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Together – Spring 2007

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Together

Spring 2007

A series provided by the BBC at the request of the Educational Broadcasting Council for the United Kingdom Age: 7-11 These programmes are available to order (for UK schools only) on pre-recorded CDs or cassette from: BBC Schools’ Broadcast Recordings Tel: 08701 272 272 Monday to Friday 0800 to 1800 Or visit www.bbc.co.uk/schoolradio/howtoorder.shtml for more information Audio on demand. These programmes are also available as audio on demand from the School Radio website for 7 days following the original date of transmission. Refer to programme titles below to find out when programmes are available as audio on demand.

www.bbc.co.uk/schoolradio

© This publication contains only BBC copyright material: its contents may be copied or reproduced for use in schools and colleges without further

permission.

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Together – Spring 2007

Together

Spring 2007 Teacher’s Notes written by Jo Daykin. These programmes are available as audio on demand from the School Radio website. Refer to dates below to find out when each one is available. Introduction 3 Unit 1: Reaching out – the life of St Paul 6 1. What a change! 6 AOD 11/01/2007 2. Miraculous release 8 AOD 18/01/2007 3. Shipwrecked 10 AOD 25/01/2007 Unit 2: The sound of… 12 4. The sound of hope 12 AOD 01/02/2007 5 The sound of celebration 13 AOD 08/02/2007 Unit 3: Waterscapes 16 6. Keeping the water at bay – The Fens 16 AOD 22/02/2007 7. Benjamin Britten and Aldeburgh 18 AOD 01/03/2007 8. The Cromer Lifeboat 20 AOD 08/03/2007 Unit 4: An end to slavery 23 9. A shocking trade 23 AOD 23/11/2006 10. Free at last 26 AOD 30/11/2006

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Introduction

Together and Collective Worship: Together’s thematic approach and use of material from a wide range of cultural and religious sources, including Christianity, contributes to the pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. What is the value of using Together?

• It is a ready-made resource for Collective Worship that can help your school to fulfil the statutory requirement for a daily act of Collective Worship; material is of a ‘broadly Christian character’, reflecting the ‘broad traditions of Christian belief.’

• It encourages individual and community responses, from a sense of celebration to thoughtful reflection.

• The programmes encourage pupils to think about issues and to share their experiences.

• It includes the voices of junior age pupils speaking for themselves. • It can be used with large or small groups of pupils.

Is Together suitable for all pupils? Great care has been taken to allow pupils and teachers from a range of backgrounds to participate in the programmes. A mixture of songs, reflections and prayers allow pupils to respond to what they have heard in their own way. Using the programmes and these Teacher’s Notes: Programmes are available to order (for UK schools and other academic institutions only) on pre-recorded cassettes and CDs. Further information is available at this page of the School Radio website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schoolradio/howtoorder.shtml Programmes are also available as audio on demand from the School Radio website for 7 days following transmission (check the contents table above for dates). The audio on demand is a reliable service – especially on broadband - that allows you to listen to the programme ‘streamed’ over the internet. This means that you can play the programme to your class either:

• direct from a computer • from a hifi by connecting the output of the computer into a suitable

input on the amplifier (which offers enhanced sound quality) • by connecting the computer to an interactive white-board

To listen to the audio files you will need to have installed ‘Realplayer’ on your computer. This commonly-used software is easy to download from the internet if you do not already have it. There are instructions on how to do so at the BBC School Radio website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schoolradio/help.shtml Using the audio on demand service is just as flexible as using a prerecorded cassette or CD of the programmes. You are able to pause the programme whenever you wish and also scroll forwards and backwards through a programme to locate other sections or to listen to sections again.

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Focus objects: Focus objects have been a key resource provided by the Together Teacher’s Notes. In these notes we have continued to provide suggestions for focus objects; however, we have also included suggestions for focus images by providing internet links. In all cases these images may be freely viewed and, in many cases, it is also fine to download them if you wish to (please respect any copyright statements). We have provided details of the links to the focus images in the relevant information for each programme. The links are also available on the separate Together pages of our website. This enables you to display the focus object while playing the audio file of the programme (you are able to display any webpage while remaining connected to the audio). We have taken care to ensure that these images come from appropriate sources. However, please note that the BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites. We hope in this way to provide a resource that has all the benefits (and more!) of the hard-copy focus pictures provided in Teacher’s Notes booklets. Programme format: Each 15 minute programme contains:

• a story or short drama • one song from either the Come and Praise song books or our collection

called All about our school • voxpops or a feature involving junior-aged children • reflection and/or an opportunity for prayer.

Preparation for using the programmes:

• Create a sense of occasion and exploration by setting up a focus picture (either using the online resources included here or your own ideas) for pupils to think about during the programme. This will enhance their listening and concentration and provide further talking points.

• Consider ways to make the use of the focus image more effective – e.g. by projecting it or by displaying it on an interactive whiteboard.

• Shut out distractions by closing the curtains or dimming the lights. • Think about the seating arrangements (e.g. would a semi-circle or circle

arrangement foster greater engagement). During the programme: Make the programme an interactive resource:

• pause the programme to discuss the issues when you wish or when there is a ‘Time to Talk’ pause in the programme.

