The Peace by PEACE Curriculum

The foundation of Peace By PEACE is to explore the concepts of goals, conflict, choices, consequences of choices, negotiation and confrontation. Students are introduced to win-win situations through Peace Games and our volunteers establish weekly routine and rituals, such as the Peace Rap and Peace Box where students can ask questions anonymously.

Conflict is explored using a visual model to present conflict escalation, understanding the role of anger, discovering anger management techniques and sharing ways to “cool off”. Additionally, introducing a technique to localize emotions on The Wheel of Emotions to make it easier to communicate and avoid escalating conflict.

Communication requires understanding sympathy, empathy, how non-verbal cues can help  communicate, listening to perspectives, and verbalizing emotions through the use of “I-statements.” 

Inner Power is a term in Peace by PEACE to describe self-esteem. Inner Power is about exploring the concept of “self-talk”, the implications of self-talk and its relation to Peer Pressure, as well as practicing self-gratitude which strengthens Inner Power.

Differences within the classroom are explored through understanding diversity, stereotypes, and discrimination in relation to conflict. The students engage in celebrating personal differences and bridging cultural gaps in the community through activities and discussions.

The differences within the classroom are further explored through a discussion on power and privilege, and how they both relate to resolving conflicts. This takes the discussion of diversity further and leans into recognizing the different powers and privileges each individual possesses. 

Conflict resolution skills such as: negotiation to gain a win-win solution and cooperation is emphasized. Students are encouraged to utilize negotiation as a tool for peaceful conflict resolutions. They practice this skill through games and activities that promote collaboration, compromise and highlight the process of negotiation.

The foundations of bullying behaviour are covered such as the types, definition, social and emotional effects of bullying behaviours, and the roles during conflict. Through exploring language, empathy, choices and consequences of bullying behaviours students are able to explore the roots of bullying behaviours.

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​The tools of responding to bullying behaviours are addressed through using the concept of ABCDE, Taking Peaceful Action and through open dialogue about bullying behaviours. The use of Peace By PEACE concepts such as Inner Power and Empathy are highlighted to explore types of response and how to respond. 

Community building highlights the strengths and weakness in the communities, points of views and emphasizes classroom community. Students are encouraged to critically think of the broader effects of creating a community and the roles of inner-power, empathy and other Peace By PEACE concepts. 

The conclusion to our conflict resolution program ends with a classroom Peace Festival organized with a theme annually for the students to celebrate their successes. It is a chance to reflect on what they learned and a reminder that Peace by PEACE is ultimately here to empower.