The P.E.A.C.E. Projects is an initiative to sponsor and mentor early childhood educators in promoting peace education for young children in the classroom and/or community.
P.E.A.C.E. Projects 2025
Weetumuw School Peace Project
Submitted by Sharman Brown, Primary Lead Teacher
Weetumuw School is a Wôpanâak, culture and language school, operated by the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe. At Weetumuw, students are immersed in Wampanoag language learning and culture in a safe, healthy, and loving environment, with the goal of fostering academic excellence via a Montessori pedagogy, leadership skills, and a strong sense of personal, community, and cultural pride.
We have been honored to participate in the application process with the goal of peace in the classroom and in the community.
We have a Primary classroom (ages 3 – 6), and a Lower Elementary classroom (ages 6 – 9). Our Lower Elementary class has created a Little Free Library placed on our tribal land Powwow grounds near the LE classroom yurt.More than ever before is the need for our students to have access to current and potentially soon-to-be banned books. We need to circulate our stories of “Orange Shirt Day” and “The Trail of Tears” never to be forgotten, as well as stories of our Two-Spirit relatives, and cultural ways of being. LittleFreeLibrary is a nonprofit supporting positive literary outcomes on tribal lands.
How does this promote peace?
The practice of reading a book is a peaceful process in itself. Having the free library on powwow grounds also gives community access to tribal members participating in seasonal gatherings, ceremonial fires, substance abuse meetings, and those challenged with being unhoused.
Crafting as a form of peaceful self-regulation
For both classrooms, we will be offering our parents lessons on bead work, finger weaving,and regalia-making. A lot of our families are being reintroduced to how our ancestors handled conflict. At many gatherings where difficult decisions had to be made, you would find women beading, sewing or hand weaving.
It’s a form of self-regulation and cultivates listening skills, to carefully choose your words and respond peacefully. This practice continues today in our Clan Mother meetings, etc. We will be offering lessons to our parents, providing food, materials, and a stipend to our craft instructor. It also provides important cultural ways for indigenous parents who may have not grown up in the community to learn indigenous crafting and pass it on to their children.
We weren’t able to complete this section of the peace project during the school year, but will finish up the project in the beginning of the school year in the fall semester which began in August. We will take photos and report on those events when completed. More to come!
