This looks a really amazing piece of work - where do we get the details of how Jason used it? (not buying Youthwork enough, me) I think the idea of identity (in all the RE syllabuses of course) is a great one - working with this concept, faith becomes relevant to everyone, and 11-16s are spending their daily time thinking and acting out their answers to ‘who am I?’ questions. Jesus asked: ‘who do other people say that I am?’
In the run up to half term we ran a prayer room in one of the high schools I regularly work in in Leeds. We ran lessons for RE looking at prayer and spirituality and I was constantly overwelmed by the depth pupils were willing to share in front of a class of peers. Both staff and students commented on how much pupils had to deal with, having read their shared prayers. Their desire, a desperation even, for someone to be listening. I used the resources I found on schoolswork.co.uk with those in the 24-7 pack, which made the bringing together of activites much easier. God was in it all otherwise it just wouldn’t have happened, and I look forward to hearing the stories of answered prayer as I return to school this term. If you’re thinking of running a room, push some doors, talk to some people, visit a running prayer room in school, these guys at schoolswork and 24-7 are great support and there might even be someone doing the same local to you too!
What a great poem - James has summed up the feeling i know so well as somebody who has spent years doing Christian assemblies in both primary and secondary school…
“Well Done James”
Please don’t let your ink become dry as i am sure there are many more great odes in you that need to be put onto paper.
Rev Richard Pidgley
Discovery Church - Swindon
i work in a primary school as a TA, often there is conflict.
so my comment would be one aimed at children taking responsibility for their own actions-because it’s always someone elses fault.
“what could you do different towards someone that might prevent a falling out?”
“what good, kind or nice thing have you done today that has helped someone else?”
I never got a valentines card when I went to school. It didn’t bother me. I say its just harmless fun.
great encouragement in christian schools work. just shows how effective we can be without realising it !!!!
Sounds great. Nice one!
Amy your short course on assemblies was brilliant! My fav was the Russian doll assembly, its such a good idea
Thanks for letting us know Becky, sounds like a significant week for the school and makes all the prep you put in worthwhile! Look forward to hearing what happens from here!
I used this brilliant resource last year in the end of term services for several different year groups. I was able to use all of the resources (slightly adapted) and they provided a powerful and engaging framework for sharing the message of Easter. Thank you so much for producing this resource and the excellent value it represents. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this to anyone else.
How to blog
First, some explanation about how membership works on schoolswork.co.uk.
If you’re not a member, you can’t create a new post on the blog, but you can comment on an existing posting. However, your comment will need to be approved by one of the editors at schoolswork.co.uk before it shows up on the site. This can take anywhere between a few minutes to a few hours (or days if we’re really busy!). We do this to prevent inappropriate or offensive material being posted.
If you register as a member, you can comment on existing posts and create your own new posts, but they will need to be approved in the same way.
Members can be upgraded to authors at any time. Authors can post immediately on the site without waiting for approval. We are happy to upgrade members to authors if you’ve posted a couple of times or if you or your organisation are known to us. We hope you understand the need to have some restrictions to safeguard the site in this way.
To submit a blog entry click on ‘post to blog’, and to comment on an existing blog post simply scroll down to the bottom of the post and fill in your comment in the box.
Happy blogging!
I believe…
I just had my daily intake of Twitter and noticed a trending topic* that intrigued me so followed the link and found this great site. You can select from these words: love, hate, think, believe, feel or wish, to see what poeple are tweeting about using these words. For example I just clicked on believe, and here are some of the things people all over the world are believing at 19:12 on a tuesday evening:
“the divinity i believe in has no gender. It exists in each of us, and each of us exist in it.”
“i believe a roast dinner is being cooked for me, this is not seeming a good idea”
“i believe in equality for everyone, except reporters and photographers.”
“HMMM….i believe GLOBAL WARMING IS REAL…OR OUR PLANET THINKS ITS APRIL FOOLS EVERYDAY…”
*topics that are talked about the most on Twitter get picked up and get listed in a kind of top 10 on your home page.
Grants
Check this out. If you’ve been involved in the UK schools work scene for a while you may recall Schools Ministry Network (SMN), which existed for about ten years as a means of linking up and resourcing schools workers across the UK. SMN has been dormant for several years now and the signatories to its bank account have decided that now is the time to dispose of its remaining assets. There are details at http://schoolsministrynetwork.wordpress.com.
If you are involved with or know of a UK project involving networking between Christian schools workers that might be able to benefit from some of this money (no it’s not millions!), please do look at the information on the site and consider making a bid. The closing date for applications is 31 August.
Wayne Dixon
FRESH
To add to Wayne’s post about support for students moving on to university, here’s another great resource that came out last year.
“Fresh: bite size inspiration for new students” has been developed by Krish Kandiah, aiming to give students daily inspiration to encourage them to begin university life by focusing on God, “covering everything from writing essays to writing home, from making friends to making the grade, from debt to dating”. Definitely worth checking out and giving to students you may be saying goodbye to as a leaving gift. There’s also web support to go along with the book (see freshspace.org) and a community feel to the site with discussion forums and support for those who want to share ideas in this way.
Stories and Songs - using music with a message
Using the track YTKE (from Homecut’s ‘No Freedom without Sacrifice) as a discussion starter with teenagers , could be especially useful working with disengaged and NEET young people.
life in pictures
This is cool. Action for Children, a charity supporting vulnerable children and young people, have come up with a set 150 artworks by celebrities about their life journeys. The contributors were asked to depict the start and end points of a transformational experience personal to them, with a single, unbroken line. (some of them do this, some don’t!). Ex-England defender Tony Adams points towards how he beat his drink problem, while TV’s Duncan Bannatyne maps the rise of his business empire.
Work in Dover, Kent
I have a contact in Dover Grammar school who would like a schools worker…
Training in Schools Work
Training in Schools Work is a week long opportunity happening in October (12-16) in Northampton (Kings Park Conference Centre) and put on by Scripture Union. More details do read on…
Wayne Dixon
What a great day
Today I had the privilege of hanging out with some great people at a schoolswork conference in Surrey. There was a great turn out, and I’ve come away from the day really encouraged about the passion and enthusiasm for thinking creatively about our input into schools. The day began with a keynote from Nick Shepherd reminding us of the mission each of us is a part of as we step into the world of education each day. It’s interesting, as he was talking my mind drifted to a conversation I had with a teacher in school last week…
Taking a breath
Sorry things have been quiet on here for a while. I’m hoping that will change over the next few months, and come September there will be frequent updates, current articles and thinking as well as lots of exciting new features on the site. Anyway, more on that later. For now, just let me tell you a bit about the week I was running in school last week…
A2’s (nearly) over - what now?
As A2’s come to an end and many of our 18 year olds start to think about new beginnings at Uni in the autumn a couple of useful websites they maybe interested in knowing about and connecting with as they make the big change. From Fusion and UCCF (Universites and Colleges Christian Fellowship) ideas, links and encouragement to be part of a local supportive church and if appropriate link up with the Uni Christian Union.
http://www.studentlinkup.org (From Fusion)
http://www.uccf.org.uk/freshers/link-up (From UCCF)
Wayne Dixon
