Class Discussions
You should allocate time to discuss a major global event according to the needs of your class. Look for signals in the children’s behaviour and words that they are worried and fearful about something that might be impacting the world and which could have a significant impact in their lives. Allow the class to lead any discussion by getting them to share what they already know is happening and how it might cause problems for different communities in the world. Get the children to share some of their thoughts and reactions about what is happening. Encourage the class to share some of the positive news that they might have seen about the event such as the global community working together to provide support for refugees. Provide some information to ease the children’s worries about how the event might impact them personally and suggest strategies for coping with worrisome news such as spending quality time with their family and taking small steps to help those affected by what is happening.

School Assemblies
You can use assemblies to introduce the school to some of the main themes and ideas about what is happening in the world. Spend time illustrating how different religions around the world can teach people how to respond and react to global events. Allow the children to spend time empathizing and reflecting on the impact of the event on individuals and families suggesting ways to provide support. Following the assembly, you can set up a display board in the school which the children can to post their thoughts about the global event to offer their prayers and responses

Letter Writing
You can help the children understand a global event by getting them to think about what might be happening to a child of a similar age caught up in the event. Allow the class to write a letter to a child affected by the event to develop feelings of empathy and express their thoughts and ideas about what is happening. The children can use the letter to share their worries about what is happening now and how they can support families in the affected regions of the world

Stay Positive
During any discussions or activities about a troubling event in the world help the children remain positive about what has happened by getting them to share some of their hopes for the future. For example, when talking about refugees the children can focus on how the lives of a refugee can be changed for the better when moving to a new country instead of focusing on what has been left behind. You can also ease the children’s worries by getting them to examine some of the positive messages heard in the news such as stories of charities sending support to affected communities.

Class Actions
One way of helping the children understand about the impact of a global event is by getting them to select a small action that they can take to provide support to families who have been affected by what is happening. For example, the class could participate in some money raising activities such as baking and selling cookies to collect money to send to a charity who provide support to refugees. Alternatively, the children could also make collections of items such as clothing and toys that could be donated to a charity supporting refugees. These actions can help the children feel that there is always something that can be used to turn a negative event into something positive.