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Stamp of Courage

Grades: 
6, 7, 8
Subjects: 
Language Arts
Philanthropy
Social Studies
Keywords & Concepts: 
Courage
Human Rights
Character

The learners choose a person of courage to honor on a commemorative "postage stamp."

Duration 
PrintOne 20-minute session
Objectives 

The learner will:

  • identify an everyday hero.
  • portray a hero's character in an image for a stamp.
Materials 
  • drawing materials
Related Resources 

Instructions

Print

  1. Anticipatory Set:

    Tell the learners that the U.S. post office has a Distinguished Americans series, for which they put the images of people on postage stamps as a tribute to their contributions to society. A stamp uses a simple artistic image and no more than two words to communicate a message. 

  2. Tell the learners that "everyday" heroes don't usually get put on postage stamps or become famous. Ask them what they think the phrase "everyday hero" means. Their descriptions should include courage and actions that contribute to society.

  3. Give an example of someone in the local community. For example, one might tell the story of a business leader who provided their employees with extensive diversity, equity, and inclusion training and then offered the service to other businesses and organizations to increase awareness, inclusion, and equity in the community. 

  4. Ask the learners to each think of a person who has demonstrated the courage of a hero for the good of all. Distribute a piece of paper to each learner and have them fold it in half. On one side of the fold, they design a stamp for their everyday hero. On the other side of the fold, they describe the actions that make that person an everyday hero for the community.

    The stamp design has a simple image representing the person and one or two words. 

  5. Post the completed stamps around the room and allow the learners to gallery walk around the room, reading about the acts of courage of their heroes.

Philanthropy Framework

  1. Strand PHIL.II Philanthropy and Civil Society
    1. Standard PCS 01. Self, citizenship, and society
      1. Benchmark MS.4 Describe the characteristics of someone who helps others.
    2. Standard PCS 02. Diverse Cultures
      1. Benchmark MS.2 Describe the importance of hearing all voices in a community and respecting their right to be heard.
      2. Benchmark MS.3 Give an example of how philanthropy can transcend cultures.
  2. Strand PHIL.III Philanthropy and the Individual
    1. Standard PI 01. Reasons for Individual Philanthropy
      1. Benchmark MS.3 Identify and give examples of stewardship in cultural traditions around the world.
      2. Benchmark MS.4 Identify and describe the actions of how citizens act for the common good.
      3. Benchmark MS.5 Describe the responsibility students have to act in the civil society sector to improve the common good.