Searching for Peace: Exploring Issues of War with Young Children

Using a framework grounded in critical literacy, the author describes her 1st-grade students’ responses to works of literature that portray the impact of war. When given opportunities to read works of literature that address social justice issues, such as the consequences of war, her primary-age students’ written, drawn, and spoken responses were meaningful and empathetic. Her students’ responses addressed four areas of emphasis: discovering links between war-related concepts and students’ lives, expressing empathy for those impacted by war, searching for explanations or justifications for war, and cultivating new visions and possibilities for our world.