The teaching resources include book clubs, bitesize activities, and creative writing projects.
The Royal British Legion, together with the National Literary Trust, has created a range of teaching resources for children in Key Stages 1-4, designed to help them explore their shared heritage of Remembrance and understand its relevance to today.
In a year where the nation marked 75 years since Victory in Europe, Victory over Japan and 70 years since the beginning of the war in Korea, the Legion is also encouraging people to acknowledge the contribution of a new generation of Armed Forces who have responded alongside essential workers on the frontline in the fight against Covid-19.
The Legion’s new resources are designed to help children draw parallels between these modern-day challenges and the Second World War generation, highlighting the significance of Remembrance in today’s world. The resources have been created to provide children with the right level of support and challenge.
As the national champions of Remembrance, the Legion is committed to ensuring that it is understood and available to every child and community in the UK. Catherine Davies, Head of Remembrance at The Royal British Legion says:
“In this unique and challenging year, the Legion wants to support children in understanding why we remember. Our new teaching resources will not only teach children about the significance of remembering those from past conflicts, but also help them discover the relevance of Remembrance to today. The Royal British Legion is committed to making sure the torch of Remembrance is passed on to the next generation, and these resources will play an important role in achieving that.”
Fay Lant, Senior Programme Manager at the National Literacy Trust, say
“This year, the service and sacrifice of front-line workers is more relevant than ever before and taking a moment to pause and think about the people who work and volunteer to look after us seems especially important. As such, and as we also mark 75 years since VE Day, we have created a variety of resources for schools that tell the stories of the Second World War and offer a range of creative ways for pupils to explore Remembrance. Whether it’s taking part in our book club focused on ‘Now or Never’ by Bali Rai, creating a whole school Remembrance radio programme or creating your own work of art as an act of Remembrance, there really is something for everyone.”
The resources, available to download on the Legion’s website, include:
- Assemblies – Key Stage 2 & 3 – Explore and understand what Remembrance has meant and continues to mean to us in 2020. These resources will support children in understanding the relevance of Remembrance in their lives and encourage them to find their own ways to observe it.
- Bitesize Activities – Key Stage 2 & 3 – Designed to provide quick, meaningful activities which relate to both Remembrance as a whole, and through a ‘then and now’ lens.
- Book Club – Key Stage 2 & 3 – Explore Remembrance and themes of ‘Then and Now’ through a popular fiction text, Now or Never by Bali Rai. The resources are tailored to each key stage and include veteran interview films and input from the author himself.
- Primary and Secondary ‘whole school’ resources –
- Creative Writing – Pupils can engage with Remembrance as they experience and create their own fiction texts. Extracts from Scholastic / The Royal British Legion’s book ‘Home Again’, author top tips and veteran interview films will encourage children to create their own written responses to past and present events.
- Art Exhibition – This resource is designed to explore, understand, and express feelings about Remembrance in this unique year through creativity. By engaging with a range of stimulus such as painting, sculpture and music, children will explore the relationship between the experiences of children then and now.
The resources are available to download now at: rbl.org.uk/teachingremembrance
