Quick activities for secondary students

Remembering animal heroes on Victory in Europe Day

Give students the 'Remembering animal heroes' press release about the brave actions of animal heroes, and champion RSPCA inspectors, during those difficult times.

Ask students to imagine they were one of the horses allowed to stay in the royal stables at Buckingham Palace. What would it be like? Either draw a picture or write a short story about their stay and how all the different horses from different parts of London behaved - milkmen, grocers, even firemen sometimes used horses!

Supporting documents: Celebrating VE Day 2020 (3.7MB)

Everyday objects and animal welfare

- Put out a selection of everyday objects around the classroom (see the attached sheet for suggestions).

- Ask the students to move around the objects in groups and discuss what connections each object has with animals and animal welfare.  Are they surprised by how much their lives interact with animals

Supporting documents:  Everyday objects and animal welfare (PDF, 370KB)

Our views on animal welfare

- Give a set of `Our Views - animal cards¿ to students in groups and ask them to decide which situations they think are: always acceptable, sometimes acceptable and never acceptable.

- Ask the students what they are basing their decisions on (e.g. experiences, feelings, benefit to animals). The Teachers notes may help you to encourage the discussion.

Supporting documents: Our views on animal welfare (PDF, 372KB)

Where do you draw the line on animal welfare?

- Invite groups of students to imagine they have to choose some animals above others for survival and to draw a line on the worksheet `Where do you draw the line?¿.

- Ask students to record on separate post-it notes their reasons for drawing the line where they did. Then each group should sort the post-its into categories and consider, as a class, what things were influencing their views.

 Supporting documents: Where do you draw the line on animal welfare? (PDF, 216KB)