• pause the programme before the songs to consider their content • pause the programme after the reflection and / or prayer to allow pupils

to add their own thoughts • replay sections of the programme to allow pupils to gain greater

familiarity with the material.

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Other resources for Collective Worship: The song books referred to in these notes are Come and Praise 1, Come and Praise 2 and All about our school. These song books contain a wealth of songs for use in assemblies. They’ve also been compiled to respond to the requirements of the 1988 Education Reform Act, so the emphasis is on being broadly, but not exclusively, Christian. The song books are also accompanied by:

• Come and Praise instrumental books. These contain the melody line, two melodic parts and a bass part. There are also guitar chords and suggestions for percussion.

• Audio cassette and CD. There is a double cassette and CD available for each collection. They may be used to provide enjoyable listening or accompaniment for assemblies where no pianist is available.

For copyright reasons we are not able to provide these resources in these notes or elsewhere on the School Radio website. However, they are available from www.bbcschoolshop.com. Further resources are available from www.curriculumonline.gov.uk/

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Unit 1: Reaching out – the life of St Paul

Three programmes which examine the life of St Paul, focusing on his need to reach out to others and tell them about his Christian beliefs. Central to this is the idea of ‘mission’. Paul was a Christian evangelist (somebody who tries to persuade other people to become Christians, especially one who travels around speaking at public meetings). He is credited with facilitating the spread of the Christian message around the world. Programme 1: What a change! Themes: change, transformation, belief, faith, miracles, Preparation for the programme: FOCUS OBJECT: A Bible containing the New Testament. A piece of card with an angry face on one side and a happy face on the other. FOCUS IMAGE: Click on the link below to display an image of St Paul: http://www.hp.uab.edu/image_archive/ulj/mosaic33.jpg Programme content: STORY: What a change! SONG: Come and Praise 1- 47 ‘One more step’. VOX POPS: Children talk about the decisions they’ve made to change something in their lives. REFLECTION: About the courage and energy it takes to change something in our lives. Pre-programme questions: Paul, or Saint Paul as he is often called, is one of the most important figures in Christianity. He was one of the earliest Christians, 2000 years ago. 27 of the books of the New Testament in the Christian Bible are written by him and the Acts of the Apostles is written about him. After a dramatic conversion, from persecutor of Christians to believer, he dedicated his life to travelling around the Mediterranean telling people about Christ and supporting other Christians. He is lauded for making Christianity into a worldwide faith. It is not thought that Paul met Jesus but they were certainly in the same area at the same time.

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• What do you know about the early Christians? (Explain that it was not

easy to be a follower of Jesus. He was saying things which made him unpopular with the Jewish hierarchy and the Roman rulers in what was then Palestine – now Israel. Show the children the area on a map or globe.)

• Have you heard of St Paul? (They may have heard of St Paul’s Cathedral, which gives an indication of how much he has been and still is revered by Christians.)

• Explain that St Paul made a great change in his life. Have you ever made a big change - e.g. decided to try harder at something, or take on a new hobby? What made you decide to change?

Story synopsis: What a change! by David Self Ananias, one of the early Christians, explains why he and his friends were worried when they discovered that Saul was on his way from Jerusalem to their town of Damascus. Saul was renowned for his cruel persecution of Jesus’ followers. Ananias has a dream in which God speaks to him and tells him to go to the house of Judas in Straight Street and ask for Saul. Ananias does as God demands, but when he gets there he realises Saul is blind. Ananias puts his hands on Saul’s head and his sight is restored. Saul explains how he’d been on the road to Damascus when a great light had shone all around him and he’d heard Jesus’ voice asking, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’ The experience left Saul blind and his followers led him to Judas’ house. Sight restored, Saul decides to become a Christian and immediately starts to tell everyone about his new-found faith. The people of Damascus aren’t pleased and eventually Saul has to be smuggled out of the city in a basket. Not long after that Saul becomes known as Paul – part of his fresh start. After the programme: STORY QUESTIONS: Use the card with the happy and sad face on to show the different emotions in the story, while asking the following questions:

• How did the Christians in Damascus feel when they heard Saul was on his way to visit them? Why?

• What happened to Saul to make him become a Christian? How did he feel? What did he do as soon as he got his sight back?

• How do you think Paul felt when he looked back at the time when he used to persecute the Christians?

• People talk about having a ‘road to Damascus’ experience when they realise they must make a change in their life. Why do you think they use this phrase? Have the children ever had an experience which made them realise they must ‘make a fresh start’?

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ACTIVITIES:

• Read the story of Saul on the road to Damascus. New Testament. Acts - Chapter 9. Also Chapter 22 verses 6 – 16. Make a storyboard for Paul’s account, making a separate drawing for each section of the story and providing a sentence to go with it.

• Act out the scenes – at the end of each section freeze the action. A narrator then asks the audience, or describes, how Paul, his companions and Ananias, would have been feeling.

