills that could help others…)
II. Relate to local community/state - research newspapers, magazines, TV, etc.
Does it take an event like 9/11/01 to make someone heroic?
What is the difference between famous and heroic?
Who are our local heroes? What actions and qualities made them a hero?
III. Find a need or problem in your community
How can we become heroes in our community?
In our community, what are some needs or problems that we could help solve?
What skills would be needed to fulfill those needs or solve those problems?
What individuals or organizations in our community are familiar with these issues? How can we learn more from them? How might they feel if asked to work with students in solving a community problem?
IV. After service…
What qualities did we demonstrate during our service that shows we are heroes? Or “Responsible and Involved Citizens?”
How did it feel to provide a service to someone else?
Did we make a difference?
KIDS Consortium, 2002
Example 2:
Small Service-Learning Project
Preparation
Read a story or article about someone making a difference. (I.E. THE STARFISH)
There was a young man walking down a deserted beach just before dawn. In the distance he saw a frail old man. As he approached the old man, he saw him picking up stranded starfish and throwing them back into the sea.The young man gazed in wonder as the old man again and again threw the small starfish from the sand to the water. He asked, “Old man, why do you spend so much energy doing what seems to be a waste of time?”The old man explained that the stranded starfish would die if left in the morning sun.“But there must be thousands of beaches and millions of starfish!” exclaimed the young man. “How can you make any difference?”
The old man looked down at the small starfish in his hand and as he threw it to the safety of the sea, he said, “I make a difference to this one.”
Pre-Service Reflection Questions…
What is this story trying to teach us?
Some might say that the old man is a responsible and involved citizen- what does it mean to be a responsible and involved citizen?
What does community service mean? Why is service important?
What could we do to demonstrate that we are responsible and involved citizens?
How could we make a difference?
Action
When selecting a service project, think about:
How can you get students involved in identifying the need and selecting the service project to do?
Will the entire class be involved in one project (any age, dividing the work into small group efforts)?
Will students do individual projects on their own (generally for older students; build in accountability through journaling and/or “proof” of service)?
How can it tie into your curriculum?
What opportunities will you provide for your students to make connections between their service and the learnings that took place?
Post-Service Reflection
What happened?
How did we demonstrate responsible and involved citizenship?
How did we make a difference?
How did it feel? (If it was bad-what did you do? Did you quit or show perseverance?)
Make a list of what strong character looks or sounds like. Have students create their own starfish and on each leg write a word that describes their strong character that they demonstrated during the service.
Celebrate
Give each student a starfish to celebrate the service that they did.
KIDS Consortium, 2002
Example 3:
Longer Service-Learning Project
Preparation
Optional: Research the personal and family stories of the heroes of 9/11/01 (see Example 1, sections I and II).Divide the class into 4 brainstorming groups, each with a sheet of easel paper and markers. After discussing the vocabulary below, assign each group to brainstorm andreport out on one of the following questions:
- What are the values and attitudes needed to be a good citizen in our community?
- What knowledge is needed to be a good citizen in our community?
- What actions are a sign of good citizenship in our community?
- What does good citizenship look like in school?
Invite to class representatives from the town government, local historical society, veterans association, Rotary and/or other service organizations. Students generate questions for participants (sent in advance) about their organizations, the role members play in the community, examples of local citizens (dead or alive) who display some of the values, attitudes, actions and knowledge discussed earlier in class, etc.
Pre-Service Reflection Questions
What did you learn from the visitors?
What can you add to the lists generated when you brainstormed the 4 questions?
What do these organizations and the people who participate in them have in common? How are they different?
Which organization most connects with your interests and values? How?
What role does service play in good citizenship?
What are some things students can do to help or improve the community?
What is the connection between heroism and good citizenship?
Action (reflection questions and considerations)
Who can benefit from learning more about local heroes and responsible and involved citizens?
Who can benefit from learning more about local organizations and resources?
How can we best share what we’ve learned? (Could be a book of portraits of local heroes donated to various organizations and libraries or sold to make money for a favorite cause; or, a series of scripted re-enactments and/or lessons for younger students and the community; or, a book/pamphlet describing all of the resources and organizations in the community; or, any other ideas that interest students.)
Who in the community can help us accomplish our goals? Who are the experts? How do we get them involved?
Post-Service Reflection
What happened?
How did it feel? (If it was bad-what did you do? Did you quit or show perseverance?)
How did we demonstrate our own responsible and involved citizenship?
How did we make a difference?
Write a brief description of a positive experience you had or quality you developed as a result of this service (to be used in an “About the Authors” section of the book or the “About the Performers” section of the program, etc.).
Celebrate
Invite community partners, parents, other students and community members to a reception recognizing student accomplishments and celebrating the lives of local “heroes.”
KIDS Consortium, 2002
