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A CRIMESTOPPERS RESOURCE FOR
PRIMARY EDUCATION
www.crimestoppers-uk.org Registered Charity No. 1108687 (England & Wales) and SCO37960 (Scotland).
INTRO
About Crimestoppers
Crimestoppers is an independent UK registered charity that operates the
anonymous 0800 555 111 phone number for anyone with information about crime
who for whatever reason do not want to go to the police.
Crimestoppers was set up in 1988 and operates the anonymous number
0800 555 111 and secure online form on www.crimestoppers-uk.org.
The phone number and online form are for anyone with information about crime,
who doesn’t want to go to the police and reveal their identity.
You will not be asked your name, your call is not traced or recorded and you do
not have to go to court or give a statement.
For more information, visit www.crimestoppers-uk.org
This resource
This is an educational resource for teachers across the UK working with pupils
aged 5-11.
It provides exercises on a range of crime types that teachers can use to challenge
their pupils’ perceptions, stimulate debate and encourage good citizenship.
To get the most from this resource, please familiarise yourself with Crimestoppers
at www.crimestoppers-uk.org
We hope you enjoy using this resource and find it of value to your pupils.
Crimestoppers is committed to helping young people make informed choices
about crime that affects them and their communities. This includes raising the
awareness of the Crimestoppers service.
For more information on this resource, other projects and promotional materials,
contact us at 020 8254 3200 or general.enquiries@crimestoppers-uk.org
www.crimestoppers-uk.org INTRO 3
CONTENTS
INTRO 3
About Crimestoppers 3
This resource 3
Contents 4
CHAPTER 1: Drugs 7
Quick briefing 7
Assembly plan 7
Basic outline 8
Add-on ideas 8
Classroom activities 8
Why have drug laws? 8
Drug law: true or false 9
You’re not alone 9
Not for me, thank you 10
CHAPTER 2: Theft 11
Quick briefing 11
Assembly plan 11
Basic outline 11
Add-on ideas 12
Classroom activities 13
Feelings of victims 13
Witness choices 13
How did the three bears feel? 14
Finish the sentences 14
CHAPTER 3: Graffiti 15
Quick briefing 15
Assembly plan 15
Basic outline 15
Add-on ideas 16
Classroom activities 16
Deadly designs 16
Cost of cleaning 17
My town 18
Broken sentences 18
4 INTRO www.crimestoppers-uk.org
CHAPTER 4: Arson 19
Quick briefing 19
Assembly plan 19
Basic outline 19
Add-on ideas 20
Classroom activities 20
Reasons for lighting fires 20
Messing about, then what…? 21
All the victims 22
Words on fire 22
CHAPTER 5: Vandalism 23
Quick briefing 23
Assembly plan 23
Basic outline 23
Add-on ideas 24
Classroom activities 25
Bingo vandalism 25
Feelings of a victim 25
Best of the bunch 26
Saying no 26
CHAPTER 6: Assault 27
Quick briefing 27
Assembly plan 27
Basic outline 27
Add-on ideas 28
Classroom activities 28
True or false 28
Attitude to assaults 29
Assault in the media 30
Poster design 30
www.crimestoppers-uk.org INTRO 5
CHAPTER 1: Drugs
Quick briefing
Thinking about drugs can be confusing – for anyone. Using this section, pupils
Society tolerates some drugs widely, and permits can be helped:
some to adults but not children. Others are available
only through a doctor's prescription. Some are • to think about what
forbidden by law. drugs are, and how
some commonly
available substances
Assembly plan are drugs
• to appreciate some of
Basic outline the risks attached to
drug use, and the need
Tell pupils that you are going to talk about drugs. A
to protect people from
drug is a substance that can make changes in your
harmful drugs
body or mind, or both.
• to discover which
Say that you are going to read out some descriptions
commonly available
of drugs – that is substances that can affect your
substances and drugs
body or mind. Pupils can be invited to guess which
are legal and which are
they are. You can pause between each part of the
illegal
description to adjust the difficulty level.
This drug is taken in liquid form. It is legal. There are no restrictions on who can
sell or possess it. It is sold in many high street shops, in a range of styles such as
latte, cappuccino or espresso. it is also widely made and drunk in homes and
workplaces. It is said to give tired people more energy. Answer: coffee
This drug is also taken in liquid form. Its use is legal for adults, but children are not
allowed to buy it or consume it in a public place. Small quantities are said to help
people relax, but in larger doses it can cause great mental confusion, affecting
speech, movement and causing a hangover. Answer: alcohol
This drug is found in some ordinary household products, used for DIY or personal
care. It is usually sniffed. It makes users feel dizzy or light-headed. It interferes with
the working of the brain, and can also affect a person's heart and liver. Answer:
solvents
This drug is used either in its herb-like leaf form, or as a dark lump made from the
resin. Users often smoke it, either mixed with tobacco or in a pipe. It can also be
baked in a cake. it can make people relaxed, giggly, talkative or sick. Regular users
risk damaging their mental health. Answer: cannabis
This drug is usually smoked or dissolved in water and injected using a needle. It is
known to be very addictive. Users can spend up to £100 a day on their drug habit.
