WAT Adventure - Politics is Rubbish

Solution Satellite X - Politics is Rubbish

Leading Partner name:

WatAdventure Publishing

Company Lead name:

Richard David Lawman

Name of project:

Politics is Rubbish

Outcome of project

● ● ●

To deliver a critical understanding of democracy and the rule of law by giving year 6 pupils the chance to choose the path of an interactive story by voting as a class.

To inspire children to become aware of political choices they face as participants in a democracy.

To give children the experience of debating as a class, scrutinising political options and then casting a vote in a secret ballot.

Anticipated start date:

June 2020

Number of schools who could participate:

12

Cost - per school:

£300

Outline of project:

Politics is Rubbish is an interactive story told in 6 parts about how two best friends start their own country and establish a political system.

This interactive story will cover the following fundamental political issues: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Sovereignty Immigration Law and order Taxation Elections Government

Politics is Rubbish is the story of two best friends who start their own country made up of an abandoned island of rubbish in the middle of the sea, as they embark on a national-

building project they must: ● establish a name and identity (Sovereignty) ● choose who gets to come and live with them (Immigration) ● how they will deal with rules and those who break the rules (Law and Order) ● how they will pay for things (Taxation) ● how they might form a government (Election) ● Handing responsibility to various islanders and making executive decisions (Government) The story will be rich in tension, laughs and packed with moral dilemmas and cliffhangers - storifying complex political issues and making them comprehensible to children.

The children will read each part and then have the opportunity to vote as a class on which political choice they make.

The outcomes of each vote steer the story down a certain path - tailoring the content to the will of the majority and bringing into focus the idea of democracy and the will of the majority.

How it works The first chapter is read and the class has the opportunity to debate the political choice on offer, carry out work in groups and individual work before voting in a secret ballot.

Once voting has taken place and an outcome has been established, the teacher will be able to select the voting outcome online and then access the following chapter which has now been tailored to the class’ votes.

What you get ● ● ● ●

A full day CPD training delivered by Richard which will explain how the course will run, the materials and a potted overview of the topics that will be covered.

Access to a website which will allow your school to download and read the chapters, input class votes and access the personalised content.

A set of worksheets, lesson outlines as a framework to deliver the course.

A class visit for up to half a day from Richard - an author visit + a chance for the author to be involved in the teaching of one of the lessons in the course.

British Values This course will primarily cover two essential parts of the curriculum with regards British Values: democracy and the rule of law. The political options the pupils will have the opportunity to vote on are well within Britain's natural political spectrum - there are no extremist views offered, the characters fundamentally wish to establish a liberal

democracy based on fair treatment of others. This course will help pupils to contextualise political issues within contemporary Britain.

Is this opportunity right for your school?

Do you want to find an exciting and engaging way to present British Values to your Year 6 pupils?

Giving your students the chance to read, perform, debate and then vote will turn your classroom into a mini democratic arena each week.

Give your students the ability to comprehend differing political views and develop the tools to effectively debate with respect for those with differing views and understand the collective responsibility all constituents have in a liberal democracy.