Lesson video

Hello, welcome to this RE lesson.

I'm Ms. Marl, and I'm going to be your teacher today.

Today's lesson is called "Quakers: creating a fairer and more peaceful world." It's in an RE unit called "Forgiveness: Is reconciliation possible?" Today, you're going to hear a really fun story that has lots of messages that we can learn from it.

Remember, if there's something you don't quite understand, you can always rewind the video and replay a section to repeat an explanation.

Remember also that if you need more time to answer a question or to complete a task, you can always pause the video and press play again when you're ready to start learning again.

I'm so excited that you've joined me today, and I can't wait to join in some learning with you throughout this lesson.

Are you ready? Let's get started.

The outcome of this lesson is I can explain how Quakers use their values to try to create a fairer and more peaceful world.

And here are the four keywords for today's lesson.

The first keyword is impartial.

Can you say impartial? Impartial means not taking sides or favouring one person over another.

The second word is equality.

Can you say equality? Equality means treating people with the same value and respect.

The third word is mediation.

Can you say mediation? Mediation means bringing people together with respect, understanding, and care.

And the final keyword for this lesson is tapestry.

A tapestry is a piece of thick textile fabric with pictures or designs formed by stitching or weaving.

You will hear these keywords and see these keywords throughout today's lesson.

Whenever you see them written, you will spot them because they'll be written in a bold text.

Look out for them.

In the first part of the lesson, we're going to answer the question, why do Quakers tell the story of the hungry mules? Do you know what a mule is? A mule is a really large donkey.

And in the second part of the lesson, we're going to be answering the question, how do Quakers try to create a fairer world? Aisha explains theology in Religious education.

She says, "Theology is about looking at stories and texts and learning about when, why, and for who they were written.

We can better understand people's worldviews by examining how they've been interpreted both in the past and today." In this lesson, we will be using a Quaker story and looking at an artefact from the Quaker tradition to understand Quaker worldviews about peace and equality.

There's our first keyword.

Do you remember what equality meant? Tamara and John both have a Quaker worldview.

They are talking about the Quaker way.

John says, "Quakers are also known as the Society of Friends.

We have existed since the 1600s and are now found all over the world." And Tamara says, "We Quakers are all very different from each other, and we have lots of different ideas.

But we all share values of peace and equality." This is a mural outside a Quaker meeting house in Bristol.

What can you see written there? John says, "I love this mural.

It summarises everything about how I try to live as a Quaker.

I believe there is light in everyone.

We should work for peace and equality for all." Can you see that the mural has the words on it peace, equality, simplicity, and truth.

All values really important to Quakers.

Which of these are Quaker values? A, peace, B, faith, C, equality, or D, liberty.

Have a think.

Answer is peace and equality.

Well done if you got that right.

Tamara introduces an important Quaker story.

She says, "The Quaker way is one of finding ways to cooperate with each other rather than fighting and falling out.

The story of the two hungry mules helps me understand the values of peace and equality." Let's hear that story.

The Quaker story of the two hungry mules is a story about working together to bring peace.

You can see those two mules there.

In a quiet farmyard, two mules stood side by side.

Their names were Milo and Mabel.

They were tied together with a short rope, you can see that short rope, and both were feeling very hungry.

Not far away, on opposite sides of the yard, were two big piles of delicious hay.

Milo and Mabel's tummies rumbled.

Can you guess what the problem might be? Why were the two mules hungry? Was it A, they had been running all day, B, they were tied together and couldn't reach the hay, or C, the farmer had taken their food away? Well done if you knew it was B, they were tied together and they couldn't reach the hay.

How awful to be really hungry but not to be able to reach the hay because they were tied together.

At first, the mules tried pulling apart.

Milo wanted to eat the hay on the left, and Mabel wanted the hay on the right.

"I'm going this way," said Milo, tugging hard.

"No, I'm going this way," said Mabel, pulling in the opposite direction.

The rope tightened, and no matter how hard they pulled, they couldn't reach the hay.

Milo and Mabel stopped pulling and looked at each other.

What happened when the mules pulled in opposite directions? A, the rope broke, B, they got stuck and couldn't eat, or C, they gave up and went to sleep.

It was B, they got stuck and couldn't eat.

Well done if you were correct with that question.

Then they had a new idea.

What do you think they could do? "If we keep fighting, we'll never eat," said Milo.

Mabel nodded.

"What if we try working together?" They thought for a moment, and then they smiled.

Do you think you know what they could do and sort the problem out? The mules shared the feast.

Do you know how they did that? First, Milo and Mabel walked together to the hay pile on the left.

They ate happily until they were half full.

Then they walked together to the hay pile on the right and finished their meal.

Their tummies were full, and they felt happy.

They had learned that working together was better than pulling apart.

What do you think the deeper meaning of the story is? How did the mules solve the problem? A, they worked together and ate from one pile first, then the other, B, they kept pulling until the rope broke, C, they asked the farmer to help them.

Which of those helped the mules solve the problem? It was A, they worked together and ate from one pile first and then the other.

Okay, time for our task.

Can you write a short paragraph explaining how the two mules solved their problem? Use the following sentence starters to help you.

First sentence starter is, the mules faced a problem when.

Can you finish that sentence? The second sentence, they realised that.

What did they realise partway through the story? And by cooperating, they.

What were they able to do by cooperating? And then once you've done that, discuss with a partner how cooperation helped them.

And here are some answers that you might have put to finish the sentences.

