In this exceptional resource we will find 8 chapters with ideas and activities for teaching Social Justice:

Contents:

1. Frederic Ozanam 1813 – 1853
2. Poverty
3. Social Justice
4. Catholic Social Teaching
5. St Vincent de Paul
6. St Vincent de Paul Society
7. St Vincent de Paul Society in Australia
8. Spirituality of the St Vincent de Paul Society

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From the Introduction:

This book has been designed for classroom teachers, years 5 – 10, to assist with background information and possible ideas for teaching about social justice, as seen through the lens of the St Vincent de Paul Society experience: its beginnings, founder, patron, spirituality, work and history in Australia.

The work presented here is meant to add to and support the Religious Education Program. It has been written as part of the celebrations to mark the 150th anniversary of the founding of the first conference of the St Vincent de Paul Society in Australia.

Areas in the Religious Education Programs that this resource could support are:

• God
• Creation
• Human Person and Family
• Jesus Christ
• Holy Spirit
• The Church
• Prayer

The ideas presented here are designed to be developed by teachers and incorporated into their classroom programs. The chapters are designed to either ‘stand’ on their own, or, just as comfortably, support each other in a unit of work, be it about social justice or an aspect of the history of the St Vincent de Paul Society.

All the activities offered here are designed as ‘open-ended’ strategies, that can be developed as much or as little as required, depending on the needs, understandings and interests of students and teachers alike.There is no implication intended here that any class must engage in any or all of these activities. The variety of activities presented here have been included deliberately so that teachers can select strategies that are suited to their preferred teaching styles as well as meeting the needs, interests and learning styles of their students.

There is no set sequence of activities presented in these chapters. In developing the ideas in this book, four assumptions have been made:

1. in each class there is a wide range of abilities;
2. no single text or activity will suit the range of abilities in any one class;
3. there is great variation among students regarding prior knowledge, experience and understanding of topics presented;
4. interest in any of the particular topics will vary from student to student.

The information presented here has been collated from a variety of sources readily provided by the St Vincent de Paul Society.

About the author:

Angela Tohill is a teacher with 30 years experience at primary, secondary and tertiary levels. She has been a Curriculum Coordinator and a Religious Education Coordinator in schools and a Religious Education Curriculum Advisor for the Catholic Education Office in Melbourne. She is currently completing a PhD on pedagogy and leadership at Deakin University.