Speak Truth to Power. Robert Kennedy Foundation.

Kerry Kennedy, from the Robert Kennedy Foundation, visited our school this morning to talk about Human Rights, as part of the programme Speak Truth to Power .

I'd particularly like to thank my students Mateo and Ella for their interesting questions.

What did you think of the talk ? I'd love to hear your opinion, so please, leave your comments below.




 I look forward to your presentations on Human Rights Defenders  next week (20th of May)

Keep working!!

Human Rights

On 10 December 1948, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 

What are Human Rights?    


You can read a simplified version here.





Speak Truth to Power is a global initiative to educate students about HUMAN RIGHTS through the experiences of defenders from around the world. It is based on the book written by Kerry Kennedy, who is visiting our school on the 11th of May, and it is supported by the  Robert Kennedy Foundation.



Find out about human rights defenders here
Do you know any human rights defenders ? 

Hackers: Heroes or Villains?

Watch the video and answer the questions.

What examples of good hackers does Keren Elazari give us? And bad hackers? 

Why does she compare hacking with our inmune system?

What does she tell us about her years at school?

 What was her first experience as a hacker?

 What did Khahl, the young man from Palestine do?

 How did Anonymous become famous?

 What happened in Egypt?

 What is DEF CON and why is it mentioned?

 So are hackers heroes or villains?

A film review of the film Boyhood

 After watching the movie BOYHOOD, you are now going to write a review of the film.
 Your review should include:

• information about who is in the film, who it is by and when it was made.
• a description of  the story, characters and some of the action - without giving too much information away. No spoilers, please!
• your opinion on whether the film is good or not and why.
• your  advice: do you recommend watching the film?

Deadline: Friday 18th

But first, here is an interview with the main actor Ellar Coltrane.

• How does the interviewer describe the film?
• What does Coltrane think the film is really about?
• How does he feel about social media?

Eye Wink Technology

• Who has developed the Eye Wink technology?
• How does Eye Wink work?
• Who could benefit from it?
• How do they expect to improve the device?

Why did it happen?
Why in Paris?
What will be the consequences?



BBC: Paris Attacks
BBC A New Terrorism
NY Times: How Isis expanded its threats
CNN  Paris attacks (+video)

RAINMAKING

Watch the video and answer the questions

1. When did the rainmaking technique originate?
2. Why is China mentioned in the video?
3. Why is the technique called cloud seeding? How does it work?
4. How many countries are using this technique? Is it being used in Europe?

When Home is the Mouth of a Shark

Since the Syrian civil war broke up four years ago, more than 11 million people have been displaced.
 The majority of refugees are now in Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan, but hundreds of thousands are attempting a dangerous trip across the Mediterranean into Greece, hoping to find a better future in Europe.
 How is Europe responding?

This is Amira, a 16-year old Syrian refugee. She is one of 30 million other children around the world who had to leave their home behind.
 Read about her here:
Diary of a Teenage Girl Refugee

 Can you imagine yourself in her situation? What do you think she misses most from the life she left behind?

 



 Benedict Cumberbatch, famous for his Sherlock Holmes role, appeals for help in a Save the Children campaign





Answer the questions after watching the video:

• How many people around the world are currently fleeing their country?
• How many of those are Syrian?
• Why are Syrian people leaving their country?

Cumberbatch reads a fragment from a poem, Home, by a Somali British writer. 
Here are some lines from the same poem.


no one leaves home unless
home is the mouth of a shark
you only run for the border
when you see the whole city running as well
your neighbors running faster than you
breath bloody in their throats
the boy you went to school with
who kissed you dizzy behind the old tin factory
is holding a gun bigger than his body
you only leave home
when home won’t let you stay.
(…)
you have to understand,
that no one puts their children in a boat
unless the water is safer than the land
no one burns their palms
under trains
beneath carriages
no one spends days and nights in the stomach of a truck
feeding on newspaper unless the miles travelled
means something more than journey.
no one crawls under fences
no one wants to be beaten
pitied
(…)
I want to go home,
but home is the mouth of a shark
home is the barrel of the gun
and no one would leave home
unless home chased you to the shore
unless home told you
to quicken your legs
leave your clothes behind
crawl through the desert
wade through the oceans
drown
save
be hunger
beg
forget pride
your survival is more important
no one leaves home until home is a sweaty voice in your ear
saying-
leave,
run away from me now
I don't know what I’ve become
but I know that anywhere
is safer than here