The Peaceable Classroom first defines a pedagogy of nonviolence and then analyzes certain contemporary approaches to rhetoric and literary studies in light of nonviolent theory.

PEACE CAN HAPPEN, ONE STUDENT AT A TIME. For eleven years, educator Catherine Cadden ran the bold experiment called TEMBA, a K-8 academic school based on the tenets of nonviolence and founded on the conviction that children who have the opportunity to practice peace in the classroom wouldn't just survive school - they'd thrive. Packed with real-world examples from the TEMBA classroom and the author's twenty-two years of "front-line" experience in classrooms on five continents, Peaceable Revolution Through Education offers practical everyday guidance for creating peace in today's learning environments. From tantrums to cellphones to total chaos, Cadden shows us the human beings behind the behaviors, and demonstrates what's possible when the opportunity is taken to build connection. This book dives to the root of the issues, offering insightful looks at the underlying causes of learner struggle, apathy, and rebellion, and dispelling common myths about children and the nature of learning. From a public high school in South San Francisco to a Waldorf elementary school in South Africa; from a U.N. guarded "classroom" in Kabul, Afghanistan to a Montessori kindergarden in Kansas City, Kansas, ultimately, the author's journey is a reminder that no matter where we come from and no matter where we're going, we are human beings and we love to learn.

In our modern world, it is so easy to get sucked in to conflict - online, on the news, with our family and friends. It is important that at a very young age, we begin to learn how to settle our differences and appropriately handle strong emotions. Peace education is a major component of the Montessori classroom. Adults model peaceful and respectful behavior, and because Montessori classrooms are composed of mixed age groups, older students serve as role models for younger children. Most classrooms have a peace corner or peace table, at which two students can go to resolve a conflict or a single child can go to calm down and feel peaceful. One strategy is the use of a peace rose. Children learn to take turns holding the peace rose while speaking about how they feel. They stay at the peace table until they have heard each other and resolved their conflict. With very young children, adults model and coach the children with words they can use. Older students can do this independently. At the Elementary level, when the imagination takes off, students enjoy role playing and solving problems in small groups. Elementary and Middle School age students may participate in student-led community meetings, in which conflicts are discussed, brainstormed, and resolved as a group. This book provides learning experiences to reduce violence, enhance personal integrity and foster mutual respect. We teach conflict resolution, peer mediation and prejudice reduction.

In Teaching toward Freedom, William Ayers illuminates the hope as well as the conflict that characterizes the craft of education: how it can be used in authoritarian ways at the service of the state, the church, or a restrictive existing social order-or, as he envisions it, as a way for students to become more fully human, more engaged, more participatory, more free. Using examples from his own classroom experiences as well as from popular culture, film, and novels, Ayers redraws the lines concerning how we teach, why we teach, and the surprising things we uncover when we allow students to become visible, vocal authors of their own lives and stories. This lucid and inspiring book will help teachers at every level to realize that ideal.

Committed to teaching for peace and justice, the author brings to life a teaching approach that empowers youth: • to think critically and creatively about historical, current, and future issues, • to care about classmates and neighbors as well as the global community, • to act—locally and globally—for the greater good. Think, Care, Act: Teaching for a Peaceful Future is readable, practical, conversational, and intimate. It will inspire readers to build a just and peaceful world. Think, Care, Act depicts the daily successes and struggles a peace educator undergoes in encouraging students to envision peace and gain tools to build a culture of peace. The author uses three imperatives—think, care, act—to infuse required curricula with peace, character, and multicultural concepts in daily activities throughout the year. Chapters address critical and creative thinking; media and political literacy; compassionate classroom and school climate; explorations of racism, gender issues, civil discourse, global citizenship, war, and peace; and school, community, and global social-action projects. Chapters include rationales, lesson expectations, and classroom “play-by-play.” Students’ feedback about the impact of lessons is also featured. With its combination of theory and practice Think, Care, Act is unique. It will motivate teachers, education students, and scholars to employ “think, care, act” frameworks to empower students to build a peaceful future.

This book displays the striking creativity and profound insight that characterized Freire's work to the very end of his life-an uplifting and provocative exploration not only for educators, but also for all that learn and live.