Artifact

The Red Ribbon: Tying Library Media and Life Skills Together

Reflection

“The magic is not in the weaver's ribbon. The true magic is in the hands and hearts of those who embrace it.” When I read that the first time, I knew The Red Ribbon, by John Lasne, was a book that should be shared. I didn’t realize, however, that it was created for the purpose of promoting Red Ribbon Week, a week that reminds students of the benefits of remaining alcohol and drug free. When I discovered this, I mentioned it to the Trinity School counselor since she also teaches Life Skills. I found out that while Trinity celebrates Red Ribbon Week annually, the students had never been exposed to the book. Collaborating with the counselor, I "created, implemented, and evaluated” the Red Ribbon lesson. Although the lesson focuses on students in grades 6 through 8, we quickly determined that all students could benefit from hearing the story and participating in the activity at some level. Therefore, during the implementation of this lesson, I read the story to all Trinity students, kindergarten through eighth grade. After discussing the story with the younger students, I emphasized the community building theme and had them simply write their name on the paper strip. In this way, they were able to help build our community ribbon, but were not overwhelmed with information and discussions about drug and alcohol abuse prevention. Originally I had intended for the ribbon to be dispalyed for one month after Red Ribbon week, but so many of members of the Trinity community enjoy counting the links and looking for specific names that it still hangs today, nearly five months later; a constant reminder of the hearts and hands that created it.

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