Football shirt

 

England football shirts 'should connect people' - BBC News

The picture shows the new England kit which has caused debate over the last week.

What is the debate about?

The new kit, designed by Nike, has a tiny cross on the back of the collar. The cross of St George is usually red in colour. On the new kit, purples and blues have been added. 

This is not the first time there has been a debate about different colours on England football shirts. In 2010 a shirt was designed by Peter Saville and his original idea was to use the shape of the St George flag in an array of different colours across the shirt. 

Peter says, "It's a very colourful society. I live in a colourful nation. I wanted the shirt to be for everyone because when the national team are playing it is for everyone. No one should be excluded."

"I thought it was pretty topical ten years ago; maybe it's even more so now." Peter says his aim was to capture the pride he feels when he sees the diversity of the England team on the pitch.

In the end, Peter's design was minimised and there were only different colours on the shoulders. Peter says he was disappointed because the changes were so small that no one noticed them and at the time it wasn't discussed.  

The 2024 kit is certainly being talked about and some people are calling it disrespectful, arguing the original design using the St George flag should not be changed. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called the St George's flag a "source of pride" which we "shouldn't mess with." Labour Leader Keir Starmer said the flag was a unifying symbol that doesn't need changing. 

Other people are arguing the St George's cross has not always been on the England shirt; the cross only became a regular feature in the 2000s and has only featured on 6 kits in total.  The 2022 kit did not feature the St George's cross at all.  The colours on the cuffs are inspired by the 1966 England team training gear. Others ague the real debate should be about the cost of the kit for fans to buy.

- What are flags for?

- why do you think there is such a debate about this?

- "It's a very colourful society. I live in a colourful nation. I wanted the shirt to be for everyone because when the national team are playing it is for everyone. No one should be excluded." what is Peter Saville saying here?

- why do you think Peter's design was minimised so much in 2010?

- "I thought it was pretty topical ten years ago; maybe it's even more so now." What does Peter mean by this?

- what is meant by the "diversity of the England team"?

- why do you think politicians are getting involved in the debate?

- do you agree that flags are "unifying"? What does that mean?

- What is your opinion?

- why is this about No Outsiders?

- Which British Value is this story about?

No Outsiders: Everyone different, everyone welcome by Andrew Moffat

No Outsiders: We belong here by Andrew Moffat

www.no-outsiders.com

space

 https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2024/mar/16/maggie-aderin-pocock-looks-back?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

The photo shows Maggie Aderin- Pocock aged 7 and aged 55. Maggie is a scientist and she has designed many space instruments. She trained as a physicist and got a PhD in 1994. She was the first black woman to win a gold medal in the Physics News Award and currently hosts BBC's astronomy programme. 

The photo was for Maggie's Nigerian passport: "I didn't feel as if I belonged anywhere. I didn't speak any Nigerian language and I had never been there, but at the same time I didn't fit in the UK. I was black and living in Camden so, at school, students would say things like, "Go home."

As a child, Maggie developed a love of space: "I realised that when you look at earth from space, you don't see barriers or division - you just see the planet. That was really appealing to me as a child."

"Star Trek was about people from all over the world, including aliens like Spock, going on adventures and working together in harmony. The United Federation of Planets sounded fantastic and inspired to me. When you are spacefaring none of the things that divide us matter; we are all just humanity."

Maggie had a childhood full of change; she went to 13 different schools which was a challenge for her, but this mad her resilient; "As an adult I'm comfortable  walking in to any space and thinking, "OK, how am I going to blend in here?"

When she was studying for her PhD, Maggie was in a group of 200 students where there were only 5 women and one other black person. "I became used to entering a room and thinking, 'Oh I'm the only Black person or woman here' When you have a common cause - space - that sense of difference often goes away. As my career progressed and I became a project manager, I was able to demonstrate that I am capable. I am not an alien."

 

Maggie also has dyslexia, and maybe ADHD, although she didn't know this for a long time. While working at the Ministry of Defence, she struggled to write reports and couldn't understand how her colleagues got them done so quickly. "These set backs didn't deter me from my ambition. Every step, no matter how hard, got me closer to my crazy goal of getting in to space. so I could learn what's out there. I might not have role models in the science world who looked like me but I had strong, larger than life people like my sisters and my mum who always lifted me up and drive me forward."

"If I have a hard day I look at the moon and it makes me feel better. It's vast and wide and glorious. It's not as though you look up and all your problems go away, but it's important o realise that we are all part of something amazing."

"I remember being underestimated as a child. I wish I could go back to that little Maggie and say, "You can do it. You have the biggest dream and you have the potential." That's what I tell kids today whenever I meet them; "Reach for the stars, have a crazy dream and lets see where it takes you."

- what is a Physicist?

- What do you think 7 year old Maggie would think about 55 year old Maggie?

- Why didn't Maggie feel she belonged anywhere as a child, how did children her school affect her?

- what do we say about different race and belonging at our school?

- "I realised that when you look at earth from space, you don't see barriers or division - you just see the planet. That was really appealing to me as a child." - why do you think this appealed to Maggie?

- Do you think Maggie worried about being the only woman or the only Black person in a room of 200 students? What would you say to her? 

