Punishments Lesson Plan

The VotesforSchools lesson plan for Key Stage 1 students poses the thought-provoking question, "Do punishments work?" The lesson begins with a brief feedback session where the whole class reviews the results from the previous week's topic. This is followed by a starter activity where students, in pairs, discuss the consequences of misbehaving at school. The aim is to get them thinking about the school rules and the various outcomes that follow if these rules are broken.

As the lesson unfolds, students delve into the reasons behind discussing the effectiveness of punishments. They engage in an activity where they consider different scenarios of getting into trouble, deciding whether they would tell the truth or make up an excuse. This leads to a reflection on their choices and the reasoning behind them. Another exercise has the whole class examining situations where children have broken rules and considering the appropriate response from a teacher, with students indicating their preference using a simple finger voting system. The lesson also includes a movement-based activity where students physically position themselves in the classroom to show agreement with statements about punishments. Finally, the class reviews arguments for and against the effectiveness of punishments before casting their votes on the matter. Throughout the lesson, keywords such as 'punishment', 'excuse', and 'law' are highlighted, and the objectives focus on discussing the best ways to prevent rule-breaking and thinking critically about the role and impact of punishments.