You may have noticed information about the MMUN on the white board when dropping your child off at school. Also, many of you have been contributing to the MMUN by buying pizza for your child each Friday, enjoying the day off from packing a lunch for your child. But maybe you’re wondering what this is all about. Well, here is a window into what’s happening.
First, let me give you an overview of what has been happening with this group. We have six upper elementary children taking on the role of delegates for the Montessori Model United Nations. They are representing two different countries, the Kingdom of Sweden and Barbados. The delegates are paired with a country partner and sit on a UN committee. This year those committees are ECOFIN (the Economic and Financial Affairs Council) and SOCHUM (the Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural Committee), and the topics of focus are reducing disaster risk, eradicating extreme poverty, and improving the rights of indigenous people and people with disabilities. Over the past several months, the delegates have been researching these topics and their countries, and each delegate wrote a position paper from the perspective of their country about one of the topics. The papers were submitted to the MMUN in February, and they were well-thought-out and inspiring! The delegates are now finishing up work on parliamentary procedure (the way in which the MMUN proceedings happen), writing and delivering a speech at the MMUN, and creating a country display board to take with us to the event.
Next, I’d like to share about the trip. The delegates are going to New York City from March 14-17. This trip is a culmination of all that they have been working on, and they will work with Montessori students from around the world, all 4th, 5th, and 6th graders just like them. They will travel by train on that Wednesday and be in committee sessions on Thursday and Friday. Then on Saturday they will be in the General Assembly of the United Nations. Working together with their fellow delegates in the committee sessions, they will construct a formal resolution, in the same structure and language used at the United Nations. In the General Assembly, the delegates will take the seats of the genuine UN delegates and vote on their proposed resolutions. Resolutions that pass will be sent to the official UN committees. Miss Molly and myself are very excited to be going with these amazing delegates on this trip, and we will be sharing with everyone on the school Facebook page, so check it out!
Lastly, I’d like to say thank you to all of the parents who have contributed to Pizza Fridays. Thank you to the MMUN delegate parents who have provided veggies and desserts week after week, and thank you to those who, like me, are happy to buy pizza when that order form comes around. This generosity is covering the expense of this trip, which is over $6,000. We truly appreciate the generous spirit of our community! Thank you!
Congratulations to our delegates on all their hard work! The trip is going to be a memorable experience!