Michael Byrne Learning Resources
Learning activities exploring homelessness through the novel Lottery Boy
CFE Levels 3 and 4 (ages 12-14)
Introducing Lottery Boy
Michael Byrne’s debut novel Lottery Boy tells the story of Bully, a homeless boy living on the streets of London. When Bully finds a winning lottery ticket it seems like his luck is finally about to change. But what seems like the answer to all his problems soon makes Bully’s struggle to survive a whole lot harder. Lottery Boy is a thought-provoking and gripping thriller which will keep your pupils hooked until the very last page.
Activities
Homelessness in the UK Soc 3-15a, Soc 3-16a
Statistics published by Crisis Scotland show that 29,565 people were assessed by local authorities in Scotland as homeless or threatened with homelessness in 2014-2015. Of these 45% were under 25 years old.
Show your pupils this clip from homeless charity Crisis, where teenager Scott describes the circumstances which lead to him becoming homeless, his experience of homelessness and the help he has received from Crisis.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGtI8JX0ePw
Once pupils have watched Scott’s interview split them into small groups and ask them to consider the following questions:
· Are you aware of homelessness in your local area?
· Has watching Scott’s video changed your opinion of what it is like to be homeless?
· What events or problems could young people face which means they don’t have their own home or are not able to live at home?
· Do you know about what support is available to young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in your community?
Fundraising Campaign HWB 2-13a, Rme 3-05b, Lit 3-14a, Lit 3-09a
Your pupils might be inspired to raise funds for a charity which supports young people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. From a class project to a school wide event there are lots of brilliant ways to raise money for charity.
Firstly ask your pupils in small groups to carry out online research to find out about organisations and charities which can help and support young people facing homelessness.
Some things for pupils to investigate are:
· Is the charity local, national or international?
· Who does the charity support?
· What support and services does the charity offer to people facing homelessness?
Once your pupils have compiled information about different charities and organisations the group can pick the charity they would most like to fundraise for and present their reasons to the rest of the class. Once all of the groups have presented you can have a class vote to choose which charity the students will fundraise for.
Ask your pupils to brainstorm different ways they can fundraise and raise awareness of homelessness in school and the local community. This could be anything from holding a bake sale, to a whole school talent show – the possibilities are endless!
Once your pupils have decided what their fundraising activities are going to be they can create a campaign to promote the fundraising challenge and raise awareness in school. This could include creating posters and flyers, a presentation or short film to show in assembly or a gorilla advertising campaign. Encourage pupils to be creative and think of imaginative and interesting ways to capture people’s attention and inform them about the campaign.
Further Resources
The Big Issue Foundation has created education packs to help students to explore issues of homelessness:
www.bigissue.org.uk/get-involved/education-packs
The Crisis website has lots of ideas for fundraising in school and tips and tools to get you started:
www.crisis.org.uk/pages/fundraise-at-school.html
Crisis also has a network of speakers with personal experience of homelessness who are available to speak in schools about the issues facing homeless people.
Contact for more information.
Edinburgh and Lothians based charity The Rock Trust has case studies with stories from young people who have been homeless:
www.rocktrust.org/index.php/about-us/meet-our-young-people/
Shelter Scotland has resources and ideas for classroom activities linked to the theme of Home:
http://scotland.shelter.org.uk/get_involved/raise_money/raise_money_at_school
In this short film a group of girls from Belfast investigate homelessness in their home town: https://www.truetube.co.uk/film/i-am-homeless
What Would You Do If You Won the Lottery? MNU 3-09b, HWB 3-19a
When Bully’s lottery ticket turns out to be a winner he thinks that all of his problems are going to be solved. But finding out that he is a jackpot winner does not instantly change his life for the better.
Ask your pupils to read p. 37- 40 of Lottery Boy where Bully first finds out that he has won and imagines what he will do with his winnings. Once they have read the passage ask them to discuss the following questions:
· Do you know anyone who plays the lottery regularly?
· 70% of UK adults play the lottery on a regular basis; will you play the lottery when you are older?
· What would you do if you won? How much would you save, spend, invest, donate to charity?
· Would you tell the press or keep it private?
Pupils can then create a short piece of writing imagining what they would do if they won the lottery.
Create a News Report Lit 3-09a, Lit 3-28a, Tch 3-04a, Lit 3-04a, Lit 3-08a
In this activity your pupils will create a news broadcast imagining they are a news team interviewing Bully about his lottery win.
Split pupils into small groups and ask them to consider what makes up a news report. e.g
· An anchor’s introduction from the newsroom.
· An on the scene reporter.
· An interview with Bully.
Ask pupils to look back through the book to compile information that they want to include in their report. Pupils can then allocate roles and write a script or bullet points for each section.
The BBC has some great tips on how to plan and structure a news report:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/school_report/resources_for_teachers/8472052.stm
Once the pupils have created and compiled their news reports it is time to get filming! When all the films are completed you can hold a screening to watch each report.
Probability and Statistics MNU 3-22a
The probability of winning the lottery is approximately 1 in 14million. Over 32 million people play the lottery in the UK every week but your chance of winning is not affected by the number of people who play. Ask your pupils if they can explain why this is the case.
Here are links to games and resources to help you to explore probability with your pupils:
https://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/investigating-probability-activities-ks3-age11-14-6207000
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks3/maths/handling_data/probability/activity/
Make a Book Trailer Tch 3-04a,Eng 3-19a, Eng 3-24a, Eng 3-31a
Book trailers are a fantastic way of encouraging pupils to engage with a book and combine a number of different skills from the curriculum.
A book trailer is just like a film trailer, giving a taster of a book for its potential audience. Scottish Book Trust has created a brilliant resource pack on creating book trailers which can be found at:
http://scottishbooktrust.com/cpd/toolkits/booktrailer-masterclass
Once your pupils have made their trailers you can hold a film screening - watching all of the trailers together. Encourage your pupils to discuss the trailers after they have seen them:
· How well has each trailer captured character, setting, atmosphere?
· Does the trailer make you want to read the book?
Reading Recommendations Lit 3-11a
If you enjoyed Lottery Boy you might like to take a look at these book lists for some ideas for further reading:
12 Teen Novels About Poverty
www.scottishbooktrust.com/reading/book-lists/12-teen-novels-about-poverty
9 Books About Young People Facing the World Alone
www.scottishbooktrust.com/reading/book-lists/teens-on-their-own
7 Teen Books to Make You Think
www.scottishbooktrust.com/reading/book-lists/7-teen-books-to-make-you-think