Flowers

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3453325/The-romantic-flower-garden-world-Husband-plants-thousands-pink-blooms-people-come-spend-time-blind-wife-didn-t-feel-lonely.html

Toshiyuki Kuroki and Yasuko were married for 30 years when Yasuko began to lose her sight. She became depressed and stopped going out of the house, afraid to meet people. Toshiyuki wanted to think of a way to make his wife happy again so he worked for 10 years on a beautiful garden surrounding his house, so that people would come and visit, enjoy the garden and meet Yasuko.

Toshiyuki planted thousands of bright pink flowers around his house and thousands of visitors come to his house every year to enjoy the garden, the beautiful colour and scent, and to say hello to Yasuko. It is not only the flowers that have become famous; people want to meet Toshiyuki and Yasuko and listen to their love story. Yasuko talks to all the visitors, although she can't see them, to tell them about her story. Meeting new people every day has made Yasuko happy again and she loves the smell of the flowers surrounding her house.

what do you see in the picture?
where is the picture taken?
who do you think the people are?
what do you notice about the people?

explain the story

- Who felt like an outsider at the start of this story? Why?
- why do you think Toshiyuki decided planting flowers might help?
- it took ten years for the garden to fully grow, why didn't Toshiyuki give up?
- why do you think so many people come to visit today?
- Yasuko used to be frightened of meeting people. She is still blind, yet she talks to new people every day; what has changed?
- How has Toshiyuki stopped his wife feeling like an outsider?
- what can we learn from Yasuko?
- what can we learn from Toshiyuko?
- Why is this story about our school? (this is about recognising when someone feels like an outsider and doing something about it. Toshiyuki could not enable his wife to see again but he could find a way to make sure she felt included again. That is our aim; we need to make sure whatever challenges people face in our school, we will work together to overcome those challenges. No one is left behind here.)

No Outsiders in our school: Teaching the equality act in primary schools by Andrew Moffat

Reclaiming radical ideas in schools: preparing young children for life in modern Britain by Andrew Moffat