Students at Palos East and West Schools plant "Pinwheels for Peace"

Students ventured outdoors on September 21 to “plant” handmade pinwheels with personal messages of peace in front of Palos East and West schools.  

Held in conjunction with International Peace Day, Pinwheels for Peace is an art and literacy program that art instructor Linda Frigo spearheads at the two schools each year.  During art class, students create pinwheels by cutting out paper templates and writing their thoughts about war and peace, tolerance, or living in harmony with others on one side; on the reverse side, they color and decorate the pinwheels to visually express their feelings. The students then “plant” their assembled creations in front of school on International Peace Day.

It is estimated that on International Peace Day, there were 3.5 million pinwheels spinning in over 3,000 locations, including the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia, Canada, the Middle East, Africa, and South America. The non-political project is intended to remind students that peace isn’t necessarily associated with war, but can relate to violence and intolerance in daily life.