Alternate Activity 4: Public Witness Online
Part of Signs of Our Faith
Activity time: 10 minutes
Materials for Activity
- A computer with Internet access, and a large monitor or digital projector
Preparation for Activity
- Preview the No Kid Hungry website and the PSA by actor Jeff Bridges.
- Preview alternate child-friendly websites, devoted to other causes, with which you can provide this activity. These include People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals' kids website, PetaKids, and the website for Kids vs. Global Warming.
- Immediately before the session, cue the website(s) and test your Internet connection and projector.
Description of Activity
Use the No Kid Hungry website, or another cause-oriented, age-appropriate website, to help you explain different modes of public witness to the group.
Tell the children:
Public witness is a way of working for a better world. For example, many people are working on the problem that many children do not have enough to eat. Some people donate food to food pantries. Others serve food at shelters to families who need a healthy meal. Still other people work to pass laws to make sure families have enough money for food.
And some people do public witness about hunger. They write books and articles. They create plays, TV shows, music, and art to tell everyone about the problem of child hunger and suggest ways to solve it. They speak to Congress and hold public meetings to talk about solutions.
Show the group the No Kid Hungry website. Play the video (:49). Under "Ways to Get Involved," point out the link to Spread the Word and the ways it invites us to witness for ending childhood hunger in the United States by sharing information online. Watch actor Jeff Bridges' public service announcement. Ask:
- Why would an organization want a celebrity to speak publicly about their cause?
- Can you name any other famous person who speaks out for a justice cause? Is that a kind of public witness?
- What are some ways young people your age can do public witness about child hunger in the U.S.?