Other weblinks: Picture of St Paul’s Cathedral in London: http://static.flickr.com/9/14197549_99e24075e6_o.jpg The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites. Programme 2: Miraculous release Themes: faith, miracles, trust Preparation for the programme: FOCUS OBJECT: A bundle of letters and a Bible open at one of the books of letters written by St Paul to other Christians, such as his letter to the Corinthians. FOCUS IMAGE: Click on the link below to display an image of St Paul’s Cathedral http://static.flickr.com/9/14197549_99e24075e6_o.jpg Programme content: STORY: Miraculous release SONG: Come and Praise 2 - 71 ‘If I had a hammer’ – leave out verse 4 FEATURE: Canon Lucy Winkett describes some of the artwork about St Paul and Jesus in St Paul’s Cathedral in London. REFLECTION: St Paul’s words on love from his first letter to the Corinthians, chapter 13. Pre-programme questions:

• Recap the previous programme. What do you know about Paul? What was the most important thing to him before and after his conversion?

• Paul was such a special Christian he is called a saint – do you know any other saints’ names?

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Story synopsis: Miraculous release by David Self Told from the viewpoint of Silas, Paul’s travelling companion. Silas and Paul travel to Phillipi in Greece and start to tell people about Jesus. While they are there a slave girl who tells fortunes becomes a Christian, which angers her owners because they won’t be able to make money from her any more. The Roman rulers aren’t happy either and Paul and Silas are thrown into prison. At about midnight there is an earthquake. The walls of the prison start to fall down and the prisoners’ chains are loosened. Thinking all the prisoners have escaped, the guard goes to commit suicide, but Paul stops him. Because Paul hasn’t tried to escape, the guard and the prisoner governor become Christians and Paul is allowed to go free. However, Paul says that release isn’t good enough; he hadn’t committed a crime and as a Roman citizen he should have been treated better. The Romans agree and beg for forgiveness. So Paul and Silas go on their way. After the programme: STORY QUESTIONS:

• How did the guard, Paul and Silas feel after the earthquake wrecked the prison?

• If you were Paul, would you have tried to escape? Why do you think he didn’t?

• Why did Paul go to such efforts to ‘spread the word’? (He thought it was very important to teach people about Jesus, and to help people become better Christians)

ACTIVITIES:

• Look at the New Testament. How many books of letters are there from Paul? (from Romans to Philemon) The index may help, or you may have to look at the beginning of each ‘book’ – a collection of chapters, within the bigger book of the Bible.

• Write a letter to someone you know telling them what you’ve been doing and encouraging them in their lives.

• Read Paul’s words about love in Corinthians chapter 13. Divide up the verses, write them out, decorate them, and make a frieze to remind each other of Paul’s special words.

• Read the account of Paul’s imprisonment in the New Testament: Acts chapter 16 verses 16 – 40. Retell the story from the guard’s point of view.

• Find out more about St Paul’s Cathedral. Are there any places near your school named after St Paul? The telephone directory might be a place to look first.

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Other weblinks: Picture of the inside of St Paul’s Cathedral in London: http://static.flickr.com/1/59486_7e70cff2ae.jpg More information on William Holman Hunt’s picture ‘The Light of the World’: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Light_of_the_World The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites. Programme 3: Shipwrecked Themes: faith, trust, destiny Preparation for the programme: FOCUS OBJECT: A map of the Mediterranean showing the area of Paul’s travels including the island of Crete where Paul hoped his ship would take shelter. A collection of song books – Psalm and Hymn books if possible. FOCUS IMAGE: Click on the link below to display an image of an amphitheatre in Ephesus where St Paul may well have preached during his travels. http://static.flickr.com/31/49282676_42a82480f0.jpg Programme content: STORY: The Shipwreck FEATURE: A day in the life of a chorister at St Paul’s Cathedral in London. SONG/REFLECTION: Come and Praise 2 - 107 ‘You’ve got to move’ – verses 1 - 4 Pre-programme questions:

• Recap what you’ve learnt about St Paul so far – his conversion, his imprisonment, his travels to tell people about Jesus, his letters to encourage other Christians.

• In the story we’ll be hearing about Paul’s adventures on the sea near Crete. Find the area on the map.

Story synopsis: Shipwrecked by David Self Told from the viewpoint of Julius, a Roman army officer. We hear how Julius has arrested Paul after a mob tries to kill him for talking about Jesus. Paul challenges the officer, wondering whether he has the right to punish him when he hasn’t been tried for any crime. Paul then demands to be tried as a Roman citizen in front of the emperor in Rome.

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Julius is forced to grant Paul his wish, so they set off on a long sea voyage across the Mediterranean. But the weather forces them to seek shelter. Paul wants to stop at Crete but the sailors decide to carry on. Conditions worsen but Paul tells everyone not to worry, that the ship will be lost but none of them will lose their lives. God has told him he will stand trial in Rome, and that the ship will be blown ashore on an island. They end up on Malta and all 276 people aboard the boat survive. After that Paul makes it to Rome. Julius ends his recollection by saying he is pretty impressed by Paul. Will he become a Christian? He tells us no – he thinks. After the programme: STORY QUESTIONS:

• Paul firmly believed that God would not let anyone on the ship die. He had faith. What does a Christian mean when they say they ‘have faith in God’?

• The sailors found it hard to believe what Paul said. Why? (God hadn’t ‘spoken’ to them, why should they listen to him?).

• Who or what do you have faith in - e.g. God, your parents, your friends? During the feature we find out about a day in the life of a young chorister at St Paul’s Cathedral called George…

• Why is George proud to be part of the choir at St Paul’s? • The choir sings to help people worship God – why do you think that is?

