This volunteering module offers four lesson plans which are ideal for key stage 4 citizenship lessons.
The lesson plans and worksheets offer insights into volunteering both on a local and international scale.
Students are encouraged to explore volunteering, and activities include creating a poster and group discussions.
In this lesson students focus on their local and immediate environment, and how they might be able to improve it through the use of group work and worksheets.
Using student ideas and thoughts, as well as videos and class activities, these teaching resources help students to develop an understanding of why people volunteer.
As students in key stage 3 and key stage 4 begin to consider their future career progression, they may not realise the benefits that volunteer work can add. As part of the citizenship curriculum it is also a valuable contribution to society. Volunteering opportunities can cover a great many sectors - this citizenship module concentrates on volunteering in conservation .
First we establish what students understand about volunteers and volunteering with a student activity, followed by a class exercise to think about the benefits.
Now students begin to think about their local area and asses the possibilities of improving the environment through voluntary work.
We now extend the learning so far to a national level by studying organisations that co-ordinate the environmental needs in the UK.
Some students may be interested in taking a gap year to further their opportunities to volunteer. This assembly covers the basics of taking a gap year either in the UK or abroad.
The importance of volunteering
Chris Waller, Professional Officer at the Association for Citizenship Teaching comments:
“Citizenship education is built around the idea of empowering young people to become active and informed citizens, able to make changes in their community and the wider world. To this end, volunteering is one activity that inspired Citizenship education teaching should promote as an example of effective participation.”
These volunteering lessons can be used to support learning outcomes for Community Volunteering Qualifications, Certificate of Personal Effectiveness (CoPE) - Citizenship and Community, Personal and Social Development Qualification - Community Action from ASDAN. These lessons are also suitable for use with Key Skills and Workplace Core Skills - Personal Development and Contributing to the Community from City & Guilds.