what you need to know about the courses
Information about course content, structure and scope and sequence.
click to download pdf of this page
program structure
PeaceWiseKids is the overarching name of the program, called PeaceWiseYouth in High School. Each course has the same underlying course content, but depending on the year level, has different:
- “theme” and style of presentation e.g. puppets, animated graphics, live videos, cartoon story etc
- language and ways of presenting the concepts, so that they are age-appropriate
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| module 1 understanding conflict |
module 2 responding to conflict |
module 3 peacemakers for life |
|---|---|---|
| this is the WHAT part | this is the HOW part | this is the INSPIRATIONAL part |
| children learn what conflict is, where it came from, and a basic framework they can use in any conflict situation | children learn the principles, skills and tools needed to be peacemakers | children learn that as they apply these principles, they can be bringing peace both into their own relationships and into the communities to which they belong |
| Important: For students to learn and deeply engage with the principles in a lasting way, and to more fully impact the relational culture of your school, family, church etc, we highly recommend that you plan to teach the full three modules. | ||
course content
All courses are mapped to Australian Curriculum outcomes, and have the same core underlying framework and topics.This means those teaching the principles can share the same core concepts and tools across multiple age groups, and there is consistency of learning at all age levels.
For example, a school could run the program in both primary and high school, or across multiple year groups in either, and the children and staff will all be “on the same page” with what is being learned. This brings the chance to help build a healthy relational “culture” with a community.
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course details at a glance
| Course Number | School Years Covered | Target Ages | Status | Detailed Course Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Course 1 | First year of School | 4-6 | Available | |
| Course 2 | Years 1-2 | 6-8 | Available | |
| Course 3 | Years 3-4 | 8-10 | Available | |
| Course 4 | Years 5-6 | 10-12 | Available | |
| Course 5 | Years 7-8 | 12-14 | Available | |
| Course 6 | Years 9-10 | 14-16 | Available | |
| Course 7 | Years 11-12 | 16-18 | 30 Jun 21 |
what features are in each course?
Some introductory points of explanation…
The basics
- There are 15 lessons (topics) in each course
- each lesson includes 40-55 minutes of content
- online content takes around 10-15 minutes to complete
- All courses are purchased as a 12 month subscription
- you CAN teach a course over two school years for a single fee per user, but you still need to complete all teaching within 12 months of purchase. (eg; Terms 3 and 4 of Year 5, Terms 1 and 2 of Year 6 etc.)
- All courses are designed to be teacher or parent-directed (the “Group Leader”) – you DO need to prepare to teach them
- so we advise allocating sufficient time to teach each lesson – they don’t lend themselves well to being “squeezed” into short time slots like a 15 or 20 minute home room
- strong preparation in advance of each class is vital to good learning outcomes for the students
- All courses begin with the same 3-5 minute key teaching videos, and have extensive lesson plans and in class learning activities.
- All courses have additional teaching resources available for purchase, including posters and summary cards, plus workbooks for primary courses.
The options
- Courses are available EITHER as the full Premium Online Version with supporting live learning activities to do in class OR the Group Presentation Version which has the key teaching video plus live learning activities, but no online content.
- The Premium Online Version provides the additional features of extensive online content, quizzes, puzzles and activities, as well as substantial additional in class learning activities (click the links in the “course sections at a glance” section above for detailed comparison of course elements)
Course-specific notes
- Course 1 (for First Year of School) and Course 2 (for Years 1-2) are not available as online courses, as the children are too young.
- Premium Online Courses 3 & 4 (covering Years 3-6) have complete “double sets” of content (Foundation then Consolidation) to support teaching the same group of students over two years.
- Premium Online Course 5 (covering Years 7-8) also has additional extension content to support a second year of teaching the same group of students as well.
premium online or group presentation version?
The Premium Online Version has the advantage of online interactive content plus the many additional features explained on this page.
Therefore we recommend that where students have their own devices, the Premium Online Version is best suited for
- Schools
- Home schools
- Families
And the Group Presentation Version is best suited for
- Scripture in school (note that Courses 5 and 6 for Years 7-10 are SRE approved in NSW only)
- Youth/church groups
- Schools where not every child has access to a device, or where students do not have access to their own email address (which is needed for online access.)