This is often thought to be a major contributor to levels of crime such as theft or
burglaries, even muggings. Answer: heroin
Invite reactions to the idea that these are all drugs – and encourage those who
identified them correctly.
www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 1: Drugs 7
Then ask pupils to rank them in terms of how harmful they think they are. Which
causes most deaths in the UK? (If pupils are used to "represent" drugs, as
suggested in the add-on ideas, they can be shuffled around to indicate risk order.)
Key points to get over are that coffee is largely harmless. Cannabis is categorised
as a class B drug, and heroin as the more harmful class A. Pupils may have
realised that alcohol is also extremely harmful if taken in large quantities. They
may not be aware that solvents are very dangerous – more so in some ways than
heroin. Solvents can and do kill, even people experimenting for the first time.
Discuss the risks, then finish with an empowering message about drugs.
What we call drugs cover a wide range – of legal and illegal, harmless and
harmful. The important thing for us is that we never do anything that we
don't want to. No one has the right to tell us what to take. We should never
be pushed into taking anything by anyone else. Someone who says that
everyone takes drugs is wrong – most people never take illegal drugs.
Add-on ideas
> As an option for the assembly organise five pupils each to represent one of
the drugs. They can appear one by one, with prepared cards with key
words which they reverse to reveal the name of their drug.
> Add other drugs to the list. They could include anything – tea, anabolic
steroids, ecstasy, or crack cocaine – that is relevant or potentially
interesting to your pupils. A good source of information on drugs is the
Frank website www.talktofrank.com
> Ask pupils to rank the risks again, but this time look more at the effects on
society, not the individual. Are there any differences?
Classroom activities
Why have drug laws?
Pupils can think about the reason for laws about drugs as they fill in the gaps in
the following sentences. The missing words are listed below.
Drug laws can stop people doing harm to ………………………………
Punishing those who ……………… illegal drugs helps keep other people safe
Drug users may steal to get ……………… for drugs.
Some children are ……………… by their parents' drug use.
harmed money sell themselves
Once the sentences are completed, pupils can be asked to come up with
examples of each.
8 CHAPTER 1: Drugs www.crimestoppers-uk.orgDrug law: true or false
Here are four quick statements. Ask pupils to say whether they are true or false. To
make things easy, in this case they are all true.
1. Selling illegal drugs is a much more serious crime than possessing them for
your own use.
2. Selling Class A drugs, such as ecstasy or heroin, can be punished by life
imprisonment.
3. It is an offence to allow premises, such as a house or flat, to be used by people
taking drugs.
4. Police have powers to stop and search people who they suspect are in
possession of an illegal drug.
Follow up with discussion – looking at why society needs these laws. Who are they
there to protect?
You're not alone
We are all part of a much wider society. What we choose to do doesn't affect just us. It
also has an impact on other people.
Encourage pupils to explore this using a class spider diagram. Place a teenager who
uses drugs at the centre. Giving them an assumed name might make it easy to follow.
Ask pupils to think about how that person's drug use might affect others. When they
think of someone – parent, younger brother or sister, friends, health workers – add them
to the diagram linked by a line. If you wish, add further lines from the new addition,
showing why and in what ways the person is affected.
If contributions dry up, prompt by adding more information about the teenager's drug
habit. If they run out of money for drugs, what might they do? What if they became
suddenly very ill through the drug use?
Scrutinise the complex web, and discuss responses to someone who says, "it's my life, it
doesn't affect anyone else".
www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 1: Drugs 9Not for me, thank you
Say to pupils that you are going to think about some ways of saying no to someone
who invites you to try drugs.
Use the "hot seat" technique. One pupil takes a seat in the middle of the group. The
group's task is to try to persuade the hot seater to experiment with some form of drug.
The hot seated pupil has the task of saying no thanks calmly and decisively.
Encourage the group to be imaginative and varied in their persuasion. They might use
threats, promises, appeals to friendship, claims about the benefits. Swap around, to give
as many pupils as possible a turn in the hot seat.
Debrief by asking how it felt in the hot seat. Which invitations were hardest to refuse?
Which responses were most effective? Did anyone feel angry at the requests?
Finish by listing some of the useful approaches to saying no – changing the subject,
making a joke of it, pretending that you just got a text message and leaving....
