On October 22nd and 29th, I shared the one strategy that I’ve found to have the biggest impact on my students: Each year I encourage them to develop and deliver their own humanitarian project—one that helps others by providing aid or resources not otherwise available to them.

This project is often life-changing for students, encouraging them to understand more about others’ lives and challenges and to develop their own ability to share what they’ve learned and what they value as a result.

I shape their efforts by first helping them understand what it means to support someone in a humanitarian project. Then, I encourage them to develop the planning, communication, and presentation skills they need to engage their community in their project. And I help them connect their efforts with the social, cultural, and historical context that shapes their own histories. My students leave the classroom with a deeper, more empathetic understanding of the world around them

On October 22, I introduced this strategy in a free, one-hour workshop that gives you the information you need to encourage your students’ own humanitarian projects. You’ll have a chance to reflect about this approach and to begin to personalize the resources and practices I know first-hand work will well for students for your own classroom. Then, our group will met again on October 29 to share ideas and help fine-tune everyone’s approach in ways that will make it easier for you to introduce this strategy to your students.