Together #withrefugees “Every minute 20 people leave everything behind to escape war, persecution or terror.” UN This fact is easy to read but what does it mean? I have often tried to imagine myself in that position but I find it hard. I am fortunate in that I have never lived in a country at […]
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Journalling for happiness and sorrow – for life Until the age of 32 I had never heard the verb ‘to grieve’ – it had passed me by. But one day, years ago, I had taken my baby to see a doctor about her pneumonia. As I got up to go, the consultaiton complete, the doctor […]
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The Role of Values & Visions in delivering the “Hidden Curriculum” Conversations with educators yield rich data on the importance of a values-based education that is deliberately infused in the curriculum. These conversations arise out of the clear evidence of young people struggling to cope with the challenges of the world and seeking a barometer […]
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Remember your mother! Rabbinic Tale A man was walking along a road when he saw a rabbi planting a tree.. The man asked the rabbi, “How many years will it take for the tree to bear fruit?” The rabbi answered that it would take seventy years. The man asked, “Are you so fit and strong […]
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Spring, a time of hope I’m writing from the north of England, very much in the northern hemisphere, and, where I live signs of spring are beginning to emerge after a long, hard winter. For me this is a time of great hope. Therefore, although I love both poets, I’m more of a Robert Browning […]
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Hope springs eternal…. A reflection We are living through uncertain times. Living history. One day, when we are long gone, our successors will read about these days and wonder what it must have been like, in the same way we read about the First World War or the transatlantic slave trade. The phrase ‘hope springs […]
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#MotherLanguageDay International Mother Language Day is an annual event in UNESCO member states to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism. It originated in Bangladesh, where it is known as ‘Ekushey February’. Ekush is Bangla for 21, and Ekushey means 21st. It commemorates 21st February 1952 when police opened fire on demonstrators upholding their right […]
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Your Very Special Place Would you like to have an empty room that is there just for you; a room you can go to at any time; a room where no-one else can go? It is a very safe space, a space where no-one will judge you. This is what a journal provides. In it […]
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Yes! Celebrating 2020 As we come to the end of a year we tend to look back and reflect on how the year has gone. 2020 has no doubt been one of the most challenging years many of us have ever experienced. It began with record unemployment, news that the previous ten years had been […]
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The Masks We Wear “We all wear masks…metaphorically speaking” Jim Carrey — The Mask One of the enduring images from the current pandemic will be the wearing of masks. From every corner of the globe, the medical advice has emphasized the need to keep everyone safe from COVID-19 and recommended the wearing of a face […]
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Time to celebrate The clouds above us join and separate. The breeze in the courtyard leaves and returns. Life is like that, so why not relax? Who can stop us from celebrating? Lu Yu Diwali has just been and gone. Hanukkah is coming up soon. Christmas follows on. We look forward to festivals. They punctuate […]
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How/Do you teach Values? “Values are like fingerprints. Nobody’s are the same but you leave ‘em over everything you do” Elvis Presley Values are at the heart of the Values and Visions approach. Whether consciously or unconsciously, nearly everything we do, nearly everything we think and feel, is coloured and influenced by what we believe […]
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