10 CHAPTER 1: Drugs www.crimestoppers-uk.orgCHAPTER 2: Theft
Quick briefing
Theft, or stealing, covers a wide range of crimes and Using this section, pupils
anti-social behaviour. The principle – that taking can be helped:
someone else's property is wrong and that virtually
everything belongs to someone – is widely accepted • to appreciate that
in broad terms. But some of the implications and taking something that
details can provide lively and interesting learning isn't yours is wrong
opportunities. and can be punished
by the law
Assembly plan • to understand what it
can feel like to have
something stolen
Basic outline
• to think through what
The aim of the assembly is to explore theft and to do if they become
stealing. Pupils will get a chance to check their aware of a theft
understanding of what theft is. They will also look at
its effects.
Today we are going to talk about stealing.
Another word for stealing is theft.
It means taking something that doesn't belong to you.
Everyone knows that stealing is wrong.
But do we all know what stealing is – and what isn't?
Let us have a look…
Introduce characters, played by pupils, who say the lines as described below. After each
one, all pupils can be asked – is this stealing? Invite response with a show of hands for
yes or no:
Pupil 1: Someone I know said they took a pound coin from their mum's purse.
Pupil 2: I heard about someone who was a look-out. He agreed to watch out to see
if someone was coming while his friend took someone's mobile phone.
Pupil 3: I know someone who was given too much change in a shop. They knew it
was a mistake. But kept the money.
Pupil 4: A friend of mine found a purse on the ground near the bus stop. She said,
finders keepers – and kept it.
www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 2: Theft 11Extend the discussion, invite views, as appropriate to the time available and other
circumstances. End with an invitation for pupils to consider what it is like to have
property stolen.
It surprises some people to know that all those things are a form of stealing. Why?
Because they all involve taking property that belongs to someone else.
You might say that the person who was a lookout didn't actually take the mobile
phone. It doesn't matter. Because they helped the person who stole it, they acted
wrongly.
Sometimes people would think stealing isn't wrong if it is from a member of your
family. But people who say that have a different view if their brother or sister, or
someone else in the family, took a favourite toy or money from them.
It is always a good idea, when thinking about actions, to ask – what if this
happened to me? How would I feel if someone took my property?
Add-on ideas
The following ideas can be added to the basic outline for a longer or more ambitious
assembly. Some are just a question of delivery. Others will require preparation and
planning.
> Say to pupils that most people agree that stealing is wrong. But why? Invite
everyone come up with ideas as to why it is wrong to steal.
> Ask pupils to spend a minute or two thinking of a time when they lost something
and didn't get it back. How did it feel? Allow some thinking time. Then invite
pupils to call out. Ask how they might feel if they knew that someone else had
actually taken it, or found it and kept it. How would that feel?
> For each of the situations outline by pupils 1 to 4, ask "What could the person
have done instead?" Invite contributions and discussions. Talk about how easy or
difficult it is to do the right thing.
> Prepare a groups of pupils to improvise and perform a short drama based on one
of the situations. Encourage them to explore and communicate the emotions and
thoughts of the characters.
12 CHAPTER 2: Theft www.crimestoppers-uk.orgClassroom activities Feelings of victims How does it feel to have something stolen from you? In this exercise pupils are going to select words that they think best describe what it is like. Ask them to think of something personally valuable to them. It could be: A present they really wanted A gift they were going to give a friend Their mobile phone A photograph of someone in their family when they were a baby Money they were saving up for something special Then ask them to imagine that their property was stolen. Think for a minute about how they would feel. Then ask them to choose a word or words that describes that feeling. If necessary or useful, suggest some words for them to select from: hurt, sad, angry, fed-up, miserable, confused, worried, insulted, upset... Come up with a shared list of agreed words. Talk about them, perhaps in circle time. Do pupils think that the person who stole the items would realise the effect of their actions? Would the items mean the same to them? Witness choices Tell pupils the following story: A young woman called Jess is shopping in town one day. She is waiting to cross the road, when she sees an terrible sight. An older teenager boy snatches the bag of an elderly woman and darts through the crowd and down a sidestreet. He's gone almost before anyone can think what happened. People gather round the woman who has been robbed. Jess realises that she knows the thief. He is the older brother of someone at school. She wonders what to do. Ask pupils what they think. What should Jess do? What are the arguments for doing nothing? What are the arguments for doing something? Discuss the options. Would Jess tell an adult? Who and how? Make sure pupils know they can give details of any crime anonymously – by phoning Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. They can do it online too at www.crimestoppers-uk.org Change the circumstances and explore how the situation changes. What if the theft happened within school, among some younger pupils? www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 2: Theft 13
How did the three bears feel?
Ask pupils to remind you of the story of Goldilocks. Then invite them to think about it in
terms of the law. Goldilocks entered someone else's house, stole food, caused criminal
damage to baby bear's chair, then, arguably, set up an illegal squat.
Discuss the crimes, then split the class into groups and assign tasks as appropriate. For
instance:
> Write and design a poster to be displayed in the woods, warning householders to
be alert to the criminal types operating in the area.
