Creative venture consolidates themes of hope in minds of junior youth

The words read as such: 

This was just one example of the different haiku created by the junior youth of Freshwater in Cairns as they explored the text from the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program curriculum Glimmerings of Hope. 

“We wrote haiku … to summarise the themes,” one participant said. 

“That hope helps to keep us strong, and that words have power, right?” 

“Unity helps make a better world,” another junior youth said. 

The inspiration to create the haiku came about after the group attended a Baha’i Holy Day celebration and were asked to write poems on the theme. 

The group and their animator then decided to consolidate their understanding of the junior youth text in the same way. 

Together, the participants reviewed the main concept of each lesson in Glimmerings of Hope and worked together to shape it into a haiku. 

“We summarised what each person was saying and then we figured out how to make it into a haiku and express enough meaning but still in the haiku form,” one participant said. 

“You need to understand the concept to condense it down into small words. You need to know what you’re talking about,” said another. 

The poem-writing process was accompanied by drawings which were then compiled into a booklet and shared with others, including with parents, at devotional gatherings and at holy day celebrations. 

Junior youth animator Goleta said the artistic process was fun and meaningful. While some junior youth found the haiku writing challenging or less engaging, they discovered they were able to contribute through the visual arts aspect of it. 

The activity proved a valuable way to consolidate learning and revisit the concepts, and encouraged the junior youth to articulate each concept clearly. “In the end, the activity gave everyone a chance to reflect, express themselves, and share what they had learned in a simple yet powerful way,” Goleta said. 

Watch the video and view the haiku below: