“Tolerance and Diversity”: A Poetry Workshop

Why poetry?

In our journey to fight racism and inequity, teaching about social and racial injustice is essential. In their book Making Poetry Matter, Sue Dymoke et al talk about the role of poetry in class, stating that poetry is ‘a vehicle for exploring and describing the real world” offering “an opportunity to test the limits of self-knowledge in a social context”. To answer our question “poetry matters for it is one form of writing that touches students deeply and keenly by engaging their interests and emotions”.

Why the topics of Tolerance and Diversity?

The 2019 poetry workshop was dedicated to the issues of Tolerance and Diversity to spark fruitful discussions and ultimately allow our students to learn how to defend the values of respect, peace and non-violence. During the poetry workshop, our elementary students were encouraged to express their feelings on these matters in a creative and thought-provoking way.

Here are some of the poems that were exhibited at the school premises for the end-of-the-year school party!

  Equals

Rare world, hard to find

I feel happy proud,

I hear laughs

I see equals

Different, altogether, friends

No racism

No stereotypes.

-Jim-

Everyone together

With equals,
good, rare
everyone together
we are all people
all heard as one
holding hands, the whole world.

-Catherine-

All Together

Tolerance
Happy
Different people, friends, colours
We are all equal
Peace.

-Rafaela-

All Equal

Love
Movement
Happy friends
Wonderful
No war, respect

– Krisilda-

People

Equal
Same, different
Happy, good
Peaceful, friends

– Kostas-

References

Dymoke, S., Lambirth, A., & Wilson, A. (2015). Making poetry matter: International research on poetry pedagogy. London: Bloomsbury.