> Role play an imaginary visit to the three bears some days later from a victim
support worker. What would someone trying to help them say? How might the
three bears talk about what it was like to come back after their walk?
> Devise, and if possible record, a Crimewatch-style appeal for the young offender
Goldilocks.
> Prepare a press statement, as if from Goldilocks, apologising for her actions and
the distress and loss caused to the Bear family.
This is all a bit lighthearted – but still a good way to explore how actions affect others.
Finish the sentences
Give pupils a chance to say what they think about property and ownership by asking
them to finish the following sentences in their own words. They might do it orally, in a
group, or as a writing task.
Not taking back a library book is wrong because…
People who take flowers from the park are…
When I hear that someone got their lost property back because someone else
handed it in I feel…
If you take something that doesn't belong to you, you will feel…
14 CHAPTER 2: Theft www.crimestoppers-uk.orgCHAPTER 3: Graffiti
Quick briefing
Painting murals, creating artworks is good and Using this section, pupils
positive. That's provided that it happens with the can be helped:
consent of everyone concerned—especially, the owner
of the property where it appears. If it doesn't, then • to learn the key
law regards it as a form of criminal damage. difference between
permitted artwork and
illegal graffiti and to
Assembly plan gain greater
appreciation of their
environment
Basic outline
• to gain awareness of
Begin with an introduction:
the expense and
trouble that graffiti
causes
We've all seen painted buildings, words or
symbols scrawled on walls or trains. • to appreciate the
physical dangers that
One word that is used for it is graffiti. This is
some graffiti sprayers
actually an Italian word we use in English. It
risk
means drawings.
It can be confusing sometimes to know whether
the graffiti or drawings are meant to be there.
Are they some form of art, available for everyone
to enjoy? Or are they an eyesore, a mess that
ought to be illegal?
Then introduce the prepared pupils, who will each describe a form of graffiti. Invite the
assembly to say – art or illegal eyesore?
Pupil 1: This graffiti is a giant spray-painting of a cartoon character. It was done by
a student for a laugh. He did it very early one morning when no-one was around.
He didn't want to get caught. A lot of people say it looks really funny.
Pupil 2: This graffiti is known as a tag. It is just a signature, really – someone's
identity mark. It was done on bus shelters, on a fence near the railway line and on
a boarded-up shop. In fact, it can appear anywhere around the town.
Pupil 3: This graffiti was done by a youth group one summer, working with a local
artist. They put a lot of thought into the design, and talked to local people about
what they planned. The council gave them some money for paints.
Pupil 4: This graffiti is a racist slogan sprayed around the underpass in a city. It just
consists of words, designed to offend and to stir up tensions between groups of
people. No one knows who did it.
www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 3: Graffiti 15After an appropriate level of discussion, help pupils to see the crucial distinction. When
it comes to the law, it is not about how artistic something is. It is about ownership. Only
the person with rights over the property can give permission for graffiti. If graffiti of any
kind is sprayed or painted without that permission, the law may have been broken. The
offence is criminal damage, and it is taken very seriously.
Look again the four pupils set out above. Only pupil 3's example is legal. The rest were
done without permission, and therefore are likely to be against the law.
Add-on ideas
> Make a visual extravaganza of the assembly by showing photographs of graffiti to
illustrate each of the examples. An internet search is likely to produce lots of
examples which can be projected onto a whiteboard or other display.
> Look again at each of the four examples of graffiti in the assembly. Ask how the
illegal forms of graffiti might be turned into legal ones. What would need to be
different?
> Ask pupils to put themselves in the position of a property owner whose building
is defaced. How would they feel? Give an example relevant to them, such as their
own bag, pencil case or book. If they decorate it, that's one thing. If someone else
decorates it without asking, that's quite another.
> Discuss what to do if you know who was responsible for some illegal graffiti. Who
can pupils tell? How might they do it?
Classroom activities
Deadly designs
Can graffiti kill? Tragically, yes. Tell pupils the following true story:
Very late on a dark Friday night in January, a 21-year-old man called Bradley and
his friend Dan, who was 19, were seen spraying graffiti. They had climbed the high
security fence around a London Underground track. They were spray painting the
side of a tube train.
The security guards who saw them shouted. The two men ran out across the
tracks, and were struck by a moving tube train. Both men died at the scene from
massive injuries.
Talk about the dangers of this and other forms of graffiti. Invite pupils to think about
the impact on other people – the friends and families they left behind. Think too about
the driver, who felt the jolt of the impact and made an emergency stop. Think also
about the ambulance workers and police who cleared up the mess. What might they be
thinking and feeling afterwards?
Ask pupils to design and create a poster warning of the dangers of spray painting
graffiti, reflecting any aspect of the discussion that has struck them.
