Sahar El-Nadi shares her "Book of Joy" and the idea of "Ikigai" with English 7 students

24 november, 2015

How can we promote peace and tolerance? How can we understand and communicate with persons from different cultures?  

On Monday, November 9th, we were lucky enough to welcome Sahar El-Nadi to our English 7 classes to discuss and brainstorm answers to these questions.

Speaking from the framework of ikigai where we find the meeting point between our passion, what society needs, where our skills lie and what we can get paid to do.  Sahar shared how she had found her ”ikigai”. During this interactive lecture, students were able to discuss the framework, lift new ideas and debate common and uncommon opinions.  She discussed her own experiences as an artist and writer working in Egypt during the Arab Spring. She helped students to understand what conflict and unrest can do to the local culture.  And, how this contributes to stress.

Then, in the second half of her visit, Sahar shared the book she created during this dark time in her home country.  She led the students in a mindful workshop where they colored.  Sahar shared some of her own coloring creations. She explained basic art fundamentals like the color wheel and different ways to approach the task.  She also explained what happens in the brain when we color such detailed works. The students worked in teams to ”color” a picture.  They colored both to reach a higher level of mindfulness, but also to participate in an activity that works even if you do not speak the same language.  

Students practiced:
”teamwork without words.”

According to the curricular guidelines, English 7 should think about ”societal issues, cultural, historical, political and social conditions, and also ethical and existential issues in different contexts and parts of the world where English is used.”

      Thanks, Sahar, for sharing your perspective on these important aspects of our course!