PeaceWise has tried incredibly hard to keep the pricing really cheap for either version, as we want these resources to be as broadly accessible and used as possible. Pricing of the different courses is available here.
This table helps explain the differences between the course features in more detail.
| Premium Online Version Courses 3-6 (Yrs 3-10) |
Group Presentation Version Courses 3-6 (Yrs 3-10) |
Group Presentation Version Course 1 (First Year of School) & Course 2 (Yrs 1-2) |
|
| Who uses a device? | Group Leader and every student | Group Leader Only | Group Leader Only |
| Key teaching videos (needs internet) | Viewable by students anytime | Accessible by Group Leader | Accessible by Group Leader |
| Comprehensive lesson plans with in class activities | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Student Workbooks | Years 3-6: Workbooks available | Years 3-6: Workbooks available | Required purchase for Course 2 only |
| Australian Curriculum outcomes provided | ✓ | Only in package for Schools | Only in package for Schools |
| Online learning quizzes, puzzles and activities | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Extra stimulus videos/content | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Ability to access content outside classroom | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Online forum for class discussions | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Track student progress | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Online student journal | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Group Leaders forum | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
Australian curriculum outcomes
All courses can be taught as part of Christian Studies, but have also been designed to map to Australian Curriculum descriptors spanning a wide range of subjects including Health and Physical Education, English, The Arts, HASS and Science/Maths.
The document to the right is an example of Course Outcomes mapped to the Australian Curriculum – this is the document for Course 3, for Years 3 and 4.
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scope and sequence
This section provides scope and sequence information to help plan how to run PeaceWiseKids or PeaceWiseYouth, especially within a school context.
here are all the scope and sequence documents for you to access!
- because we know this is important, we’ve included a full scope and sequence for every course – you can click them on the right
- note that you need to allow enough time to get through the course – most teach it over a minimum two terms
- in primary, some courses have special extra content to support teaching over two years – see below
what are the options for teaching a particular course over two years?
upper primary: Years 3-6
- there has been strong demand for extra content, particularly in upper primary
- therefore, for the online premium courses only, for Years 3-6 (Courses 3 and 4), there are TWO sets of lesson plans – Foundation and Consolidation.
- Foundation and Consolidation lesson plans are two separate sets of in-class content which are available with purchase of the premium online course.
- this means you can teach one year (eg. Year 3/Year 5) using the Foundation content, and then the same students can go deeper with the content by doing the Consolidation content in Year 4/Year 6).
- if you do this within 12 months, this is still just a single fee per student – if over more than 12 months, a second fee is payable.
- The video stimuli and online activities will be the same and available to explore with the deeper Consolidation plans.
middle school: Years 7-10
- for Years 7-10 (ie. courses 5 and 6), you can go deeper with a year group which has done the content in the prior year by using the:
- core teaching videos
- extra in-class activities available within the one lesson plan
- any in-class activities not used from prior lessons
course 1 (first year) scope and sequence
course 2 (yrs 1-2) scope and sequence
course 3 (yrs 3-4) scope and sequence
course 4 (yrs 5-6) scope and sequence
course 5 (yrs 7-8) scope and sequence
course 6 (yrs 9-10) scope and sequence
click above to download desired scope and sequence document – it will open in a new window
other questions
which courses are SRE approved in NSW?
Courses 5 and 6 (for Yrs 7 and 8 and Yrs 9 and 10) are SRE authorised by the Baptist Union of NSW and approved for use in State high schools in NSW by Generate.
Note that no courses are “accredited” for Christian Religious Instruction in State schools in Queensland.
do I need to have done the adult PeaceWise training to teach PeaceWiseKids or PeaceWiseYouth?
- this is not required – but it will help a lot!
- as you know, it’s not just a case of being familiar with the concepts – it’s also a case of applying them personally in your own life that makes a huge difference when teaching them to others – in this case, the students
Can I have a PeaceWise training day at my school?
- YES!
- many schools choose to run our “Everyday Peacemaking for Schools” training day for the whole school to ensure all staff (including admin and other departments) are familiar with the principles and have seen their relevance and power in their own lives first, before teaching and modelling them to students
- training includes a dedicated section on running Peace WiseKids/PeaceWiseYouth within a school