Learning Resource
02 | 03
The Stolen WELCOME TO Lives Story STOLEN LIVES
Stolen Lives is a learning resource featuring a comic book designed to help young people of transitional age explore attitudes and opinions around violence and reflect on their own personal experiences. It provides opportunities to develop strategies for better-informed decision-making while dealing with negative behaviours driven by some of the issues they may encounter. The resource has been developed in partnership with local children and teachers as a modular programme suitable for a whole class or smaller groups. The activities develop over several weeks enabling sufficient time to explore the themes, build confidence and embed the learning process. Ultimately, the aim of this programme is to tackle issues of alienation and vulnerability and increase the resilience of young people with an approach specifically aimed to help this age-group choose their own better future.
e
How to use this resourc
CONTENTS
• Set ground rules • Read the comic as a whole class to engage all readers regardless of ability • Encourage discussion about the issues raised and pick up any other related issues that arise to follow up later
THANK YOU With special thanks to the staff and pupils who took part in the pilot and helped shape these resources: Bantock Primary School • Edward the Elder Primary School • Goldthorn Park Primary School Long Knowle Primary School • Loxdale Primary School • Springdale Junior School
• Plan sufficient time particularly for drama and written activities. Suggested timings are for guidance only and you may want to alter these to suit your work groups • Revisit the text regularly to bring the group back to the story
Introduction p03 Session 1 p04 Session 2 p06 Session 3 p08 Session 4 p10 Session 5 p12 Session 6 p14 Activity Sheets p15 The 10 Steps p19
Session 1
The Stolen Lives Story
04 | 05
• Introduce the programme
SESSION OBJECTIVES
• Identify current thinking and assumptions
Learning Outcomes
• Provoke and explore immediate reaction to the characters and events in the story
Activity 1
In small groups ask pupils to discuss the following questions:
Understanding ‘Gangs’
• What is a gang?
Hand out ‘Activity sheet 1’
Ask each group to reach an agreement between them of a definition and write it on the sheet provided.
15mins
Please use this space for your feedback on the session activities
Understand broad definitions of gangs
• Why do you think people join gangs?
Activity 2
Either as a class, in small reading groups or individually, read the story Stolen Lives.
‘The Story’
Ask pupils what they think about the story and the different characters.
40mins
Self-awareness of: ‘Where am I at right now, what would I do, how would I deal with these situations?’
Ask whether there are any gangs in the story.
Activity 3 Common Definitions
Explain that the word ‘gang’ has different meanings to different people (illustrate this by discussing the different words they have used on their own sheets). Read out the following definitions: What is a gang? The word ‘gang’ can mean different things to different people. It could be:
wouldn’t usually use the word ‘gang’ to describe them. So what’s the official definition?
Understand how the word ‘gang’ can have different context/meaning 15mins
A gang is usually considered to be a group of people in a public place who have:
• a ‘crew’ who breaks the law
• been involved in persistent criminality, with violence a key element of group identity
• a criminal organisation in which the law is broken regularly
• a name, an area, a leader, or a set of rules
• a group of friends hanging around in the street, parks or shopping centres
However, if the majority of offending is of a lower non-violent level then they would be considered a peer group not a gang.
You may consider this last one – a group of young people ‘hanging around’ on street corners – to be a gang. However, as long as that group stays within the law, the police
Activity Sheet 1
• caused harm to the community
Facilitate discussion around the differences in the two definitions and who might hold these views
Understanding gangs describe what yoU think a “gang” is.
why do yoU think people join gangs?
ssion, hand for this se y sheet 1’ out ‘activit
Use with:
Session 1, Activity 1
Learning Resource Handboo k
Session 2
What influences us?
