LAC LA BICHE - A group of young school students have been encouraged to find a way to support Ukrainians suffering from the impact of the Russian-led war on their homeland. Recently a group of 24 Grade 3 students at Vera M. Welsh School in Lac La Biche County led a book-sale fundraiser that brought in $600. The proceeds will go to organizations directly helping Ukrainians, says teacher, Shelley Thody.
“We had done a ‘Buy a Book for a Buck’ a few times in our school before, and I just thought this would be a really good opportunity for children to get involved in something positive to make a bit of a difference—when often they don’t feel they can make a difference in something like a war.”
The ongoing conflict has had impacts across the world, including young students locally. Throughout the third grade curriculum, an objective for the students is to learn about Ukrainian history and heritage, said Thody.
“It’s one of the four countries we have been learning about for years,” she said, explaining that the history of the country is now being taught with the addition of current events from the war.
By hearing the news, discussions in the class and at home, and learning about the vibrant Ukrainian culture, the young students wanted to find ways they could help, said Thody.
“It was affecting them and they were very sad with all this going on when we learned about all of the good things of the country,” Thody said.
With Thody’s support, students initiated the school-wide fundraiser.
Their Grade 3 homeroom was adorned with Ukrainian flags, and bookcases filled with a variety of donated books that were on display for visiting schoolmates, teachers and family members to browse and buy.
“Every class had a chance to come in,” with many children purchasing books while some teachers in the school shared dollars to allow the kids to buy their own books.
Going to see the big egg
Building on the curriculum learning objectives about Ukraine, Thody’s Grade 3 class will be taking a trip to the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village near Vegreville in June. The students will take the money they raised and present it to staff at the cultural site.
Even though the crisis is a world away, Thody says it’s great to see local kids taking the issue seriously and trying to help.
“It’s encouraging to know that the kids have a lot of heart and they do want to make a big difference. Sometimes they don’t know how to, so when you can direct them in certain ways it's can help them become better global citizens.”