(Christians enjoy singing God’s praises with specially written songs; peaceful music can help people as they pray)

ACTIVITIES:

• Read about Paul’s shipwreck in the New Testament. Acts Chapter 27 • Each day the choir boys at St Paul’s sing something from the Psalms in

the Old Testament part of the Christian Bible. Look at the Psalms and choose one with words you think you’d like to hear sung if you were in a church, or a big cathedral like St Paul’s.

• Design a grand place where Christians can worship, such as St Paul’s. What will it be important to include – a cross (different types of churches will have either an empty cross or one with Jesus being crucified), somewhere for people to be quiet if they want to pray. Many church buildings are built in a cross shape.

Other weblinks: St Paul’s Cathedral homepage: www.stpauls.co.uk/ The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.

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Unit 2: The sound of…

Two programmes which explore the sounds we associate with certain feelings or events. Programme 4: The sound of hope Themes: despair, hope, compassion Preparation for the programme: FOCUS OBJECT: A large jar. Place inside cards naming some of the ills of the world; poverty, famine, crime, unkindness, sadness, greed. Make one card in the shape of a butterfly and write on this ‘hope’. FOCUS IMAGE: Click on the link below for a modern artist’s impression of Pandora’s jar: http://thor.info.uaic.ro/~busaco/paint/sickness/PandoraBox.jpg Programme content: SOUND COLLAGE: A collage of everyday sounds VOX POPS: Children talk about sounds which give them hope – from the sound of a bus arriving when they’re tired, to the comforting words of a friend when they are sad. STORY: Pandora’s jar – the sound of hope. SONG: Come and Praise 2 - 143 ‘I’ve got peace like a river’, verses 1, 2 and 3. REFLECTION: On sounds or words that make us feel hopeful and how it’s sometimes something we say to ourselves which lifts our spirits. Pre-programme questions:

• What sounds do you look forward to and why? • What sounds do you like to hear when you’re sad or have given up hope?

Story synopsis: Pandora’s jar – the sound of hope by Deborah Nash Zeus is furious. Prometheus has been making people out of the clay in the river Attica, something he is not allowed to do. Zeus also discovers that Prometheus has stolen some fire from the top of Mount Olympus as a gift for the humans, so he decides to punish him. Prometheus is chained to a tall, cold pillar in the Caucasus mountains. Each day, an eagle pecks at Prometheus’s body and each night the wounds heal ready for the bird to start again the next day.

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Zeus creates Pandora, who marries Prometheus’s brother Epimetheus. Pandora can’t resist the temptation to open a jar she finds – but when she opens it all the ills of the world are released. Prometheus looks on, helpless and despairing. The earth starts to suffer and Pandora is mortified, until she discovers hope in the shape of a tiny butterfly, hiding at the bottom of the jar. Even in the depths of despair there is hope. After the programme: STORY QUESTIONS:

• How did Prometheus feel when he saw Pandora opening the jar? (Use the cards inside the jar to remind the children what was released).

• How did Pandora feel when she realised what she’d done? • The sound of the butterfly in the jar gave Pandora hope. What sounds

make the children feel hopeful or lift their spirits? • We don’t always have to rely on other people giving us hope; we can lift

our own spirits. What sort of things can we say to ourselves when we’re feeling sad, or worried about our world?

ACTIVITIES:

• Devise a dance or piece of music based on the moment Pandora opens the jar. How will you represent the ills of the world as they escape from the jar and how will you show the wonderful discovery of hope.

• Make a list of some of the things that provide hope each day; from small personal things like someone being kind, to big things like a charity setting out to feed a nation suffering from a drought or earthquake.

Programme 5: The sound of celebration – Chinese New Year Themes: new year, fresh start, celebration, co-operation Preparation for the programme: FOCUS OBJECT: Noisy musical instruments; drums, cymbals, set on red cloth or paper FOCUS IMAGE: Click on the link below to display an image of a Dragon Dance in London at Chinese New Year: http://static.flickr.com/25/94887477_7ce3ed5812.jpg Progamme content: SONG: All about our school – 1 – ‘Hello’ The words/music of the song are available on page 10 of these Teacher’s Notes: www.bbc.co.uk/schoolradio/pdf/somethingtothinkabout_autumn_2005.pdf

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STORY: The New Year monster FEATURE: The Yi Dao Lion Dance Troupe REFLECTION: On the sounds of celebration. Pre-programme questions:

• What sort of celebrations have you been to - e.g. birthday party, local carnival, fireworks party? What sounds of celebration have you heard?

• Have you heard of Chinese New Year? Explain that Chinese people celebrate this festival wherever they are in the world at the time. Because it is a Lunar Festival the date isn’t the same from year to year. It is usually sometime around the end of January, beginning of February.