06 | 07
• Analyse Current Thinking
SESSION OBJECTIVES
• Pupils to identify with certain characters by ‘putting themselves in their shoes’ and thinking about how they would react in similar situations
Activity 1
Working in groups ask pupils to review and discuss the following points of the story:
Influences
1. Pages 1-7 (Marcus growing up) Using a coloured pen pupils should write words to describe how Marcus is feeling about the things that happen to him as he grows up. Write them inside the character outline
Hand out ‘Activity sheet 2’
Learning Outcomes
20mins
Please use this space for your feedback on the session activities
Understand what makes people behave in certain ways Understand how others influence our own behaviour
2. Pages 8/9 (Marcus’ response) How does Marcus change after his conversation with his brother Karl? Why is this? Ask pupils to write words outside of the character outline to describe how Karl and other people influence him
Activity 2 Influences continued
Now review other situations in the story and add words to your character profile to describe what Marcus is thinking or feeling and what others think or feel about him using the ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ of the character outline
30mins
The story has a number of other key decision points that you may want to focus pupils on: • Pages 10/11/12 – Marcus’ behaviour spiralling out of control • Page 13 – Marcus refuses to tell his father what has really happened
Activity Sheet 2
• Page 16 – Marcus picking on Kwan
what is MarcUs feelin g?
what are other people thinking?
• Page 17/18 – Marcus and the local play centre • Page 21 – Reaction of other kids to Marcus’ work Alternative Approach: Role on the Wall This could be delivered by first asking a pupil to lie on a large sheet of paper and draw their outline. The 'outline' can be hung on the wall and the whole class can add post-it notes to describe the ‘internal’ and ‘external’ influences for different situations
ssion, hand for this se y sheet 2’ out ‘activit
Use with:
Session 2, Activity 1
Learning Resource Handboo k
Session 3 SESSION OBJECTIVES
Working together
08 | 09
Learning Outcomes
• Question current thinking
Activity 1
Hand out the statement cards on the worksheet: Why do young people join gangs?
Cards
• They are bored
Hand out ‘Activity sheet 3’
• To be popular
40mins
Please use this space for your feedback on the session activities
Understand that there are alternative viewpoints Reach a group consensus (which may involve ‘agreeing to disagree’) Be confident in seeking out advice or helping friends do so
• To feel powerful • It’s fun and exciting • To make friends • To make money • To stop being bullied • To get attention • Because they feel pressured by other people • To get out of their homes Ask pupils to rank the reasons by moving the cards around, the more common they think the reason, the higher it will be placed. They should discuss and justify their reasons between themselves before arriving at a class consensus.
Activity Sheet 3 why yoUng people join gangs
Rank the cards 1-10
to have soMething to do becaUse they are bored
to stop being bUllied by other people
to feel powerfUl
to Make Money
ssion, hand for this se y sheet 3’ out ‘activit
becaUse they feel press Ured by other people to join
becaUse they think it woUld be fUn and exciting
to be popUl ar with others
to Make friends
to get attention
to get oUt of their hoMe
Cut the dashed lines
Use with:
Session 3, Activity 1
Learning Resource Handboo k
Session 4 SESSION OBJECTIVES
Activity 1 Diary entry
Exploring the issues
Learning Outcomes
• Develop alternative approaches
Choose one particular event from the story that was covered in Session 2, Activity 2 and featured the alternative viewpoints of at least two people.
20/30 mins
Allocate class members with the task of writing a diary entry from the perspective of one of these characters. e.g. The incident where Marcus picks on Kwan as seen by Marcus, Kwan and Samira. Ask them, in particular to describe how they (as the character) feel about the situation and the course of action they took. Ask them to also consider what they have learned from previous sessions including what factors influence decisions and the reasons that people might do certain things (like join gangs). Choose some pupils to read out their diary entries to demonstrate how people can perceive the same situation in different ways.
Activity 2 Hot Seat
Ask pupils to volunteer to be one of the characters from the story and ask other pupils in the group to ask questions about why they behaved or said the things they did. They may also want to challenge characters on why they didn’t act in a certain way to influence events in the story. Take it in turns letting individuals act out different characters. Start with Marcus, Karl, Ella, Samira, Marcus’ mum or dad.
