Resources
Our resources aim to support work with children and young people to explore their identity, celebrate diversity, promote community, champion equality and develop dialogue. Thanks to the generosity of the Pears Foundation we are able to offer these resources free to download but please do respect the intellectual property.
If you are part of the Linking Programme, there is now a password protected Linking area called Schools Linking Project Resources. Please contact your local facilitator for details.
Schools Linking Project Resources
This area has resources for teachers on Schools Linking Programmes to support you to run your linking project with your class. The resources include Classroom PowerPoints, pupil handouts for activities and examples of pupil work. The password is given out on training at Schools Linking CPD.
Parent Linking
We believe that bringing together parents of children who are part of the linking programme will enable them to better support their own child’s experience of linking by having more confidence to respond to their child’s curiosity, questions and reflections on identity and other issues which may emerge during the linking journey. We know that there are not many opportunities in society for adults to meet other adults who they otherwise wouldn’t meet and parent/ community linking can enable this.
Different approaches During the summer term 2018 6 areas of the National Network engaged in work with parents and communities. Those involved were Bolton, Calderdale, Kirklees, Pendle, Rochdale and Bradford. The activities looked different in each area but included parent choirs, led walks around local communities, family culture and identity workshop, art workshops, community clean up, Refugee Week event, family soft play session, football game (Dads/ family groups). Things to consider…. It is enough for the linking work to be about supporting parents to support their child and to feel confident in encouraging their children’s curiosity and exploration of identity through the process. An assembly for parents where the children share their linking journey can be really important. Recognise that there may be a typical parent who will engage in the work and that barriers of work, childcare, language skills, confidence etc will impact on who participates but that the sharing of the experience of those who do participate via the school playground, social networks, social media etc will mean the impact is wider. Don’t be disappointed if numbers for an activity are small. Recognise that the impact will be greater if the school values and commits to the work and the process (this may be through the promotion of opportunities, the provision of space and resources, support via staff time). Relationships are of utmost value in this work and the foundations for whatever follows so focussing on the experience of the adults involved and the support needed for them to begin to build relationships with each other (bearing in mind key contact theory principles). The importance of creating opportunities/ planning activities which support parents to engage and get to know each other not just participating in something alongside each other (ie. Softplay session with mixed groups of parents sat together and activity of basic introductory questions, sharing lunch together before watching football match). Don’t underestimate the challenges/ barriers for some parents to feel confident enough to attend and participate – not everyone is comfortable coming into school or sitting around a table taking it in turns to talk. Activities which allow people to chat but take the focus of conversation/ forced or perceived forced sharing is important and needs thought and consideration. Are there any bigger events which you could participate in? Maybe a family picnic at school as part of the Great Get Together? Things we’ve learnt….- The importance of process – making sure we understand what we’re doing and why and then communicating that well to others
- The importance of welcome – we can’t underestimate the difference that a warm welcome, a well thought out space, heating, light, seating, refreshments etc makes to how people feel
- The importance of relationships – people’s commitment is often based on the relationship they have with the person who has invited them and how the invitation has been communicated
- Commitment – a small group of committed individuals is more worthwhile than a larger group of people who can’t commit to the process
- The importance of time – the need for interactions to be given enough time and frequency to become meaningful
- We will hopefully enable people to have a meaningful encounter with someone different to themselves, to see life through someone else’s perspective but we might even enable people to understand themselves differently, shift their views about people who are different to themselves, develop new skills and confidence, and perhaps even create some longer-term friendships with people they otherwise wouldn’t have met or interacted with.
- Opportunities for people to come together and interact well need to happen on a much bigger scale to ensure that communities thrive but we don’t have to worry about that yet, we can start small!
- It can and does change people’s lives
Social Action
This section includes everything you might need to get social action happening in your school from resources to get your student body excited about being active citizens in their community to real life case studies and videos showing students actually having a positive impact on the lives of those around them.
Primary Resources
Teaching resources ideal for use with primary school students at key stages one and two.
Linking Resources
Teaching resources specifically aimed at school linking and exchanging information through our four key questions, including structured lesson plans and identity work.
Home Education
We have written two sets of resources for Home Educated pupils. The primary resources help children explore and think through democracy, individual liberty, rule of law and respect for diversity. The Digital Knowhow secondary resources are written to help students explore 'truth, lies and the internet' and learn skills for deconstructing propaganda. Please contact us if you are interested in these resources.
Assemblies
A range of ideas for school assemblies based on our four key questions, ideal for use to promote SMSC development. All these assemblies have been written by teachers and delivered in schools
