Values in Stories

Overview

In this first lesson of the unit “Beliefs and Values Exploration”, students are introduced to the idea of values through a teacher-led story. They then draw their favourite value and share why it matters to them.

Learning intentions

• Students will understand that values are important beliefs about how we should live and treat others.
• Students will recognise values such as kindness, sharing, honesty, and fairness in everyday situations.
• Students will express their own ideas about a value through a drawing and short spoken explanation.

Success criteria

• I can explain what a value is using simple words.
• I can name one or more values and give an example from real life.
• I can draw my chosen value clearly and show what it looks like.
• I can tell a partner one reason why my value is important.

Curriculum links

• Religious education / Personal development and well-being: helps students become successful learners, confident individuals and responsible citizens.
• Religious education / Personal development and well-being: develops skills for making positive and healthy choices by strengthening moral judgement.
• Religious education / In summary: encourages students to explore their own beliefs (including non-religious) and express their responses.

Lesson structure (30 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Warm welcome and question. Teacher shows a “values” picture slide (e.g., hands sharing, a smile, a fair game) and asks: “What makes a good person?” Students turn and talk for 30 seconds, then one or two share ideas.

2. 5–12 min · Story focus: spotting values. Teacher reads a short, age-appropriate story about children helping, sharing, and telling the truth (with gentle dilemmas such as “Do I share my toy?” “Do I tell an adult?”). Students listen and hold up a finger when they hear a “values moment”.

3. 12–18 min · Teach the idea of values. Teacher pauses the story at key points and labels the values using simple language:

• Kindness: helping someone
• Sharing: taking turns and being fair
• Honesty: telling the truth
• Fairness: taking turns, playing by the rules Students repeat the key value words and give one quick example each, using sentence stems: “A value is…”, “I see kindness when…”

4. 18–25 min · Drawing task: my favourite value. Teacher models a simple drawing: “My value is kindness” with a stick figure helping another child, and a short label. Students draw their favourite value on A4 paper and add a label (one short word or phrase). Teacher circulates, prompting: “What is your value?” “Who shows it?” “How does it help?”

5. 25–30 min · Share and quick check. Teacher invites 3–5 students to share their drawing with the class. Students complete a quick verbal check with a partner: “My value is ___, and it matters because ___.” Teacher listens for clear value language and respectful communication.

Resources

• Teacher story script or printed story sheets (age appropriate)
• Value picture prompts (kindness, sharing, honesty, fairness)
• A4 drawing paper for each student
• Coloured pencils or crayons
• Sentence stem cards: “A value is…”, “I see ___ when…”, “My value is…”
• Display area for student drawings (board or wall)
• Optional: value word cards for the teacher to hold up

Assessment

• During story: teacher checks for understanding by noting which students identify “values moments” using fingers or quick responses.
• During discussion: teacher listens for correct use of value words and one example linked to the value.
• End-of-lesson: partner talk serves as a quick formative check against the success criteria (clear value + simple reason).

Differentiation

• Support: provide sentence stem cards and a small set of value word cards for students to choose from; allow drawing with only one value label if needed.
• Support for EAL: encourage pointing to value pictures and using single-word labels (e.g., “kindness”, “sharing”), plus a gesture for explanation.
• Challenge/extension: for students ready, ask them to include a second value in the drawing (e.g., kindness and fairness together).
• SEN considerations: offer a “choose from four” option and a partially drawn template (stick figures and speech bubbles) to reduce fine-motor load; allow extra time for sharing.