16 CHAPTER 3: Graffiti www.crimestoppers-uk.orgCosts of cleaning It costs some councils over £100,000 a year to clean up illegal graffiti. The figure for larger cities can be a lot higher. And that is without including the costs paid by businesses and householders in cleaning their damaged property Invite pupils to say what that money could be spent on instead. Together, or working in small groups, draw up a list of ways the money could better spent. Prompt pupils by offering this kind of list of the things councils spend money on: > playgrounds and other places to play and explore > swimming pools and leisure centres > bus services > rubbish collections > libraries and museums Ask each pupil to think of a message they would like to send to people who spray graffiti. www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 3: Graffiti 17
My town
Prepare pupils for some observation work. Say they have a week to look around their
local area. Their task is to notice two types of place:
> Somewhere that is spoilt by illegal graffiti – that needs cleaning up.
> Somewhere that could benefit from brightening up with colourful designs – that
would look better with legal graffiti.
Compare what pupils think. Is there agreement about the places? Talk about different
attitudes to graffiti and to the environment. If you cannot please all the people all the
time, what is the next best option?
Broken sentences
These five sentences about graffiti have been split in the middle and mixed up. Invite
pupils to put them back together in the right order. Remind pupils that taggers is a
common name for those spraying illegal graffiti.
1 Graffiti is an Italian word by calling Crimestoppers
2 Spraying graffiti without permission meaning drawings
3 You can report taggers to clean up
4 Graffiti costs many thousands of pounds while spraying graffiti
5 People can be killed or injured is likely to be illegal
18 CHAPTER 3: Graffiti www.crimestoppers-uk.orgCHAPTER 4: Arson
Quick briefing
Arson, also known as firesetting, is a major problem. Using this section, pupils
Even quite young children can become fascinated can be helped:
with matches and fire. Some develop serious
firesetting problems, with potentially devastating • to appreciate some of
consequences. the reasons people
start fires deliberately
Assembly plan • to recognise the
dangers fire creates,
Basic outline and the damage and
loss that can follow
Use assembly time for an "agree-disagree" activity. If
• to think through what
there is space, designate one wall or part of the room
can happen when
as "agree", the opposite as "disagree". Read out one
children play with fire
of the statements below and ask pupils to position
themselves, depending on their response. If they
agree strongly, they can be firmly in the agree area.
They can be towards it if they agree but only mildly. If
they are undecided they can be between the two
areas.
If space doesn't permit, use a show of hands (two hands for strong opinions).
Either way, after each statement, invite pupils to say why they feel as they do.
Encourage discussion and invite those who have changed their thinking to move places.
The statements are a mix of opinion, facts, and good practice. Use them to explore
what pupils are thinking, and to identify areas to work on in other lessons. Be sure to
correct misapprehensions.
Agree or disagree?
If the fire alarm goes off, stay where you are. It might be a false alarm.
You should always check where the escape routes are in any building you are in.
Watching fires is really exciting.
Children should be allowed to play with matches so they learn respect for fire.
It is natural to be curious about fires.
Fires can be easy to start, and very difficult to control.
Starting a fire deliberately is a very serious criminal offence.
Making a hoax call to the fire service doesn't do any real harm.
If I saw someone messing about lighting fires I would call the police.
…add other statements relevant to the pupils or the local area.
www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 4: Arson 19Add-on ideas
> Bring the assembly alive by adding a visual element. Photographs of fires – forest
fires raging, or the sad, desolate, burnt-out shells of buildings – can have a
powerful impact and help key messages stick. With an audio system you can add
sound too.
> Before the assembly, invite a key group of pupils to gather data and information
about the statements. They can present what they found at the end or at
appropriate points during the assembly. Focus on aspects such as the law about
arson (life imprisonment is the maximum sentence, for instance) and the harm
caused by hoax calls.
> Contact your local Fire and Rescue Service to co-ordinate your plans with what
they can offer. Many run educational visits for schools. Some will provide
materials of interest and value. Some may be able to bring a fire-engine – though
it will respond to a 999 call if there is one, so planning cannot be perfect.
> Based on the statement and the discussions, create a list of five things that
everyone should know about fire. Make it your school's personalised list – so it
includes actual exit routes as well as principles of handling matches and not using
fire as a toy.
Classroom activities
Reasons for lighting fires
Experts say there are different reasons why some people deliberately start fires. Here
are some:
Excitement – for the thrill of seeing a fire.
Revenge – to get back at someone else.
Money – because they hope to gain from it.
Hate – to hurt a particular group in society
Talk about each of these. Then show pupils the following examples. Can they match
them to the reasons above?
A teenager who has a grudge against the place he was educated sets fire to a
school.
The partners in a failing business set fire to their own property hoping to claim
from the insurance company.
A group of political extremists set fire to a place of worship.
Some children, bored in the school holidays, dare each other to set fire to a skip.
Discuss each one. Invite pupils to say what a better reaction to the problem might have
been.