The mules faced a problem when they were hungry and could not reach the food alone.

They realised that by cooperating, they could share the food and satisfy their hunger.

By cooperating, they demonstrated the importance of working together to solve conflicts.

Well done if you included some of those ideas in your sentences to help explain what the story can teach us.

We're now ready to move on to the second part of the lesson, how do Quakers try to create a fairer world? Tamara and John talk about why Quakers are so committed to peace and equality.

"The story of the hungry mules tells me that when we cooperate, we can achieve so much more." And Tamara says, "As a Quaker, I believe that humans are naturally good.

We all have to find the good in each other.

We call this the inner light." What do you think this image shows? "Everyone has a special light inside them that helps us know what is right.

I would not really use the word forgiveness," says Tamara.

"I look for the inner light in everyone and treat people with kindness." Can you see how the inner light is shown in this picture, the inner light in each person? Finish Laura's sentence.

She says, "Quakers, like Tamara, believe everyone has a something within them." Is it A, a spirit within them, is it B, a soul within them, or is it C, a light within them? Quakers like Tamara believe everyone has a light within them.

Well done if you remembered that.

Hopefully that image that we looked at with all the lights within the people helped you remember that.

So how do Quakers put this idea of light into practise? The Quaker Tapestry tells the history of the Quakers through 77 beautifully stitched pictures.

It tells the story of how Quakers work for peace, equality, and truth.

It was started in 1981 by a Quaker named Anne Wynn-Wilson.

Many people helped stitch the panels, and it took 15 years to finish! It can be seen at the Quaker Tapestry Museum in Kendal.

Some panels also travel around the world so more people can enjoy them.

Here's a check for understanding.

What is the purpose of the Quaker Tapestry? Is it A, to provide musical entertainment, is it B, to serve as a map, or is it C, to tell stories through images and words? It's C, to tell stories through images and words.

Well done if you got that question correct.

Each panel in the Quaker Tapestry tells a true story about the Quakers and their work around the world.

Some of the topics include Quakers and industry: How Quakers helped build railways, banks, and chocolate factories.

Quakers and education: How they set up schools to help children learn.

Quakers and social justice - How they fought against slavery and helped refugees.

Quakers and peace - How they have worked to stop wars and help those in need.

There is even a tapestry panel that tells the story of the two hungry mules that we heard earlier in this lesson.

Tamara discusses the Quaker Tapestry.

She says, "All through history, we Quakers have tried to tell the truth as we see it.

We don't take sides in a conflict.

We are impartial.

We believe peace is so important, it is worth risking being unpopular or even being imprisoned." Here's a check for understanding.

Being impartial means, A, not taking sides in a conflict, B, taking one side over another, or C, not being involved in any way.

It's A, impartial means not taking sides in a conflict.

Well done if you got that answer correct.

One of the panels in the Quaker Tapestry tells the stories of the Friends Ambulance Unit, the FAU.

What do you think the FAU did? Maybe this photograph could give you some clues.

John describes the work of the FAU.

He says, "Because of our belief in peace and being impartial, Quakers did not fight in the World Wars.

Some Quakers were put in prison because of this, but we did work in the FAU.

The Quakers drove ambulances to take injured people to safety, and they helped care for sick and wounded people no matter which side they were on." Is this statement true or false? Some Quakers spent time in prison for refusing to fight in the World Wars.

Do you think that's true or false? It's true.

Well done if you got that right.

Tamara and John talk about what mediation means to Quakers.

Tamara says, "Mediation means listening to all sides.

When people are angry, they often don't listen to each other.

As Quakers, we try to listen to both sides and create a space where people can listen to each other." John says, "I go into primary schools to teach mediation.

I think that if people can learn to treat each other equally and listen to each other, we can build peace." And now we've come to the second task of this lesson.

I'd like you to give two examples of how Quakers try to create a fairer world.

You could use examples from the Quaker Tapestry or from our case studies, John and Tamara.

And then I want you to think about, do you think it is important to be impartial? Try to use some of the keywords from today's lesson in your answers.

And here are some answers that you may have written.

The first example is: During times of war, many Quakers chose not to fight because they believe in peace.

Instead, they created the Friends Ambulance Unit during World War I and World War II.

This group of volunteers helped injured people on both sides of the conflict.

They drove ambulances, gave medical care, and worked in dangerous places, all without using weapons.

This shows how Quakers try to create a fair and kinder world by helping others, even in the middle of war.

And here's a second example with some sentences that you may have included: Quakers believe that everyone has goodness inside them, called the inner light.

This belief helps them see the value in every person.

They try to listen to people on both sides of a conflict and help create spaces where people can listen to each other calmly.

By listening to the inner light and to others, Quakers make brave and fair choices to help build a kinder world.

Well done if you included some of those ideas in your answers.

The important bit was that you really used the content of this lesson and to show that learning through your answers.

And now we come to the summary of today's lesson.

These are the most important parts that I really want you to try hard to remember after the lesson.

The Quaker worldview is one that sees humans as good, with everyone having a light within them.

Do you remember that image that showed the inner light within each person? Quakers' values are peace, equality, and truth.

The story of the two hungry mules helps Quakers understand the importance of cooperation.

The Quaker Tapestry gives examples of how Quakers have worked for peace and equality in their history.

Thank you for joining me in this lesson.

I'm so proud and pleased with the way that you have listened hard and thought really hard.

I hope to see you again soon.

Bye.