The learning resources for schools (KS2 - 5) draw on the lived experiences of children and young people under 18 who have come to the UK from across the world from 1930 to the present day. They explore factors that drive children to leave their homes, the challenges of settling in a new country and issues of home, identity and belonging. The stories aim to increase students' understanding of, and empathy for, child migrants' and refugees' experiences and to give students tools to critically evaluate related public discourse in the media and elsewhere; raise awareness of the legacy of Empire; understand the legal frameworks that protect such children; and generate discussion on how individuals, schools and broader society can become more welcoming and inclusive. The stories relate to the values upheld by schools, many areas of the curriculum, both primary and secondary, and can be adapted as necessary.
They draw on:
a) Short films from the award-winning Child Migrant Stories:
Voices Past and Present(10 minutes) is about children, under 18, who left Ireland, Poland, Turkey, India, Bangladesh, Somalia, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Jamaica, El Salvador and Brazil from 1930s - post 2000. It explores departures, journeys, settlement and issues of identity and belonging.
Passing TIdes (18 minutes) is the story of Linh Vu who, aged 8, who escaped Vietnam by boat with her father in the 1970s, got rescued by a British ship in the China Sea and came to the UK. They were joined by Linh's mother and siblings five years later. Linh's drawings illustrate her journey.
Life is A Destiny (15 minutes) is about Argun Imamzade, who got caught up in the conflict in Cyprus between Greek and Turkish Cypriots in the 1960s. He sailed to England, aged 13, to join his parents carrying the photograph album he rescued from his grandfather's bombed-out house. His grandchildren discuss what they would take if they had to leave home in a hurry.
Ugwumpiti (20 minutes) is the story of Maurice Nwokeji who survived hunger and bombs in the Biafran war in Nigeria 1967 - 1970 before coming to the UK, aged nine to join his parents. Maurice, a reggae musician, provides the soundtrack for the film, nominated as the AHRC BAFTA Research Film of the Year 2017.
b) The book Child Migrant Voices in Modern Britain: Oral Histories 1930s - Present Day published by Bloomsbury 2024 by Dr Eithne Nightingale. The learning resources comprise: contextual information on the backgrounds of children featured in the films teachers' notes with curriculum links and proposed activities student handouts guidance e.g. on dealing with sensitive and controversial topics in the classroom, additional external resources.