20 CHAPTER 4: Arson www.crimestoppers-uk.orgMessing about, then what...? Focus pupils' imagination by asking them to write a story based on this scene. First tell them the situation: One hot summer, during the school holidays, a group of children are hanging around in a bit of waste ground at the back of some garages near their homes. One of them has a cigarette lighter. He keeps flicking it alight and trying to set fire to things. A couple of the group tell him to stop. But he ignores them. He starts to gather dried grasses, twigs and bits of litter, and makes a mini-bonfire. Before long it is burning, and he starts to put bigger bits of wood from some broken furniture that is lying around. Some of the children are beginning to enjoy watching the blaze. Others are getting worried… What happens next? Let children finish the story in their own words. Prompt if you want with suggestions – that the garages catch fire, and cars and petrol burn, or that a concerned passer-by calls the police. What lessons can be learned from their stories? www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 4: Arson 21
All the victims
Every year, many schools suffer fires that have been deliberately started. Some are small
and quickly dealt with. Others cause extensive damage.
Use a class spider diagram with pupils to explore who is affected when arsonists attack
a school. Ask them to imagine a school that has been so damaged by fire that it is
unusable for over a year. Place the damaged school at the centre of the diagram.
Then radiate out, adding people who are affected by it – and saying how their lives are
affected. Include pupils and staff, who lose their work and property, and perhaps have
to start going to a makeshift school in other premises. Include parents, brothers and
sisters, others in the community, school visitors and supporters, taxpayers (who foot the
bill), and so on. Don't, sadly, forget any school pets.
Help pupils see that a fire can have a massive impact on many people for a long period.
Words on fire
Try this exercise in word-use and negotiation.
Ask pupils to think of four words that describe their thoughts about arson – and write
them down.
They get into pairs, share their lists, and, with their partner, choose four of the eight
that they can both agree on.
That pair teams up with another pair for the same process – agreeing just four words
from their combined lists that they can agree on.
Working in this way, the whole class should be able to settle on four words that sum up
what arson means for them. And they will have done a lot of thinking, arguing and
compromising on the way.
22 CHAPTER 4: Arson www.crimestoppers-uk.orgCHAPTER 5: Vandalism
Quick briefing
Vandalism is a commonly-used word – in everyday Using this section, pupils
conversation as well as by journalists, politicians and can be helped:
commentators. The crime it refers to is more formally
known as "criminal damage". This section helps pupils • to understand the
understand more clearly what that means. range of actions
covered by the term
vandalism, and what it
Assembly plan excludes
Basic outline • to gain an insight into
the common causes of
Begin by explaining what vandalism is. List the vandalism, and to think
various forms it can take. Use the list below and about what might
encourage other contributions: reduce it
• to appreciate the effect
Vandalism is damage to property – permanent of vandalism on victims
damage, that needs fixing in some way. Such
damage, done to someone else's property,
without their permission, is a criminal offence. It
can include:
Smashing windows
Damaging cars
Breaking walls or fences
Damaging flowers or lawns
Breaking or defacing playground equipment
Also talk about what vandalism isn't
If damage isn't permanent, then it isn't really vandalism. So if someone throws an
egg at a front door, it is not likely to be vandalism – though you still shouldn't do it.
And, of course, it is not vandalism if you damage your own property (just a bit
odd).
www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 5: Vandalism 23Vandalism is often described as mindless. That is because people find it hard to
understand what motivates people to destroy property. Invite pupils to think about
three things often associated with acts of vandalism. These are boredom, alcohol and
anger. Mention these, or flash them on a board, then say:
You are now going to hear three short examples of vandalism. When we've
finished, you can think about how you might describe the reason for each.
1. Kaz has been in arguments all day. Her dad shouted at her. She had a row about
being late when she got to school. Then she had an argument with her best friend.
On her way home, she picked up a large stone and, on the spur of the moment,
threw it through the window of an empty building.
2. A group of teenagers have been hanging around in the local park with nothing
much to do. It gets late and they begin to challenge each other to stunts – like
jumping over flowerbeds and climbing on young children's play equipment. What
they do gets more extreme – until eventually they start to deliberately damage
some of the play equipment.
3. Three friends have been to the pub, and have had quite a lot to drink. They are
laughing and falling around as they take a short cut home down a street where lots
of cars are parked. They decide it would be a good joke to run across the tops of
cars, which they do, and damage several of them.
Invite pupils to identify which of the common motivations – anger, alcohol and boredom
– is most relevant in each case. Talk about what alternatives might have helped. What
could the people involved have done instead?
Add-on ideas
> Focus pupils' minds on why vandalism is wrong. Talk about the effects on others.
Damaging useful equipment could be annoying and irritating, or could have even
worse consequences. It can be expensive to replace. How does the appearance of
vandalism affect other people – their mood and even their behaviour?
> If you have preparation time, involve a group of pupils in devising a role play for
performance in the assembly. Select one or more of the incidents, extend and
develop it using pupils' ideas. Make it more real by including references to the
local area.
