Students will learn about the life of Gandhi and will promote peace in their community. They will compare and contrast the philosophies and work of Dr. King and Gandhi. They will determine service they can provide to promote peace and nonviolence.

The learner will:

• discuss discrimination and nonviolent resistance and its relationship to the Indian caste system.
• compare the lives and legacies of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mohandas Gandhi.
• experience service by making peace bracelets to demonstrate the importance

• “Gandhi” DVD 
• Elastic cording, cut in 6" or 7" pieces 
• Construction paper
• Bag of assorted alphabet beads

Anticipatory Set:

Write this quote on a display board: "Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."

Ask the students what they think the quote means and if they agree with it. After a brief discussion, remind the students that they have recently learned about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and tell the students that the quotation is from Mohandas Gandhi, whose life and teaching were very influential in the development of Dr. King's understanding of service and nonviolence.

• Introduce the theme of the day, Practice Peace – this means understanding nonviolence and promoting peace and tolerance.
• Before viewing the movie or reading information about the life of Gandhi, explain the Indian caste system:
   
  Under the religion of Hinduism, there existed a system of social ranking called the caste system. Although it has been outlawed from the Indian Constitution since the mid-twentieth century, the caste system existed for many centuries and has some values still practiced today. The caste system has 5 “varnas” or colors that gave a hierarchal structure to various social or ethnic clusters. The five varnas are known as the Brahmins (priests or teachers), Kshatriyas (kings or warriors), Vaishyas (merchants or artisans), Shudras (laborers or peasants), and Pariah/Harijan (also known as the “untouchables”). The Brahmins were considered to be the highest ranking group and the Harijan were the lowest ranking. Thousands of sub-castes also existed in India known as “jati,” which means birth, life, and rank.
  Describe the way that groups were treated within the Indian caste system:
  Typically, groups that were of a lower rank than others were discriminated against. Discrimination means being treated unfairly by others. Due to the treatment the untouchables and other groups received, Gandhi began practicing nonviolent resistance to demonstrate his and others’ outrage over discrimination.
• Show the movie “Gandhi” or share print information about Gandhi with the students. Facilitate a discussion about the themes of the movie and the importance of helping others. Ask:
  • What conflicts were occurring in India that sparked Gandhi’s attention?
  • How did Gandhi protest the violence that Indians experienced?
  • Why do you think Gandhi felt it important to meet violence with peace?
  • How does this movie and Gandhi’s leadership relate to service?
  • How are Dr. King and Gandhi similar with their lives and the legacies that they have left behind?
• Tell the students:  Nonviolent resistance is a type of peaceful protest that is designed to alert others of unfair or unequal acts committed. One example of nonviolent resistance is sit-ins. Ask students to list other types of nonviolent resistance. Discuss ways that you could resolve conflicts peacefully.
• Review Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy of service and compare it to the life and legacy of Gandhi. Ask:
  • Think about the legacies of Dr. King and Mohandas Gandhi. How did they both encourage others to serve?
  • What message would both of them convey to youth today to encourage them to practice service?
  • What will you do to continue their messages of service? 
• Review the concept of philanthropy - giving time, talent and treasure for the common good - and ask students to brainstorm examples from their own lives or the lives of others. Remind students that in learning about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mohandas Gandhi, they learned about how one person can make a difference through service. Just as Dr. King and Gandhi demonstrated their dedication to help others through social activism, students will demonstrate service by students can demonstrate service by making peace bracelets to promote unity and tolerance in their community.
• Explain to students that they can practice giving and sharing again by making peace bracelets and spreading the message of peace, unity, and tolerance.
• Prior to the activity, cut the construction paper into 4” x 5” squares. Cut the elastic cording it into 6”-7”strips. Give each student one strip, one square of construction paper, and a handful of alphabet beads. Instruct students to first triple knot one end of their cording and pull tightly to secure (students may add more knots if necessary).  
• Next, add various beads that spell peaceful messages, such as Peace, Unity, Hope, or Love, and then tie the bracelet together securely. Have students write inspirational messages about peace and tolerance and attach them to the bracelets.
• Brainstorm with students possible groups and places to donate their bracelets and possible messages that they could write in their cards attached to the bracelets.
• After your students have completed their bracelets, donate them to your chosen recipients. Be sure to take pictures (if appropriate) for lasting memories. 
• Reflection is a key component of service-learning that adds meaning to the experience. Ask students how they felt about donating the bracelets and how they think others will feel about their act of service. Discuss with students why doing this project was important.

• Poems, Songs, Art: Encourage students to create original art, poetry, and songs about giving and sharing, or about this specific project.
• Research: Encourage students to find out about other acts of peaceful demonstrations. Have them create a report or a poster and share their findings with the class. Challenge them to compare the peaceful demonstrations they researched with Gandhi and King’s work.
• Photo Slide Show: Make a slide show using the photographs taken throughout the project and invite friends and family to attend a viewing.