Story synopsis: The New Year monster - a traditional story retold by Deborah Nash. There are several traditional versions of this tale. Nian is a flesh-eating monster who has been terrifying a mountain village in China. The villagers daren’t leave their homes to celebrate New Year for fear of being eaten. They come up with a plan. They leave some children on the mountain for the Nian to eat, but lie in wait for him. When he arrives to collect his food the villagers surprise him by roaring at him, setting off firecrackers, banging drums and gongs and wearing bright red costumes. Terrified, the mighty Nian loses his balance and falls to his death. Ever since it has become the custom to hang up red decorations and let off firecrackers - to frighten away any monster that might be lurking in a cave or up a tree! After the programme: STORY QUESTIONS:

• What did the villagers do to scare away the mighty Nian? What else might they have used to make a huge, colourful noise!

• Why do people of all cultures celebrate the New Year? ACTIVITIES:

• Find out more about Chinese New Year. Make some classroom decorations for the festival with red banners and pictures of the Nian.

• Although we don’t have a big celebration every day there are always things which enrich our lives and the world we live in. Make a list of things which we can celebrate each day – from friends to frogspawn, music to mothers!

• In teams, make lion dance costumes and dance a ferocious, but cheeky dance to celebrate Chinese New Year. The movements are based on those of a cat, because there are no lions indigenous to China.

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Other weblinks: Information about Lion Dance: www.cam.ac.uk/societies/ldt/index2.htm Lion Dance in Manchester: http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/images/2006/01/29/05_dragon_lion_dance_450x350.jpg

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.

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Unit 3: Waterscapes

Three programmes exploring the beauty and power of water - its effects on our emotions and our lives… Programme 6: Keeping the water at bay – The Fens Themes: water; the beauty it brings to the landscape, its power, our need to control it, the way it makes us feel Preparation for the programme: FOCUS OBJECT: A simple map of Britain showing the Fenland area in the East of England. FOCUS IMAGE: Click on the link below to display an image of Wicken Fen: http://static.flickr.com/50/127592468_638e65ebb1.jpg Programme content: Loreto presents the programme on location from an area of the Fens in Cambridgeshire. We join her at a drainage pumping engine museum. FEATURE: Wicken Fen National Nature Reserve in Cambridgeshire – example of the landscape before the Fens were drained. STORY: Holding back the sea. FEATURE: Prickwillow Drainage Engine Museum SONG/REFLECTION: All about our school – 13 ‘Together’, verses 1 and 2 only. The words / music are available on page 18 of this copy of Teacher’s Notes: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schoolradio/pdf/stta_spring_2006.pdf Pre-programme questions:

• Point out the area of the Fens on the map: it stretches from Cambridge to Lincoln, from Kings Lynn to Peterborough. Much of this land is below sea level. Explain that at one time this area was mainly wet marshland but today the water is drained so that the land can be used for farming. People used to live on small hilly areas of clay slightly higher than the marsh area. They cut the reeds for thatching, caught fish, eels and wildfowl. One way of moving between areas of high ground was to use stilts!

• Talk about how you might drain water from the land - e.g. water channels, wind-powered water scoops (like windmills) and pumps.

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Additional information: For centuries the local inhabitants attempted to protect the land from the sea and to drain the marshes but it wasn’t until the early 1600s that work began in earnest, led by the Earl of Bedford and Sir Cornelius Veymuyden – a Dutchman resident in England. Many new waterways were dug and the water gradually receded. What was not anticipated was that once drained the land would shrink, so the waterways became higher than the surrounding area – increasing the risk of flooding! The drainage project was not universally popular and some locals - who faced losing their traditional way of life and livelihood - were active in sabotaging the work. Pumps have grown in sophistication from wind pumps to steam pumps, to diesel and now electric pumps. When needed a pump can move up to 10million gallons an hour. Story synopsis: Holding back the sea by Kate Stonham N.B. There is some debate about whether this is a traditional Dutch tale, but since the author Mary Dodge included it in her children’s novel, Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates in 1865, it has certainly been viewed as such. The story is set in the Netherlands, where much of the land has been reclaimed but remains below sea level. Before the days of huge sand dune defences the sea was kept at bay by large wooden walls, or dykes. The story is told from the viewpoint of Hans Brinker, who remembers one particular childhood adventure when he saved his country from being flooded by the sea. Late one afternoon he had set off to stay the night with his grandmother. On his journey he cycles past windmills, tulip fields and up by the long dyke that protects his part of the Netherlands from the sea. Then, hearing a trickle of water, he stops and discovers a leak in the dyke. Using his finger he blocks the hole, believing it will only be a short time before help arrives. But help doesn’t arrive and he spends a long cold night keeping danger at bay. He imagines he hears the encouraging words of a girl in a house in the distance. Knowing he must save her from the threat of the sea he keeps his vigil until morning when help finally arrives. After the programme: STORY QUESTIONS:

• Once he realised help wasn’t going to come Hans could have given up stopping the leak in the dyke, but what stopped him? Have you ever experienced encouragement like this?

• What would it be like to know that your actions may save a lot of people from danger?

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• Wicken Fen is a National Trust area which shows people what the

landscape in the Fens used to be like. Do the children think this kind of conservation is important?

• Wicken Fen is a marshy landscape. What kind of waterscapes are there near your school? What other waterscapes have the children seen – such as a big lake, or the sea?

ACTIVITIES:

• John at the Prickwillow Museum worked at one of the pumping stations

for 44 years. Draw him working on his engine – you decide what the engine looks like. Show the water being pumped into a nearby river. Prickwillow website is listed below.