- "When you are spacefaring none of the things that divide us matter; we are all just humanity." what does this mean?

- "As an adult I'm comfortable  walking in to any space and thinking, "OK, how am I going to blend in here?" Is it better to blend in or stand out? What are the arguments for both? Is blending in a useful skill to have or not?

- "I might not have role models in the science world who looked like me but I had strong, larger than life people like my sisters and my mum who always lifted me up and drive me forward." discuss the importance of role models - Maggie didn't have any and she still achieved so do we need them?

- "we are all part of something amazing." What does Maggie mean by this?

- What can we learn from Maggie?

- Why is this about No Outsiders?

- Which British Values are in this story?

No Outsiders: All different, all welcome by Andrew Moffat

www.no-outsiders.com

ballet

 

A ballet company's response to one football fan's sexist insult on Facebook was epic (upworthy.com)

What do you see in the photo? How are the two activities different? What do you think are the stereotypes that exist around these activities and the people that take part in them?

The American footballers pictures are the Philadelphia Eagles. When they ended their season and lost their game. Comments on social media criticised the players and one commented, “the team played like they were wearing tutus.”

What do you think of that comment, what is the attitude of the writer toward footballers and ballerinas? What are the stereotypes around gender, sport, footballers, ballerinas?

A ballet company responded and their response went viral. How do you think they responded?

“With all due respect to the Eagles, lets take a minute to look at what our tutu wearing women have done this month.

By tomorrow afternoon, the ballerinas that wear tutus at Pennsylvania ballet will have performed  The Nutcracker 27 times in 21 days. Some of these women have performed the snow scene and the waltz of the flowers without an understudy or second cast. No ‘second string’ to come in and spell them when they needed a break. When they have been sick, they came to the theatre, put their make up on and costume, smiled and performed. When they have felt an injury in the middle of a show, there have been no injury timeouts. They have kept smiling, finished their job, bowed, left the stage and then dealt with what hurts. Some of these tutu wearers have been tossed in to a new position with only a moments notice. That’s like a corner back at half time being told they are going to play side receiver for the second half, but they need to make sure no one can tell they’ve never played wide receiver before. They have done this with such artistry and grace that audience after audience has clapped and cheered. And the Philadelphia Enquirer has said this production looks “better than ever”.

So no, the Eagles have not played like they were wearing tutus.”

People are commenting that toughness has nothing to do with your gender and nothing to do with what clothes you wear.

“Ballerinas wear tutus for the same reason footballers wear uniforms and pads: to get the job done.”

-          -What is sexism?

-         - Is this story about sexism? The comment doesn’t actually mention gender…

-          -Why write such a long response to such a small comment?

-          - Why didn’t the ballet company just ignore the comment? Is it best to ignore sexism/ judgement, or should it always be challenged?

-          - You could argue by commenting, the ballerinas brought attention to the original comment, and far more people saw it. Did this backfire for them?

-          -What can we learn from the ballerinas?

-          -Why is this about No Outsiders?

-          -Which British value is this about?

NoOutsiders: everyone different, everyone welcome by Andrew Moffat

www.no-outsiders.com

Oliver

 

Spina bifida: Boy in wheelchair praised for Oliver! role - BBC News

Aness is 7 years old and is seen here rehearsing for his part as a workhouse boy in the musical 'Oliver' at a theatre in Leeds. 

What is Oliver about? Who wrote it?

Aness has Spina bifida and is paralysed from the waist down. 

What does paralysed mean? How does Aness's body work differently to yours?

Aness has never acted before but he did really well and his family think he has a hidden talent.

How can a talent be hidden?

Why wasn't the talent found before?

Mum says, "His Head Teacher came to see him and she couldn't believe what she was seeing because of all the children interacting Aness. Nobody saw the wheelchair."

"Nobody saw the wheelchair"? How can that be? How can a wheelchair be unseen? What does she mean?

- In the original story "Oliver", published in 1837, there isn't a workhouse boy using a wheelchair, so is it ok to have one now? (This is a great discussion for children. Oliver is a work of fiction so in a 2024 version, there should be a workhouse boy using a wheelchair as many children today do use wheelchairs. Also, Aness is playing a "workhouse boy", he is not playing a "workhouse boy un a wheelchair". The wheelchair is actually irrelevant) 

Look at this picture - what do you see?

Ruth Madeley is an actor who has spina bifida and uses a wheelchair. She appeared on Dr Who recently playing a main character in an episode. Ruth later posted this photo with the caption, "For every disabled kid who couldn't get in to the Tardis, this ramp is forever yours." 

In a scene from the 60th episode, the Dr opens the door of the Tardis and then unfolds a ramp. Ruth's character, who is a scientific advisor, says, "At last, you finally caught up with the 21st century!"

- why does the character say that?

- Charles Dickens wrote Oliver 200 years ago, if he were writing today, how might his characters be different, for example, think about the group of "workhouse boys"

- What can we learn from Ruth Madeley and from Aness?

- Why is this about No Outsiders?

- Which British Value is this about?

No Outsiders: Everyone different, everyone different by Andrew Moffat

www.no-outsiders.com