John Smoking Warning video online!
Remember John Miller? Last issue we told
you about his mission to warn primary school
children about the dangers of smoking. As
an ex-smoker and laryngectomee, John’s
talks hit right to the heart of the matter.
John has been impressing children in his
native Cumbria for several years now; his
potent message and engaging presentation
style have ensured that his words really hit
home. They change the way young people
think about smoking – and they do a very
good job of discouraging them from giving
in to peer pressure. His mantra makes lots
of sense: stopping people from starting
smoking is always so much better than
helping them quit – and his talk does that.
In fact, John’s talks have become so
successful that he was keen to get the
message out to a wider audience than ever
before. In conjunction with the University
of Cumbria, he recorded one of his
presentations for DVD. Last time we told you
how the recording was being assessed by
the Educational Civil Service team.
Well, the good news is that John’s video
content has now been approved and is
available for teachers and children to watch
online. That’s excellent news and it means
that John’s message will finally have the
national audience it deserves. Just go to
www.vimeo.com/7469489 to enjoy John’s
presentation for yourself.
The video is easily accessed from a number
of Teachernet’s resources websites – the
essential education sites for teachers and
school managers. They’re a great resource
for teachers, giving them a host of materials
to help them devise new ways of teaching
ONLINE NOW! John’s video is available at vimeo.com
and leading discussions with their pupils.
We’re sure the video is going to make a big
impact with kids all over the country.
This story certainly goes to prove just
how much can be achieved with a bit of
determination. Hearty congratulations to
John for getting the project off the ground in
the first place, and for getting it into schools
up and down the country. Every young child
he helps avoid starting smoking is a child
who’ll seriously diminish their chances of
contracting a life-threatening cancer. And
that’s quite an achievement.
Next on John’s agenda might have been
a visit to Buckingham Palace! Sadly, John
wasn’t able to attend due to illness, but the
honour was certainly well deserved. And, if
his website takes off there might be more
honours and acknowledgements to come.
We’ll certainly be keeping an eye on John’s
progress. Watch out for an update next issue
where we take a look to see how the site is
doing so far. And don’t forget to go and have
a look yourselves. We’re sure it’ll inspire
some more of you to take a stand. ?
Summer 2010 | THE VOICE
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