Taking action

Preparation and Planning

You will need to photocopy enough copies of the Student Worksheets for every group.

This lesson is very tight for time and so in advance of the class you could prepare the groups and rota for pitching. The pitch process could be delivered as a separate lesson. You will need to organise access to materials for the students to deliver their presentations. As they have freedom to choose the format you may need to supply a range of resources such as ICT access, poster paper etc.

About the MOD Topic

Lieutenant (Lt) Polly Hatchard is an engineer in the Royal Navy (RN). She became the first female in the military to reach the South Pole on 1 January 2007. Dealing with temperatures of minus 50 degrees Celsius, Polly trekked 182kms (113-miles) and then stripped down to a bikini when she reached the South Pole in aid of Breast Cancer. The expedition also marked the centenary of Sir Ernest Shackleton's failed attempt to reach the South Pole in 1907. He famously said after, 'Better a live donkey than a dead lion.'

Polly's two team mates were not Royal Navy Officers. Carolyn and Fiona were novice explorers battling breast cancer and decided to take on the challenge to raise money and awareness for Cancer Research UK. The team flew to their Antarctic base camp at Patriot Hills. They were then flown onto latitude 88'23'S where they began Shackleton's unfinished journey. For seven days they lived under canvas and towed sledges of supplies across ice fields and glaciers, finally climbing to the polar plateau at almost 3,000m (10,000ft). A map of their journey is presented on Slide 19.

Here is a taste of Polly's story that is sure to engage your students:

'Antarctica is a seriously tough and challenging environment, of which I am very respectful. Temperatures get so cold that the hairs inside your nose freeze and if not disciplined enough to breathe out through your nose you risk frost bite to the tip. Wind speeds get so high that a glove, tent or top not secured properly is gone forever in a flash. And the atmosphere gets so dry that you feel you've been smoking 40 cigarettes a day or just stepped out of a nightclub. A single careless moment can cost the life of a finger, toe or worse still you. I experienced temperatures down to minus 41 degrees Celsius but with wind speeds sometimes gusting to 25 knots* the wind chill factor was well below minus 50 degrees Celsius. I am thrilled to have reached the South Pole, not only for myself and the members of my team but to bring the awareness of breast cancer to thousands of women and in the Centenary year of the incredible explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton'. Lieutenant Polly Hatchard RN

*1 knot equates to 1.152 miles per hour (mph) and 1.85 kilometres per hour (kph).

Individuals and organisations within the MOD and Armed Forces support a variety of local and international charities. As with civilian fundraisers, military personnel's motivations for supporting charities can be very varied and tend to be personal. As members of the Armed Forces are exposed to extreme humanitarian issues when overseas, this can drive them to support international charities. In Polly's case, she had a personal affiliation with the cancer charity.

Useful links:
Breast Cancer and Polly's awareness campaign: http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/breastcancer/jointogether/fundraisingideas/

MOD press release: http://www.mod.uk/defenceinternet/defencenews/peopleindefence/bikinisforbreastcanceratminus41degreescelsius.htm

Antarctica: http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/index.php
HMS Endurance: http://www.visitandlearn.co.uk/default.aspx

Further Opportunities for Learning

Invite students to research other charitable work carried out by members of the Armed Forces, including those within the Services and those without. A few of the charities supported are listed below. Students should consider the motivations for support for the various causes.

The Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families' Association (SSAFA) www.ssafa.org.uk, is the leading national military charity caring for present and past service personnel and their families. Each year the charity's 7,000 volunteers and 700 professional staff provide vital assistance to more than 50,000 people.

The Army Benevolent Fund www.armybenfund.org provides support to serving soldiers, former soldiers and their families in times of need, including those with disabilities or mental illness, people experiencing homelessness or unemployment, and older people.

The Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund www.rafbf.org/ provides financial and practical assistance to anyone who is serving, or has ever served in the RAF, plus their partners and dependants. It offers grants, care and mobility services to individuals, as well as funding large-scale projects such as RAF childcare centres, debt advice services and relationship counselling.

The Royal British Legion www.britishlegion.org.uk provides financial, social and emotional support to millions who have served and are currently serving in the Armed Forces, and their dependants. Currently, nearly 10.5 million people are eligible for support.

Veterans UK www.veterans-uk.info

The Sir Oswald Stoll Foundation www.oswaldstoll.org.uk/

National Blood Transfusion Service www.blood.co.uk.

Red Nose Day www.rednoseday.com

Plus further non military charitable organisations supporting children and providing basic needs and infrastructure in theatres of operation.

Invite students to research and evaluate the effectiveness of other fundraising and awareness campaigns. Their evaluation can be based on the knowledge gained from designing their own campaign. They could draw in discussion about the effectiveness of the media channels and impact on its audience.

Students should use what they have learnt from this lesson to plan a community or school campaign / event that they actually deliver.

A wider study of the use of different communication media in campaigns can be conducted with special focus on how the internet has impacted on fundraising and campaigning. Identify pros and cons of the internet as a channel.

Discuss and debate whether citizens have a role in supporting charities and campaigns. Consider the phrase: 'charity starts at home'.

Study Government campaigns and review whether they effectively use the media to influence opinion and change behaviour e.g. Campaign against binge drinking - 'Know your limits', anti-smoking campaign - 'Don't keep it in the family', sexual health campaign - 'Want respect? Use a condom'.

Run a 'Citizenship Day' at school, encouraging students to consider what 'action' they might take and what constitutes responsible action.

Student worksheet answers

Download the teachers notes PDF to access the answers for this lesson.