• Find out more about the many species of wildlife there are at Wicken Fen. There are 1000 species of moth and butterfly; 1000 species of beetle, almost 2000 different flies, 20 dragonflies, 29 mammals. Wicken Fen website is listed below.

Other weblinks: Wicken Fen: www.wicken.org.uk/ A picture of the wind pump at Wicken Fen: http://static.flickr.com/87/240508929_238663bdd6.jpg Prickwillow Museum: www.prickwillow-engine-museum.co.uk/ The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites. Programme 7: Benjamin Britten and the sea at Aldeburgh Themes: the sea; the beauty it brings to the landscape, its power, our need to respect its power, the way it makes us feel, the art it has inspired Preparation for the programme: FOCUS OBJECT: telescope or binoculars, waterproof clothing and boots. Map of Britain to point out Aldeburgh on the Suffolk coast and Cromer on the Norfolk coast. FOCUS IMAGE: Click on the link below to display an image of a restless sea: http://static.flickr.com/81/235414887_b3aa034edc.jpg

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Programme content: VOX POPS: Children talk about how the sea makes them feel. MUSIC: Extracts from Britten’s ‘Four Sea Interludes’ (from Peter Grimes) STORY: Henry Blogg and the Cromer Lifeboat, Part 1 SONG/REFLECTION: Come and Praise 1 – 60 ‘I listen’ – leave out verse 2 Pre-programme questions:

• If possible, play Benjamin Britten’s ‘Four Sea Interludes’ as the children come into assembly.

• Although not all children will have been to the sea or swum or paddled in it, most will have seen it on TV or film. Talk about the children’s experience of the sea – how does it make them feel? Make a list of words that describe the waves – for example, as they ‘crash’ onto the beach.

• Find Aldeburgh on the Suffolk coast and Cromer on the Norfolk Coast, both next to the North Sea.

Story synopsis: Henry Blogg and the Cromer Lifeboat, Part 1 by Rob John It is 9 am on the morning of 9 January 1917, during The First World War. A terrible storm has been raging all night along the Norfolk Coast. This stretch of coast is so dangerous that the people of Cromer call it The Devil’s Throat. Henry Blogg the captain (or coxswain) of the Cromer lifeboat - The Louisa Heartwell - and his fellow crew members and friend called William Davis are watching a small ship fighting for its life against the fierce winds and huge waves. Blogg knows how difficult the rescue will be, not just because of the weather. Most of the young lifeboatmen have left to fight in the war and the crew is now made up of older men some of whom retired years ago. The lifeboat is like a huge rowing boat - no motor, no cover - and it takes several attempts to launch it from the beach into the raging sea. They finally reach the Greek ship, the Pyrin, and take on board all its crew. Safely back at the lifeboat station everyone relaxes…but then news reaches them of another ship in trouble. What will Blogg do? After the programme: Talk about Benjamin Britten and the way the sea inspired him to write music which really captured its many moods: at dawn, on a Sunday, during the moonlight and during a storm. What are the moods of the sea? How did Britten’s music describe them? STORY QUESTIONS:

• The crew of the Cromer lifeboat were all volunteers. Why do people volunteer to do such a dangerous job?

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• How would it feel to be one of the sailors aboard the Greek ship, waiting,

hoping to be rescued? • If you were Henry Blogg what would be going through your mind as you

decide whether to take the lifeboat out on a second rescue? What would you decide?

ACTIVITIES:

• The sculptor of ‘The Scallop’, a memorial to Benjamin Britten on Aldeburgh beach, said she feels Britten’s music ‘matches the power of the sea’. Yehudi Menuhin said, ‘If wind and water could write music, it would sound like Ben’s’. What did they both mean?

• Make some music which sounds like the wind and water, and matches the power of the sea.

• Find out more about the RNLI on their website: http://www.rnli.org.uk/ There are lots of stories of rescue and bravery. Find one to write up as a story or to enact as a short play.

Other weblinks: Waves on a beach: http://static.flickr.com/54/126517881_b2101553cb.jpg?v=0 The Scallop – memorial to Benjamin Britten on Aldeburgh beach: http://static.flickr.com/87/245556006_336d35d4d9.jpg Information about Benjamin Britten from the BBC: www.bbc.co.uk/music/profiles//britten.shtml The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites. Programme 8: The Cromer Lifeboat Themes: the sea; the beauty it brings to the landscape, its power, the way it makes us feel, our need to respect its power, the courage of those who work on the sea Preparation for the programme: FOCUS OBJECT: Map of Britain to show the area of Cromer in East Anglia. FOCUS IMAGE: Click on the link below for an image of the Cromer Lifeboat: http://www.tournorfolk.co.uk/cromer/lifeboat.jpg An image of Henry Blogg can be found on the factsheet about him on the Henry Blogg museum’s website – see below for details.

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Programme content: The programme is recorded on location in Cromer in Norfolk. STORY: Henry Blogg and the Cromer Lifeboat, Part 2 FEATURE: A visit to the Cromer Lifeboat – meeting Paul the engineer and John the Coxswain. SONG/REFLECTION: All about our school – 17 – ‘As you go now’. Pre-programme questions:

• Find Cromer on the map. Recap the first part of the story about the Cromer lifeboat.

