DURHAM – ‘Nobody’ started off with nothing, but the good deeds of students have given it eyes, clothes, and an identity.
On a recent Wednesday night, students from 27 schools gathered in the Durham District School Board’s Education Centre to celebrate and showcase ‘Who is Nobody?,’ a character education project that occurred in 40 classrooms, including Erin Mattes’.
He has a bracelet and a card for donating to breast cancer— Erin Mattes, grade 2 student
This is ‘Nobody,’ a jean doll that wants us to teach him to help people around the world,” said Erin, a Grade 2 student at Sir Samuel Steele Public School in Whitby.
The project begins with a nondescript doll that gets clothing and other objects added to it to represent good deeds from each student.
“I helped the people that had no food or no toys by sending stuff to where they live,” said Keira Estrela, one of Erin’s classmates. She showed off some of the articles students added to the doll.
I love character building, I think it’s an essential part of education— Cheryl Singer-Coulson, teacher
“He has trees to help stop junk mail, he has a hat from donating clothes,” Keira said.
“He has a bracelet and a card for donating to breast cancer,” Erin said.
Each student took the doll home for a week, then shared with the class how they helped ‘Nobody,’ Keira said.
Teacher Cheryl Singer-Coulson was one of six to initially pilot the project in the Durham District School Board.
“I love character building, I think it’s an essential part of education,” said Ms. Singer-Coulson, a Grade 2 teacher at West Lynde Public School in Whitby.
This article was published in The Ajax News Advertiser on July 8th 2008
Leave A Comment