Introduction There is huge value in a whole school community gathering together at least once a week, to be exposed to, consider, discuss and explore a variety of significant themes and issues. It is vital that children understand topics such as humans’ impact on the environment, racism, positive relationships, similarities and differences, diversity and bullying – and that they also celebrate achievement. I entered the teaching profession to further children’s learning, knowledge and understanding, and their wonder and appreciation of the world around them: assemblies are the perfect vehicle for this. None of the issues mentioned above, which all need to be addressed in a whole school context, are religious but schools do have a legal obligation to implement ‘collective worship’. Although this is often ignored, most assembly resources currently available feature religious references and prayers as a result. I believe morality taught via a non-religious approach means all children are more likely to access the messages, so I have spent a number of years producing my own non-religious assemblies ‘for all’, the best of which are gathered in this book. This is not to say that I question the commitment to children’s wellbeing and education of any religious organisation that I have worked with. For example, as headteacher of a Church of England school for ten years, I had a strong and positive relationship with members of the Christian community, but I do believe children should be free to choose their own religion, or not, and that school is not the place for ‘collective worship’. I am confident that these assemblies will provide interesting, inspiring, thought-provoking and worthwhile assemblies for primary school pupils, particularly those in Key Stage 2. The book is designed to be flexible, to be dipped into, and the assemblies have all been tried and tested over many years on real children – rather than those who exist in the imaginations of many of those who write assembly scripts! It is more important than ever that such themes and values are explored at a time when, sadly, the school curriculum is ‘squeezed’, narrow and results-driven. I hope the assemblies help to develop a moral framework without resorting to traditional religious teachings, and that you and the children enjoy, appreciate and learn from them.
Paul Stanley
Each assembly idea includes a ‘script’ for the assembly, as well as an overview of the assembly, its key message, a list of necessary resources and any set-up requirements. Assemblies 1 to 14 are standalone assemblies without accompanying slideshows. Assemblies 15 to 36 have accompanying slideshows, which can be accessed at www.bloomsbury.com. These assemblies can also be delivered without the accompanying slideshows, if needed. The assembly scripts indicate when to show each slide.
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