The fantastic schoolswork.co.uk now has two sets of playing cards available for purchase (Secondary and Primary versions) – we’ve bought both and love using them in our youth ministry.
The concept for both is exactly the same, that using questions in a group setting allows young people to share more freely in a non-confrontational space. Each pack has 52 cards – each with a question on, the questions are based around 4 themes:
- About you
- About others
- About the world
- About beliefs
We’ve used the cards both in school but also in our youth cafe, and found them to be a great tool for young people to get to know us as well as each other – they’re focussed on playing the game rather than answering the deep questions so they naturally reveal more. The Primary school version (released towards the end of 2010) has 52 brand-new questions, a slightly bigger font, and simplified language. We’ve also found that the Primary School version works well with those in year 7-8.
We’re not the only people to like them, check out this quote from Lat Blaylock from RE Today talking about the cards:
You’ve got to have these cards: a playful approach to being spiritual. 52 little pieces of thoughtfulness in fours suits. Just what I expect from schoolswork – profound, and profoundly simple, fun, and funnily powerful. Get some.
There are also a series of tricks to learn and use: card trick, another card trick, card tricks explained.
At £5 per set this is a resource that is well-worth buying – an essential tool on any children’s and youth workers bookcase.
