The day is almost upon us and regardless of what you call November the 11th or how you commemorate it, it is an important day of reflection. In the adult ESL classroom, the subject of war can often be considered taboo, as our students have come from such diverse backgrounds. Some of our students have done obligatory military service in Korea, Brazil, Mexico, or elsewhere. Some of our students have been victims of war and endured horrors we can only imagine and that have scarred them and their families forever. Some of our students still bear the pain and, somewhere deep, the grudges of their parents or grandparents who fought in the World Wars. Some students may be reluctant to engage with peers who hail from countries that were once (or may still be) considered bitter enemies of their own country. It is a complicated topic, fraught with landmines of fear, pain, and distrust. Every once in awhile, though, it's important to open the door to discussion, to conflict, to the taboo, if only to take a look and see if we're ready to go there. To grow a little. To understand ourselves and each other a little better. Peace is up to us.
With that, I leave a lesson on November 11, Canadian-style. It's meant to open up discussion and give us all food for thought. I didn't include discussion questions for the song and cloze because I thought it might be nice just to let the students do a private journal reflection after the song. You might get the students to create their own doves at
tagxedo.com. Enjoy the lesson - copy it, share it and let me know how it went and what reflections emerged!
If you are curious about the poppy (pic above) and Canadian customs around the poppy, here's my blogpost:
"What to Wear - The Poppy (Red is the New Black)"
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