How Educators Around the World Are Teaching the Russia-Ukraine War
In the wake of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, the number of children killed in the conflict increased dramatically. According to UNICEF, there were an estimated 1 million deaths among Iraqi children under age five during the first year of the war. More than half of those deaths occurred in the first three months after the invasion.
Lesson Overview
As Russia wages war with Ukraine—and millions of Ukrainians become refugees inside neighboring nations that fear they might be attacked next—schooling across the European continent continues on. In this lesson students choose between three recent stories about “a war so near to home” from different perspectives. After the class jigsaw puzzles to discuss what they have learnt, they reconvene again to discuss the importance of school in society in general, and during times of crisis like this one.
In addition to the resources listed above, we also encourage you to check out our teacher guide. There you will find a collection of lesson plans and activities that we’ve curated specifically for educators. You’ll also find links to other materials that may help your students engage with the topic.
WarmUp
Inna Pasichnyk had just moved to the city of Kramatorsk when the war broke out. She was living with her husband and two children at their apartment in Kramatorsk. Her husband worked as an engineer at a local factory. On August 26th 2014, he went to work and never came back. That night, the family decided to flee to the Czech Republic. Ms. Pasichnyck said she didn’t remember how she packed her bags or what was in them.
“Volodymyr even managed,” she said, “to take a pencil case and notebook.” After they moved and got settled, he started school again via video chat. He invited his classmates to join him online, and they were all excited about starting school again.
How does the story of the Ukrainian family affect you? Do you think the details of their situation should be shared with the rest of the world? How do you feel about the role of education in times like these? Is there anything else you would like us to consider?
Do you think there should be a peace treaty in place between Russia and Ukraine? What do you think needs to happen first? Do you think there will ever be a peace treaty?