> Ask pupils what they would do if they saw any of the three incidents happen.
Remind them of the options – from telling an adult, reporting it to the police, or
calling Crimestoppers. Discuss with them the benefits of each, and the
importance of their own safety.
> Gather a selection of photographs of vandalism. Discuss each one and invite
pupils to say how it might have happened. What does motivate people to commit
this "mindless" crime?
24 CHAPTER 5: Vandalism www.crimestoppers-uk.orgClassroom activities Bingo vandalism Here is an activity designed to help pupils appreciate how many people are affected by vandalism. Prepare some "bingo cards" – a sheet of paper with a simple grid or table of three columns and three rows, making nine "cells" or boxes. In each box write one of the following: > Someone who has had their property vandalised > Broken windows > A vandalised car > A news story in a local paper or on television about vandalism > Someone who saw an act of vandalism > A damaged bus shelter > A local area which often shows signs of vandalism > Somewhere that is closed because of damage > Someone who believes that vandals should go to jail The idea is that each pupil tries to fill as many boxes as they can. Asking around within the class, thinking through from their own knowledge and experience, or taking the bingo card home and asking friends or relatives. The aim is not just to get the boxes ticked. It is to hear other people's stories and think about how widespread vandalism can be. Feelings of a victim Invite pupils to get into the mind of victims of vandalism. Ask them to complete these sentences with appropriate words or phrases. The exercise can be a class discussion, or an individual writing exercise. When the 82-year-old widow heard noises late at night as her garden fence was kicked down, she felt… When the football fan missed the game because the train was delayed due to vandalism of the rail track, he felt… When the mother took her children to the toilet in the park and found it closed through vandalism, she felt… When the headteacher found that her car wing mirrors had been smashed overnight, she felt… When the pupil found that the football he had for his birthday had been slashed with a knife, he felt… www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 5: Vandalism 25
As well as filling in the words, pupils could be asked to draw a picture or design a
poster that represents one of the scenes – to communicate what it feels like to have
property damaged.
Best of the bunch
Explain to pupils that the police, local residents and the council have come together to
decide how to tackle vandalism in the area.
They have come up with a number of suggestions of what to do
The money available can fund only two of the ideas. Tell pupils that they are going to
think about the suggestions, and vote on which two they think are most likely to cut
down vandalism.
Clamping down on the misuse of alcohol, especially by young people.
More activities at the local youth project, to help stop young people being bored.
More police officers patrolling where vandalism is common.
A telephone action line for use by anyone who sees vandalism occurring.
A clean-up scheme, where those responsible for vandalism have to put right the
mess or damage.
Enterprising pupils could contact their local community police officer and find out more
about actual schemes to reduce vandalism.
Saying no
Describe this situation to pupils:
You are hanging round with friends at the back of a row of houses. You are near
the house of a woman that many of you do not like. She has complained to parents
and the police about you playing in the street.
One of the group suggests throwing stones at the greenhouse in the woman's
garden. He says you could have a kind of competition – to see who can break a
pane of glass. He says he knows the woman is away on holiday for a few days.
Ask the group to get into pairs. One person has to play the role of the boy who thinks
you should throw stones. The other person has to say no. What would each say? The
stone-thrower should be persistent, keep urging the other to join in and not taking no
for an answer. The other should stick to their role, always refusing to join in.
See how many persuasive arguments and responses pupils invent. And then swap roles,
either with the same or different pairings.
26 CHAPTER 5: Vandalism www.crimestoppers-uk.orgCHAPTER 6: Assault
Quick briefing
Most people realise that assault is an act of violence Using this section, pupils
against another person. Threats of violence can also can be helped:
be an assault. So can acts such as pushing or spitting.
This surprises some people. • to appreciate the
different kinds of
actions that can be
Assembly plan included in the crime of
assault
Basic outline
• to think through the
This assembly requires some preparation with pupils. effects that assaults are
It is a freeze-frame short drama. Any one, or more, of likely to have on people
the scenarios described below can be used as a
• to explore what action
briefing for a group of pupils to work out an
they could take in the
improvised role play to perform at the assembly.
case of an assault
A group of teenagers are talking together on a street. An older man walks past,
pushing a shopping trolley. Suddenly one of the teenagers darts towards the man
and slaps him on the face. Two others from the group film the incident on their
mobile phones.
A girl at school is looking through her bag and realising she hasn't got her mobile
phone with her. "Oh no", she's thinking, "where can I have left it?" She walks away
angrily and notices two younger pupils looking at her. She goes up to them and
pushes one away and aims a kick at the other person. Then she walks on, still upset.
Three children are teasing another by not letting him have his bus pass. One waves
it in front of him, but as he goes to get it, it is thrown or passed to one of the other
children. As he approaches that child to get his pass, it is thrown to another and so
on. Eventually almost in tears, the boy goes up to one of the children and kicks
them on the shins.
