In October of 2016, the grade 10 civics class at Ridgemont High School, led by their teacher Kim Guite, in collaboration with DILA, showed their pride for Ottawa, and the importance of civic engagement by raising over 300$ for CHEO. Although facilitated by DILA, an organization that supports youth to take action in their community and/or societal issues that are important to them, the initiative and fundraisers were completely student-led. This was an important initiative for the grade 10 students because it showed the students that they can make a difference in their community, across Canada, and in the world by engaging in an important cause. During the month of October and early November, students would meet once a week with the DILA representative to go over key issues they wanted to support in their community. In collaboration with the DILA facilitator and Ms. Guite, the students came up with a comprehensive list of possible organizations they wanted to help. This ranged from raising money to buy a water well in Africa to raising money to purchase books for First Nations reservations. The students ultimately decided to focus their attention on the importance of sports. At Ridgemont High School, sports and the ability to participate in sports programs is of great importance. The students decided that they wanted to focus on raising money to purchase sports equipment for the school. However, during a class discussion, a particular student raised an interesting point regarding children who perhaps do not have the ability to participate in sports. This led to another conversation regarding sick children who have to spend a majority of their childhood in a hospital. The students felt that if children were not able to participate in an organized sport, they would bring the sports to them, by raising money to buy sports equipment for the children at CHEO. Once the organization was identified, it was time to plan a series of fundraisers. This was the easy part because students were motivated a had an abundance of great ideas. After brainstorming the endless possibilities, the students decided to hold a movie night and a bake sale. The movie was to be held in the auditorium, and since it was close to Halloween, the students decided to show a screening of The Ring. During class, students, in groups, worked on a series of posters to display in the school’s hallways. This played a huge role in the success of the event. The students went class to class urging the students to participate and show their support for CHEO. The first fundraiser was a success, raising over 200$. The students were excited and eager to participate in the next fundraiser. The next event was held on November 3, 2016. This time, the students decided on a Smash Bros video game tournament. This event was held after school, and each participant would be required to pay a 2$ entry fee. The equipment used for this fundraiser belonged to the students, and this shows how motivated the students were to raise money for their very important cause. Following both fundraiser, the grade 10 class raised a little over 250$, but want to do more. It was now approaching Christmas, and the students decided that since the Halloween Movie Night was such a success, they would host a Christmas Movie Night and Bake Sale in the auditorium. The difficult part was choosing the movie. In the end, the students all agreed on Rush Hour (I know! This is not a Christmas Movie). This time, the students were eager to surpass their previous amount raised, so students turn to Social Media by broadcasting the movie night on the school’s Twitter page and SnapChat. The students also had a series of posters made to hang in the hallways. During this fundraiser, the students managed to raised over 55$. In total the students had raise a little over 300$ for sports equipment. Everyone was beyond excited and proud of their accomplishment. The grade 10 students of Ridgemont High school showed that students are able to take action to change something about their community and be extremely successful in their endeavors. This was a class initiative, and proved that students can work together to achieve something great! I was fortunate enough to have participated in these class discussions and fundraising events. I was always surprised at the level of engagements the each student displayed throughout the entire process. Students were always working together, donating baked goods, equipment, and time to make each event possible and successful. Following the events, the students were praised for their efforts, willingness and openness to take part in such an endeavor. This gave the students a sense of pride, and drive to be more active in their community. As a teacher, allow for your students to take action, nurture their ideas, and help make them a reality. You will be surprised at what they are able to accomplish with a little encouragement, and a lot of heart. For more information about DILA, and how to get your class involved visit their website at http://www.betterworldtoday.org/youth-action-showcase/ or browse through their Twitter feed to see all the amazing youth initiatives happening throughout Ottawa at http://www.betterworldtoday.org/youth-action-showcase/
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