Be the change...
John Smith recalls a couple of Thursdays in May when he and Alice Gasson were privileged to be a part of a joint venture with Ivy Manchester, who were hosting two special days for a Year 7 group of pupils from Barlow High School in Didsbury.
In short the entire Year 7, some 160 youngsters aged between 12 and 13, were taken out of school and treated to a special day out called “R.E.Treat” or “Retreat.” In some respects a day out of school was always going to be a treat. Well it was when I was young, although that was some time ago.
So what does this all mean, “Be the change.”
Well it’s all about “making a difference” in ourselves, how we relate to others, making a difference where we live and the world we live in.
To accommodate so many young people it was necessary to run this event over two Thursdays split over the two sites at Ivy Manchester and here at Emmanuel.
Each of the days ran with the same format, splitting into four groups of twenty looking at four different topics. Topics we looked at were:
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Kindness on yourself
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Kindness to Didsbury
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Kindness to the world
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Act of Celebration
The morning started at around 9.00am with pupils arriving at Ivy Manchester for an Introduction to the day and songs from the band 1224, the look on the faces of the young people when the band struck up was priceless.
Then onto the sessions with groups spread over the two sites with Ivy taking the majority of the pupils and we here at Emmanuel taking one session in the Youth Room in No.6.
Having looked at making a difference in themselves and then in the world it was time to make a difference in our local community.
This was going to be very much a practical exercise impacting the immediate area around Didsbury centre itself. The session gave a brief introduction on the topic “Acts of Random Kindness” then followed an opportunity for the youngsters to look at ways they could make a difference where they live by doing something practical.
During this session we were able to decide how we could make a difference outside and in particular the village.
Some youngsters stayed in No.6 and made sandwiches for the needy at Barnabus in Manchester, a Christian charity who care for the homeless, whilst others ventured outside to litter pick, hand out leaflets advertising charity events in aid of Barnabus or giving out smiley face stickers and saying to everyone “have a nice day.”
It was a privilege just watching these young people with so much enthusiasm carrying out these acts of kindness on the main street of Didsbury. More importantly they seemed inspired to go back to their homes and neighbourhoods and do likewise.
The day itself closed with a celebration in drama and song written and performed by the pupils themselves and finally more songs from the band 1224, with youngsters clapping and jumping up and down. A totally amazing time and even the teachers joined in.
We got some brilliant feedback from the school especially as the Ofsted inspectors called in at one point.
“Ofsted loved it”
“The teachers enjoyed it”
“The kids went back home and offered to help”
“The best school day ever”
“The Headmaster is very happy with the response and wants to do more events”
One parent contacted the school to say that her son has never been so enthusiastic and willing to help other people.
Was it all worth it... it certainly was!