10 | 11
20/30 mins
Please use this space for your feedback on the session activities
Understand that the context of a situation affects decision-making Accept that it is ok to be unsure of the ‘right’ answers’ and that it is ok to ask for or offer help and advice
Session 5 SESSION OBJECTIVES
Activity 1 Drama
Activity 2
Learning Outcomes
Put yourself in their shoes
12 | 13
• Practise alternative approaches
Split the class into two groups and ask them to plan a short drama that picks up where the story ends. One half will perform a ‘good ending’; the other will perform a ‘bad ending’.
Focus on the ‘good ending’ – what are the things that pupils can take forward and use in their everyday lives? Prepare a list of positive actions to deal with the situation that Marcus is facing.
Please use this space for your feedback on the session activities
Understand the impact of different decisions and behaviours Practise choosing different behaviours to get more positive outcomes
Develop better-informed decision making Review and practise alternative approaches
25mins
25mins
Session 6 SESSION OBJECTIVES
Reflection
Activity Sheet 1 Understanding Gangs
• Refine a strategy for action
Describe what you think a “gang” is.
Activity
This is about defining the preferred behaviours and then practising them. Choose an activity from the suggested list of ideas: • Write a new comic strip • Write a new story to follow on from where this ends • Design a poster to share learning messages with others • Design a t-shirt • Develop your own artwork or animation
Learning Outcomes
Please use this space for your feedback on the session activities
Why do you think people join gangs? Explore different problems Apply the techniques to new situations
USE WITH:
Session 1, Activity 1 Learning Resource Handbook
14 | 15
Activity Sheet 2 What is Marcus feeling?
Activity Sheet 3 What are other people thinking?
16 | 17
Why young people join gangs Rank the cards 1-10
USE WITH:
Session 2, Activity 1 Learning Resource Handbook
To have something to do because they are bored
Because they think it would be fun and exciting
To stop being bullied by other people
To be popular with others
To feel powerful
To MAKE FRIENDS
To make money
To get attention
Because they feel pressured by other people to join
To get out of their home
Cut the dashed lines
USE WITH:
Session 3, Activity 1
Learning Resource Handbook
notes The 10 Step Transformational Process This programme and associated resource material is designed to draw out a process that is transformational for those using it. This is achieved with an easy to follow story and structured session plans that deliver the ten steps of the transformative process: Identification of Assumptions This is largely dealt with by the story alone. 1 Disorientation (this situation does not fit my preconceptions) – not all young people will encounter these situations but their emotive nature is deliberately designed to disorientate them. 2 Emotional reaction (fear, anger, guilt, shame) – characters have been developed so that your young people like and identify either with them or with some of the challenges they face. This leads to an emotional connection whereby they can empathise with what is happening in the story. Analysis of Assumptions Participants will identify with certain characters and begin to explore how they react. 3 Assessment of presently held assumptions – identifying with the characters and the decisions they are making actively forces young people to reflect on their own opinion, raising consciousness and providing the opportunity for constructive examination. Questioning Assumptions Participants begin to realise that alternative courses of action exist and using an empathetic approach build strategies for action based upon considering the perspective of others. 4 Understanding that you are not alone – decisions are often made in isolation, with thoughts that no one else has faced this before. Therefore the idea is to reassure that those feelings and decisions are ones that we all face in varying degrees.
Developing Alternative Behaviours Having identified what the alternatives might be, participants should be encouraged to try them out. 5 Exploration of new roles – the materials encourage young people to think about different courses of action and importantly an opportunity to test them. This adds an element of experiential learning in a safe environment. Reflection This should be a cyclical process to continually refine and embed new approaches. 6 Creating a plan of action – having tested what works, young people should be encouraged to develop a framework of decision-making and action that they can call upon and apply to real-world problems. 7 Gaining knowledge for the plan – continued reflection and revision as thought and knowledge builds. 8 ‘Trying on’ new roles – the finals steps are about practising new behaviours. 9 Developing confidence in the new role. 10 Integration of the new perspective into their everyday lives.
The key to all of these steps is critical reflection and discussion and therefore all activities are designed to enhance and reinforce this process.
In partnership with:
For details of our other programmes and resources visit us at engagelime.co.uk
Š lime 2013. All rights reserved. No part of this publication or associated media may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means, without the prior permission of the copyright holder.