• Have you ever seen a very stormy sea? (Are the children aware that there are boats out in all weathers all year round; fishermen, tankers, passenger ferries?)

Story synopsis: Henry Blogg and the Cromer Lifeboat Part 2 by Rob John Henry Blogg and his crew have just returned from the difficult rescue of the Greek ship Pyrin and are now faced with the decision whether to go out again to try to rescue the Swedish ship, the Fernebo. She’s been blown in half by a mine and her crew don’t stand a chance if one of the Norfolk lifeboats doesn’t set out. Despite the warnings of Commander Hall, the chief of the lifeboat service in Norfolk, Blogg and his crew decide to attempt a rescue. But the weather has worsened and once again it takes several attempts to launch the boat. When it’s finally in the water it is thrown back by a huge wave and several of the oars are smashed. In the meantime six of the Fernebo crew decide to try to reach land in a small boat. The boat overturns and Blogg organises a human chain and some of the spectators who have gathered run into the water to help. Just as all hope is lost to rescue the others Blogg sees a gap in the waves and the lifeboat is launched. Will there be a green and white flare to indicate that all on board the Fernebo have been rescued? Later we join Blogg and his crew receiving medals for bravery. Additional information: During his 53 years as a lifeboatman Henry Blogg and his crews helped to save 837 lives. Blogg was awarded three Gold and four Silver RNLI medals for gallantry, as well as the George Cross and British Empire Medal. Further information can be found at: www.rnli.org.uk/who_we_are/the_heritage_trust/henry_blogg_museum

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After the programme:

• While Loreto is talking to John Davies, the current coxswain of the Cromer Lifeboat, she describes the crew men as brave. John replies that some say they are foolish. Which do you think they are: brave or foolish…or both?

STORY QUESTIONS:

• Would you have put your men at risk as Blogg did? They trusted him – why?

• How would Blogg have felt if they’d failed to rescue the crew of the Fernebo? What would you have said to him and his crew to make them feel better?

• What other people in our society show similar bravery?

ACTIVITIES:

• Design a medal for someone who has been part of a brave sea rescue. • Write a job advert for people to join an RNLI lifeboat crew – men and

women. What qualities will they have to possess? What will their hours of work be?

Other weblinks: Henry Blogg Museum: http://www.rnli.org.uk/who_we_are/the_heritage_trust/henry_blogg_museum A sea rescue: http://static.flickr.com/22/33702685_a2ed675f98.jpg The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.

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Unit 4 The Transatlantic slave trade ends

Two programmes to mark the bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade in 1807. Programme 9: A shocking trade Themes: man’s inhumanity to man; prejudice, oppression, cruelty Preparation for the programme: N.B The issue of slavery may be upsetting for some pupils, particularly those from Africa, or the Caribbean, or with relatives from the Caribbean who may well be able to trace their family back to slavery. FOCUS OBJECT: Map of the world or globe to show the slavery routes from ports like Liverpool and Bristol in the UK to West Africa and then across the Atlantic Ocean to America and the Caribbean. FOCUS IMAGE: Click on the link below to display an image of a memorial to those taken in the slave trade in Zanzibar: http://static.flickr.com/22/33907542_364544793a.jpg Programme content: Loreto presents the programme from Liverpool, visiting Tarleton Street – named after a wealthy family of slave traders - and the Merseyside Maritime Museum’s Transatlantic Slavery Gallery. STORY: Kwame’s story FEATURE: A visit to the Transatlantic Slavery Gallery where Education Officer, Jackie Bentley describes some artefacts, replicas of items used during the slave trade. MUSIC/REFLECTION: There is no song in the programme. Instead the children have an opportunity to listen to an old plantation song - ‘Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen’ – sung by Louis Armstrong. Pre-programme questions:

• What do you know about slavery? • What views must you have about someone else to be able to make them

your slave and treat them badly?

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The ‘triangle’ slave trade: Use the map to demonstrate this process. During the slave years, people from Europe (often from the UK) often believed that black people from Africa were inferior. They felt this gave them the right to treat the black people however they liked. So they sailed to western Africa, exchanged goods for people, then took them to what were then called ‘the Americas’ to be sold as slaves. The money they raised from selling slaves they spent on luxury items – such as sugar and tobacco – which they brought back to sell in the UK and elsewhere. Some people made a lot of money from this ‘triangular’ trade. People began to realise what a terrible trade it was and in 1807 the UK parliament passed a law banning the trade in slaves. It would be many more years before slavery itself was abolished (for example, slavery continued in America until the Civil War). Story synopsis: Kwame’s story by Sue Reid (originally researched by Karen Miller for the Merseyside Maritime Museum) Kwame is an Asante from West Africa. He has a good job as a goldsmith. One day his chief accuses him of cheating. He is arrested, shackled and forced to trek through the jungle with many other young men. Kwame realises that the chief has arranged this so that he can make money out of him. He describes the cruelty he suffers, both during the long trek to the coast and while packed into the hold of the slave trader’s ship. There are so many slaves that they can’t stretch out or move. The conditions are appalling. Kwame becomes the white doctor’s assistant and it pleases him to be able to help the other slaves. Once they land he is hopeful he will carry on working for the doctor but this doesn’t happen. Instead he is taken to a sugar plantation in Barbados, where he works long hours in the blistering heat. In charge of him is a black man from his own country. He is as cruel as the white men. Kwame doesn’t understand what’s happened to him, but realises that somehow he must try to remember where he comes from…because he is Asante. Additional information: It is believed that as many as 10 million Africans were enslaved in the 400 years that the slave trade flourished. Thousands from ships left from UK ports such as Bristol, London and Liverpool to make the voyage to western Africa. Once in Africa the ships would trade their goods (such as material, guns and alcohol) for other goods with powerful Africans, such as chiefs and kings. They would trade for gold or ivory perhaps, but most lucrative of all were people to be made slaves.

