ReadWriteThink: November 21, 2009: Today is World Hello Day!

November 21, 2009

		World Hello Day began in 1973 to promote peace between Egypt and Israel. There are now 180 countries involved in the attempt to foster peace throughout the world, and letters supporting the effort have been written by people such as John Glenn, Colin Powell, Kofi Annan, and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). image © 2009 www.clipart.com

Today is World Hello Day!

CLASSROOM ACTIVITY

Throughout history, important leaders and institutions have used letters to make their beliefs known and to convince others of the importance of peace and unity. Invite your students to study one of the letters below for its message promoting peace in some way:

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Letter from Birmingham Jail
An Open Letter from American Jews to Our Government
Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus

Have students examine one of the letters to determine the author’s purpose in writing, and to identify words and phrases that were used to make the letters more meaningful to the reader. Then, have them use the ReadWriteThink Letter Generator to write a letter of their own promoting peace. A Tool Tip Sheet offers information about using the Letter Generator. Students may choose to write about world conflict, or they may choose to write about issues closer to home, such as bullying or peer conflicts.

Lesson Plans

E-Pals Around the World
In this lesson for grades 3–5, students develop their reading and writing abilities while learning about other cultures, languages, and geographic areas through e-mail correspondence.

The Peace Journey: Using Process Drama in the Classroom
In this lesson, high school students participate in a variety of literacy activities to help them reflect on the concept of peace.

Persuading an Audience: Writing Effective Letters to the Editor
In this lesson, high school students write a persuasive letter to the editor of a newspaper, focusing on a current local or national issue and requesting a specific action or response from readers.

Exploring Author’s Voice Using Jane Addams Award-Winning Books
This lesson for grades 6–8 uses Jane Addams Award-winning books, selected for their promotion of peace, social justice, world community, and equality, to explore author’s voice and style.

Web Links

The Nobel Peace Prize
This site provides a wide range of materials for students at all grade levels. Resources include information about the Nobel Peace Prize laureates, a timeline, and a series of informational articles.

Jane Addams Peace Association
The Jane Addams Peace Association furthers the cause of peace by selecting and awarding children’s literature that promotes the cause of peace, social justice, world community, and equality.

Peace Corps Kids World
The material in this website will enhance social studies and literature lessons in all primary grades. Your students will want to revisit this site throughout the school year.

Say Hello to the World
This site lists eight easy activities designed to celebrate world language. The activities are perfect for ESL and bilingual classes and are beneficial to all primary school students.

Texts

Katz, Karen. 2002. The Colors of Us. Henry Holt & Company, Inc.
Here is a beautifully written and illustrated multicultural book for young children.

Smith, David. 2002. If the World Were a Village. Kids Can Press Ltd.
This informational book compresses the world’s population statistics down to a village of 100. This book is very useful for helping elementary students develop an understanding of the world’s population.

Langen, Annette, and Constanza Droop. 1994. Letters from Felix. Parklane Publishing.
This book is a great elementary introduction to countries of the world. The text, letter inserts, and high-interest story make this a great book for shared reading.

Stojic, Manya. 2002. Hello World! Greetings in 42 Languages Around the Globe! Cartwheel.
Each page of this picture book features a greeting in a different language, its phonetic pronunciation, and the language in which it is given.