STRENGTH OF THE WEEK

BRAVERY

What is it?

Bravery is doing the right thing even when it is difficult or scary. If you are growing bravery, you may stand up for others even if no one else agrees. You can ask for help even if you aren’t sure you will get it.

What does it look like in our classroom?

We feel nervous to speak in front of our classmates but we remind ourselves that we can do hard things and we stand up and do it - despite being afraid!

We seek help from the teacher when we know something is unfair or wrong

What does it look like on our playground?

Standing up for ourselves or others even when we are scared

Asking to join in a game

Saying no to something you don't feel comfortable about

Person of the week: Malala Yousafzai

"When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful.”

Malala grew up in a peaceful valley in Pakistan. Her father was proud of her and believed passionately in education for girls and boys. Malala loved going to school and learning new things.

One day however a group of armed men called the Taliban took control of the valley where Malala was living. The extremists banned many things — like owning a television and playing music — and enforced harsh punishments for those who defied their orders. And they said girls could no longer go to school.

Many people disagreed wth this but many were afraid to speak up. Malala was afraid to but despite this she did voice her opinion. In 2012 she spoke out publicly on TV on behalf of girls and their right to learn, she said: “Education is power for women. The Taliban are closing girls’ schools because they don’t want women to be powerful.”

This immediately made her a target. A few days later Malala was on her way home from school, a masked gunman boarded her school bus and asked, “Who is Malala?” He shot Malala on the left side of her head.

Malala woke up 10 days later in a hospital in Birmingham, England. The doctors and nurses told Malala about the attack — and that people around the world were praying for her recovery. After many months of surgeries and rehabilitation Malala joined her family in their new home in the U.K. Many would have stopped to be an activist after receiving such a terrifying and life threatening attack. However Malala chose to continue to speak up. She said:

“It was then I knew I had a choice. I could live a quiet life or I could make the most of this new life I had been given. I was determined to continue my fight until every girl could go to school.”

Why girls you might be asking or thinking…

Well, even today there are more than 130 million girls out of school today. This why with the help of her father, Malala established the Malala Fund, a charity dedicated to giving every girl and opportunity to achieve a future she chooses. To this day Malala is committed to speaking up for all girls and aiming for them to receive 12 years of free, safe, quality education.