Hope for Today's Generation, a Scripture-based resource for teaching kids how to fight AIDS in their families and communities, has been launched by Worldwide Christian Schools (WCCS) in partnership with African teachers and administrators to tackle the disease.
The campaign is specifically targeted at elementary-aged children, where the curriculum is focus on helping children to make God-honouring choices in life so as to fulfil their God-given dreams and potential. Part of the curriculum, includes a section on teaching students about contracting HIV/AIDS and how to compassionately care for AIDS victims.
The WCCS field director, Dale Dieleman said that as Christians, we should be the first to lead the global charge against AIDS among children. So that is why the ministry agreed to fund a health and life-skill curriculum project written by teachers who are connected with the Reformed Church of East Africa. He envisioned that it will be used as a global teaching tool for every classroom.
"The church and Christian schools should be the first to act leading the global charge against HIV-AIDS among children," said Dieleman. "We see this program as a global teaching tool for classrooms everywhere."
In its first edition, each book will contain more than 60 biblically-based lesson plans for teachers who are in first through eighth grade classes. The goal for the ministry is to translate the edition into French, when the second edition comes out in 2008.
"Our goal is to translate it into French when the second edition is finished in early '08. Then we'll be available in Francophone, Africa as well."
The goals for the curriculum are: to create awareness of good stewardship of life as God intends it to be; to develop life skills and Christian values that create meaning in students' lives which will rebuild the nation; to create awareness in students of the presence of HIV/AIDS in their communities and how its spread touches the social fabric of their society--plus how to avoid it; and to instil in students a sense of planning and striving to meet their goals, now and in the future, for the prosperity and development of the country.
Worldwide Christian Schools is a non-denominational ministry whose mission is to assist other qualified Christian organizations develop Christ-centered schools throughout the world. Its mission is to develop partnerships with national and international organizations that operate their own schools in their own nations by providing them with the critical resources they need to do their jobs.