Talking about poverty at school - activities for Challenge Poverty Week
A set of activities designed to get your school community thinking and talking about poverty during Challenge Poverty Week (7-13 October 2024).
“Talk about poverty more and how it affects people.”
Last year, over 5000 children and young people shared their views in the Cost of the School Day Big Question. They said it’s important we talk more about poverty to help remove stigma and raise awareness of the help that’s available at school. So that’s what we’re doing this Challenge Poverty Week.
Your learners can get involved in different ways: either by taking part in the activities, or by helping to lead them with other pupils in your school.
We’ve got four brand-new Talking about Poverty activities. You can do all of them across the week or just choose one or two. Each activity works well on its own or as part of a set. It's really up to you to decide how best to use them in your setting.
The activities
These activities are all hosted on Mentimeter. You can either use the links and codes below to access each one, or scan the QR codes. We suggest leading the activity on a big screen where everyone can see and contribute.
Activity 1: talking to politicians and the government
Scan the QR code or go to Activity 1 and use the access code 7339 7692. Work together to come up with a question or something you'd like to tell politicians and the people in charge of education. We’ll pass all questions on. You can submit group or class questions, or do it individually on separate devices.
Activity 2: talking to each other about costs at school
Scan the QR code or go to Activity 2 and use access code 6731 9788 for ideas on how to find out what other pupils in your school think about school costs. What are things like, and what could be better? We’ve included a ‘top costs’ voting sheet and a ‘what we found out’ template for you to use.
Activity 3: talking to your headteacher
Scan the QR code or go to Activity 3 and use the access code 3505 9496 for tips on how to interview your headteacher about what your school is doing to challenge poverty and make things fair and affordable. Then come up with a Cost of the School Day pledge for your school. We’ve included a Cost of the School Day pledge template for you to print and complete.
Activity 4: talking to your school community
Scan the QR code or go to Activity 4 and use the access code 4748 890. You'll find ideas and examples to help you create some eye-catching posters, to explain to your school community what support is on offer and how to access it.
Background information
If you'd like to know more about child poverty and the Cost of the School Day project before getting started on your activities, scan the QR code or go to Background information and enter code 4748 9209.
Share what you get up to
To inspire everyone to take action, we'd like to share your questions, findings, your pledges and posters with other schools in Scotland. Send them to us [email protected] or post them on your school's social media and tag us @CPAGScotland #CostoftheSchoolDay.
Let everyone know how your school is challenging poverty this week and all year round.
Sign up to the Voice network
If your pupils have enjoyed trying out these activities, why not join the Cost of the School Day Voice network?