Are you aware of and supporting military children in your school setting?
There are thousands of children in the UK who have one or both parents serving in the British Armed Forces. Some of these children attend schools with a high percentage of military children, but the vast majority attend a school with less than ten service children.
Unique circumstances…
Little Troopers, a military children’s charity, encourages all teachers to have a good understanding of the unique circumstances that come with Armed Forces life, such as being separated from a serving parent and moving home and school regularly. I witnessed this first-hand in MoD schools in Germany and Cyprus.
The charity’s ‘Little Troopers at School’ programme is the go-to place if you are looking to better support and represent the military children in your setting. The resources cover the entire school journey – from reception to sixth form – and have been created alongside teachers, educational psychologists, behavioural and play therapists.
Primary resources
1. The Primary School Resource Pack is full of lesson plans, information sheets, activity templates, stories and role-play scenarios that will get students thinking and discussing military life through drama, storytelling, art, maths, geography and more.
2. the Primary School Wellbeing Course template complements the primary resource pack and explores more challenging aspects of military life, feelings and emotions service children may experience. There is a seven-lesson course that is perfect for RSE teaching and learning.
Topics covered include how to cope with separation, deployment, house moves and living abroad, as well as the personal themes of belonging, identity and mindfulness and come with ready-made PowerPoint, lesson notes and printable resources.
Secondary resources
3. On the Little Trooper website, the Secondary School Resource Hub offers free downloadable resources to support secondary students including lesson plans, activity templates and idea sheets. You can use the hub as a toolbox to quickly browse and pick the ones that are most relevant to your school and your military children.
4. Are you in need of extra-curricular enrichment? The Forces Life Club has everything you need to set up and deliver in your setting; bringing your service children together in a relaxed way to take part in various sessions with a military theme.
5. The six-session Secondary School Wellbeing Course explores some of the more challenging aspects of military life with small groups of secondary students, introducing positive tools that students can use to cope with change and challenges. Topics include belonging, emotional awareness and creative writing, all with PowerPoint, notes and activities.
6. Finally, the SQUAD podcast features 15 military teens talking about life in the Armed Forces. These short episodes are perfect for listening to in class where you can use them to prompt further discussion; notes and accompanying activities from the Little Troopers website are also available.
With so many British children being educated in schools around the world, including UK schools, it’s important the all schools ensure these experiences play a part in your school’s curriculum…
For more information, visit www.littletroopers.net/little-troopers-at-school
This is a promotion