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After the programme: STORY QUESTIONS:

• How would you have felt if you were Kwame; taken from your home, then forced into slavery so far away from your own home you knew you would never see your family ever again?

• How could the slave traders be so cruel? Was it just money they were after?

• How did it make you feel hearing about the chains and shackles used to stop the slaves from running away?

• Is slavery a thing of the past? Do you think this kind of slave trade could ever happen again?

ACTIVITIES:

• Find out more about the slave trade. Two useful websites are: http://africanhistory.about.com/library/weekly/aa080601a.htm http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/slavery/index.asp • On a large wall map, use pins and string to mark out the routes the slave

traders took. • Write some poetry to describe the experience of slavery – the way black

people were treated like animals so that other people could make money. • Listen to an account of slavery, on Liverpool Local History: www.bbc.co.uk/liverpool/localhistory/journey/american_connection/slavery/trail

Other weblinks: Shackles recovered from the wreck of a slave ship: www.melfisher.org/henriettamarie/archivephotos/shackles.jpg Transatlantic Slavery Gallery: www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/slavery/index.asp BBC World Service – history of slavery: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/storyofafrica/index_section9.shtml A large collection of images exploring the Transatlantic slave trade: http://hitchcock.itc.virginia.edu/Slavery/index.php The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.

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Programme 10: Free at last! Themes: man’s inhumanity to man; prejudice, oppression, cruelty, freedom, cultural roots Preparation for the programme: N.B The issue of slavery may be upsetting for some pupils, particularly those from Africa, or the Caribbean, or with relatives from the Caribbean who may well be able to trace their family back to slavery. FOCUS OBJECT: Map of the world to show the Transatlantic slavery routes from ports like Liverpool and Bristol in Europe to West Africa and then to America and the Caribbean. FOCUS IMAGE: Click on this link to see a contemporary image of slaves working in a sugar cane plantation (large file): http://hitchcock.itc.virginia.edu/SlaveTrade/collection/large/cass3.JPG Programme content: Loreto presents the programme from Liverpool, visiting the town hall with its C18th frieze showing how important Africa was to the prosperity of the city, and the Merseyside Maritime Museum’s Transatlantic Slavery Gallery, where we learn more about the culture the slaves were forced to leave behind. STORY: Oyeladun’s story FEATURE: Jackie Bentley from The Merseyside Maritime Museum’s Transatlantic Slave Gallery shows Loreto some West African artefacts. SONG/REFLECTION: Come and Praise 2 - 147 ‘Make me a channel of your peace’. Pre-programme questions:

• Recap what you discovered about the slave trade in the previous programme.

Story synopsis: Oyeladun’s story by Sue Reid (originally researched by Karen Miller for the Merseyside Maritime Museum) Oyeladun screams as men with guns gather outside her home. They capture her and force her to walk to the coast, where she and many others are kept in a fort until they are put aboard a ship. She realises she is being sold to the white men to become a slave. The white sailors are very rough and the conditions are harsh. The captives are only let out of the dark hold to exercise for a short time. When they reach their destination (Barbados).

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Oyeladun is sold at a market (not mentioned in the story – she would have been branded). She is set to work in the plantation owner’s house, working many hours weaving and dying cloth. Her mistress is as cruel as the white men who work in the fields. She tells how she and the other slaves capture special moments together, singing and communicating as best they can (as they don’t all speak the same language). They are all meant to forget their African ways; they are ‘seasoned’: given a new name, beaten if they use their own language or mention where they came from. Oyeladun has heard that some slaves have escaped and wonders whether she will ever be free… After the programme: STORY QUESTIONS:

• How did Oyeladun and the other slaves cope with the hardships they experienced?

• By the time Oyeladun was an old woman slavery in the Barbados was abolished (1834). What do you think she might have remembered from her past life in Africa all those years before? Faces, words, the landscape, special times?

ACTIVITIES:

• One way of justifying slavery was to say that the African culture was inferior. Find out more about the rich and varied culture of one of the countries in West Africa - such as Benin, Gambia, Ghana, Mali, or Sierra Leone.

• Devise your own class or school commemoration of the end of the Transatlantic Slave Trade. What songs and poems will you choose? How will you use African art or music? Will there be a time of reflection?

Other weblinks: Transatlantic Slavery Gallery: www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/slavery/index.asp Merseyside Maritime Museum: http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/ A collection of over 1000 images: http://hitchcock.itc.virginia.edu/Slavery/index.php The Story of Africa: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/storyofafrica/index.shtml The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.