Activity 5: Belief into action

Level

Middle and Upper Primary

Lesson overview

This lesson asks students to consider how beliefs form the basis of actions. They engage with the concept of a belief system framing lives, guiding choices and instilling values. They come to understand that different people have different belief systems guiding them.

Main learning outcomes

English
Society and Environment

Materials required

The Really Big Beliefs Project
Paper and pens for sketching

Procedure

Ask students to put their heads down on the desk and close their eyes. Make the room as dark and quiet as possible.

Read the following guided imagery scenario slowly and calmly, giving plenty of time for thinking between each sentence:

We’re going on a journey back to when you were very young. Take some deep breaths and listen to the sound of your breathing. I want you to imagine you are a very small child again. Can you remember something you believed in very strongly then? Did you believe in ghosts? Did you believe in Father Christmas? Did you believe there was something scary under your bed? Did you believe in the Tooth Fairy? Did you believe something bad or good would happen to you if you did a certain thing? Let your mind wander back through your early childhood. Choose one thing you really believed in and picture it clearly in your mind. Remember this picture, because you will need it later. Try to remember how you felt about this thing. Was it very real to you? What did you do because you believed in this thing? Picture yourself as a child and how you acted when you thought about this belief.

Ask students to sketch the image they have in their minds following the guided imagery.
Students can share their sketch with a partner and let the partner guess what the sketch represents. Students can then tell their partner about how they acted as a result of this belief. What did they do?
Ask students to nominate partners with interesting beliefs to share with the class. Share stories, concentrating on how the beliefs made students act in certain ways. Ask students if their belief made them do things differently from other people who didn't have this belief.
With class agreement that if you believe something, you act in a certain way, read the interview with Mr Valensky on page 6 of The Really Big Beliefs Project book. Ask students what he believes. (For example: Feeling connected to the universe is important.) Ask students what he does as a result of this belief. (For example: He goes on walks in the bush). Discuss with students how a belief system, or set of beliefs, guides our actions. Where does Mr Valensky's set of beliefs come from? (For example: He has made them up himself, based on his life).
Read the interview with Mrs Gonzales page 9 of The Really Big Beliefs Project book. Discuss how, in contrast to Mr Valensky, other people adopt the belief systems of a religion. What does Mrs Gonzales believe? (For example: Her patron saint will help her.) What does she do as a result of this belief? (For example: She prays to her saint every day).
Ask students to complete the following sentences in writing:
Today I learnt …
My favourite part of this lesson was …
People might act in different ways because …
People have different beliefs because …
Belief systems are …