Social Justice Activity Guide

In preparation for Catholic Education Week, here are some steps to prepare you in advance for the Social Justice activities you will be facilitating.

STEP 1 // Build Your Team!

 Select a team who will be responsible for running the various activities and planning your event  You will need leaders for the various activities (whether principals, teachers, chaplains, students, etc.) to take the lead with organization

STEP 2 // Make Your Plan!

 Decide at least three weeks in advance which activities you will use with your group  Choosing your activities far in advance will allow you to prepare materials and space you will need to complete the activities

STEP 3 // Get the Decision-Makers on Board!

 Speak to principals, chaplains, etc., who are responsible for decision making at your school (you may need to get their approval for activities)  Put together all information they would need about the activities you are planning to facilitate  Set dates and times for all activities, as you may need to reserve space depending on which activity you will be facilitating

STEP 4 // Talk it Up!

 Talk to your students before the activity day about social justice – information and facts can be found in the activities you have selected  This will give them some time to start thinking about the issues you will be looking at while partaking in the activities  Announce the activities on your school PA  Prepare any necessary packages to distribute to participating teachers and clubs in advance STEP 5 // Have Fun!

 Learn about social justice issues with the activities provided

STEP 6 // Follow Up!

 Social justice is more than a one-day-of-activities issue; incorporate some of the suggested activities into future plans to continue your discussions and actions

Not sure how to start? Here are some TIPS for talking about social justice:

 Start with facts; they give a good information base for discussion  Make it relatable to them using similar examples if possible  Use charts to display information if possible  Allow a fair amount of time for activities to ensure participants have enough time to reflect and communicate their ideas  For secondary participants, encourage them to look deeper than what’s on the surface and think critically about the issues they are discussing

Links for Social Justice Activities

We encourage you to use our special Catholic Education Week Activity: Doors of Mercy as your social justice activity. You can find it here: www.ocsta.on.ca.

However, if your school is unable to participate in this activity, here are some other ideas you can use from Development and Peace:

Primary

Food Art Game http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/foodart.pdf

The Banana Split Game http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/devpeace_thinkfast_bananasplitgame.pdf

Junior

A Divided World http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/05-thinkfast_adividedworld.pdf

Food Art Game http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/foodart.pdf

Food Quiz Jeopardy Game http://www.devp.org/en/resources/activities (scroll down to activity) Intermediate

The Seed Game http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/devpeace_fall2014_sowmuchlove_seedgame.pdf

Food Quiz Jeopardy Game http://www.devp.org/en/resources/activities (scroll down to activity)

Prescription: Charity and Justice http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/10-thinkfast_prescriptioncharityjustice.pdf

The World Goes Shopping http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/06-thinkfast_worldgoesshopping.pdf

Prayers

Come Holy Spirit http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/devpeace_thinkfast_comeholyspirit.pdf

Prayer for Strength to Act http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/17-thinkfast_prayerstrengthtoact.pdf

Prayer for St. Theresa of Avila http://www.devp/org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/19-thinkfast_prayersttheresa.pdf

LITANY Teach Us and Show Us the Way http://www.devp.org/sites/www.devp.org/files/documents/thinkfast-activities/20-thinkfast_litany.pdf

**For more activities and ideas, visit our Activities Database:

http://www.devp/org/en/resources/activities