When it comes to the performance, the scene should be acted at once in full.
Then it should be begun again, but this time a teacher will shout "freeze". The actors all
stop what they are doing, and stay like statues. Then a facilitator, who could be a
teacher or a pupil, using a mock microphone chooses one of the actors, "unfreezes"
them, and asks them the question "how are you feeling at the moment?" And perhaps,
"What do you think is going on?"
Explore the feelings that each had, and try to ensure that pupils can understand why
what happened happened, and what its effect on the victim might be. Explain that what
has been seen could well be regarded as a criminal act of assault. It is a serious offence,
as all offences against people are. Point out that even something that seems not very
important, or a joke, doesn't always seem like that to the victim.
www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 6: Assault 27Add-on ideas
> After the freeze-framing, ask pupils what the characters might have done instead.
How might the drama have finished differently, perhaps avoiding an assault?
Confident pupils may be able to improvise the new version as part of the
assembly.
> Devise a new scenario, based on something that pupils have experienced or
might have heard about. The more relevant the scene is to the pupils' actual lives,
the greater the impact will be.
> Discuss what those carrying the assault in the drama could do to make amends?
How might the injury felt by the victims be lessened in some way?
Classroom activities
True or false
Ask pupils to look at the following statements. Or read them out. The task is for pupils
to say whether each one is true or false.
1. You can assault someone without touching them. The threat of violence is also
an offence.
2. It makes no difference who is the victim of an assault. If it is a friend or a police
officer, the law and the courts look at it in the same way.
3. Happy slapping is just a bit of fun – and a joke cannot be a crime.
4. Someone guilty of an assault based on hate – such as a racist attack – will face a
more severe punishment.
5. The police are only interested in an assault if something is stolen.
Answers:
1. True. And also note that if you are violent to someone, and actually hurt them,
that could be an even more serious offence of "bodily harm".
2. False. Of course, the law gives protection to everyone equally. But an assault on
a police officer is regarded as very serious.
3. False. There is nothing happy about happy slapping – it is a serious offence of
assault and treated severely by the courts.
4. True. A crime which has a racist element – or shows hatred of someone's
sexuality or religious belief – will be treated more severely.
5. False. Assault is a serious offence, and the police want to hear about it. The
information can help stop someone else being a victim.
28 CHAPTER 6: Assault www.crimestoppers-uk.orgDiscuss each statement. Invite pupils to show that they understand not just the correct answer but why is it correct. For example, in question 2, discuss why police officers need additional protection. In what way do we all suffer if police officers are subjected to assaults? Or in question 1, talk about what happens if violence is threatened. Might someone who fears they are about to be attacked, hit out first? In which case, who is really responsible for the actual violence? Attitude to assaults Ask pupils, working in groups, pairs or individually, to complete these sentences in their own words. If I thought that someone was going to hit or push me I would… Someone who assaults a police officer should… I think the chances of me being the victim of an assault are… If I saw someone being assaulted I would… The best thing someone can do to reduce the chance of being assaulted is… If all assaults were reported to the police… Share the contributions and invite discussion and agreement. Do pupils have different attitudes? Talk about how important it is to respect the views of others, even if they are different from your own. www.crimestoppers-uk.org CHAPTER 6: Assault 29
Assault in the media
Once pupils understand the principle of what an assault is, organise a project around
identifying instances of assault in the media.
Two areas to explore are:
> news reports that mention assaults – on television, radio, newspapers or online.
> children's dramas, soap operas and other fictional representations of real life that
contain an assault.
Ask pupils to collect cuttings, or make a note of the details of the news story. For the
soap opera, they can name the characters involved and say what happened.
Invite pupils to say, if they can, what was the root cause of the assault – perhaps
alcohol, revenge, anger, or to cover up another crime.
Discuss the effect of the media coverage on the people viewing or reading. Would they
be informed, educated or entertained by it? Or alarmed or worried? Try to think of one
good outcome and one bad outcome of the coverage.
Don't forget, assaults sometimes happen on the sports field.
Poster design
Give pupils the task of designing an eye-catching poster. Use paper and pens or
computer software, as appropriate. Invite them to choose one of two themes:
> a poster that encourages people to report violence and threats of violence to
someone in authority
> a poster that warns people of the seriousness of violence and threats of violence,
and the consequences for offenders
Discuss what makes poster capture people's attention. Elements can include bold
colours, attractive design, strong central message, something interesting, even
intriguing or puzzling.
Display the posters – and don't forget to note whether they have any effect.
30 CHAPTER 6: Assault www.crimestoppers-uk.orgWith thanks to Legal and General who have kindly funded and
supported this initiative.www.crimestoppers-uk.org Registered Charity No. 1108687 (England & Wales) and SCO37960 (Scotland).
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