You are going to need the book 'Blue Penguin' by Petr Horacek for this session. Blue Penguin isn’t like all the other penguins. Surprisingly enough, he’s blue! But he can still do all the things that other penguins can do. So is he still a penguin? Will he be able to fit in with all the others? Task Questi...

Stimulus  One day, a brother and sister move with their family into a new house. They share a big bedroom right up in the attic at the top of the house. The room has a window that opens through the roof. Each night, when it’s time to go to bed the two children open the window and look out. They can see birds sitting high up in...

Your are going to need the book 'Dr Xargle's Book Of Earth Hounds' by Jeanne Willis for this session. Dr Xargle is teaching the class today about Earth Hounds… with sharp fangs at one end, and a waggler at the other, but what creature are the aliens learning about?  What is an Earthling?  And what is an Earthlet...

Set-up This session is particularly appropriate for classes who need practise speaking and listening to each other. Draw a fairly fleshed-out character on the board, including features such as hair, fingers and shoes. This is your friend, they are all the things you like in a friend. However, we don't know what they are yet s...

This session is based on the book 'Frog is a hero' by Max Velthuijs When it starts raining, frog is excited. When it’s still raining a few days later, he starts to get scared. His house is flooded, and his friends’ houses are flooded too. Where can he find safety?And who will help when all the food runs out? It’s t...

Thought Adventure 41 This is not only a curriculum topic (at the time of writing), it is also a topical topic, and, in my experience in schools in South East London, one that has special significance for the children I have run this session with, many of them being immigrants – or the children of immigrants – themselves. Equ...

You are going to need the book 'How to save a superhero' by Caryl Hart for this session.  Albie puts on his superhero costume and then he’s Albie the Awesome! Then when a flying girl saves him from falling, his adventure begins... Task Questions: Is Albie a superhero? When he’s got the costume on, is Al...

This session was created by Tanga Wanda, for use with older groups.  Exploring themes to do with trans- identities, the first section is on gender, the second section is on race.  Motivated by thoughts on when something is or is not a hate crime.   hate crime (noun): a crime motivated by racial, sexual, or other prejudi...

This session began life as an extension activity to The Ship of Theseus session (see The If Machine p. 86) but has now developed into a session in it’s own right. It’s a good get-up-and-do session. Equipment needed and preparation: space, a class of children Starting age: 8 years Key concepts / vocabulary: change, identity, ...