Presentation: The Golden Rule Online

Slide 1 of 7 · Settling starter · RE · Year 8

5 minutes

The Golden Rule online

Almost every religion, and many people with no religion, share one idea about how to treat other people: the Golden Rule. Online, it is easy to forget that there is a real person reading. Today you test 6 online situations against it.

While the register is called: write your name, class and date on your worksheet. Phones stay away. Then listen to the 7 teachings in Part 1 of the stimulus sheet, one at a time.

Starter question: In your own words, what is the Golden Rule?

DCF: Citizenship → Online behaviour and online bullying No computers or phones needed

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Hand out: one worksheet per pupil and one stimulus sheet (The Golden Rule: seven traditions and six online situations) between two. Pupils need a pen. The teachings in Part 1 are real; every name in Part 2 is invented. Safeguarding: a pupil may recognise one of these situations. Do not take a disclosure in front of the class. Say “come and see me at the end”, take their name, and pass it to the class teacher or the school’s safeguarding lead the same day. Do not promise to keep it secret.

Say aloud: “Write your name, class and date at the top of your worksheet. Phones away. I am going to read 7 teachings from the stimulus sheet, one at a time. Listen, then answer the starter question in rough.” Then read the 7 teachings in the Part 1 table aloud, with the tradition and where it comes from.

Starter answer: Treat other people the way you would want to be treated. Pupils are not asked what they believe, only what each tradition teaches and what they would do.

Slide 2 of 7 · Today’s brief and key words · RE · Year 8

2 minutes

Your brief: test 6 online situations against one rule

You will sort the 7 teachings into “do” and “do not”, run the Golden Rule test on 6 cards, rewrite 3 unkind messages, write 80 to 100 words on whether the Golden Rule is enough, and write a 4-rule class charter.

Golden Rule

Treat other people the way you would want to be treated. It appears, in different words, in almost every tradition.

Positive and negative

A positive teaching says what you should do. A negative one says what you should not do.

Tradition

A religion or worldview, such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism or Humanism.

DCF: Citizenship → Online behaviour and online bullying Imagine you are the person on the receiving end

Slide 3 of 7 · Step 1: one rule, seven ways · RE · Year 8

7 minutes

Step 1: do or do not, and what each teaching means in a group chat

For each tradition in Part 1, decide whether the teaching says what you should do or should not do. Then write one sentence saying what it would mean in a group chat. Finish with the question under the table.

Tradition	Do or do not?	What it would mean in a group chat
Christianity	Do	Send the kind of messages you would like to get.
Judaism	Do not	If you would hate a comment about you, do not post it about anyone else.

Step 1 on your worksheet · 7 minutes Look for “do” or “not” in the actual words

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Say aloud: “The first 2 rows are on the board. Christianity says do to others, so it is a do. Judaism says do not do what is hateful, so it is a do not. Fill in the other 5 the same way, with one sentence each for a group chat, then answer the question: which kind asks more of you online?”

Quick check: “Do”: Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, Humanism. “Do not”: Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism. Sikhism describes an attitude to everyone rather than a rule; “do” is the better fit, but accept either with a reason. Model sentences: Islam, want the same respect for everyone in the chat that you want for yourself; Hinduism, do not post anything you would find hurtful if it were about you; Buddhism, do not hurt people with words that would hurt you; Sikhism, treat people you do not know, even in a game, as friends, not enemies or strangers; Humanism, before replying, imagine being them, reading it.

Which asks more: the “do” teachings. You can keep a “do not” rule by staying silent, but a “do” rule means you have to act, for example messaging Tomos or reporting the players in the game.

Slide 4 of 7 · Step 2: the Golden Rule test · RE · Year 8

17 minutes

Step 2: the Golden Rule test on all 6 cards

Read the 6 cards in Part 2. For each card, imagine you are the person on the receiving end. Then decide the one thing you would actually do: something realistic, not heroic. Name a teaching that supports it.

Card	If I were them	What I would want	The one thing I will do	Teaching
1	Left out and embarrassed, wondering what I did wrong.	Someone to say it is not fair.	Leave the chat and tell one friend in it I think we should invite Ffion.	Judaism: “What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour.”

Step 2 on your worksheet · 17 minutes One realistic action per card, not a heroic one

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Say aloud: “17 minutes, so just under 3 minutes a card. Card 1 is on the board as a model: the new group chat called ‘no Ffion’. Start every row with how the other person would feel. Pick one thing you would really do, and try to use a different teaching for each card.”

Quick check: there is no single right answer; look for a realistic action and a teaching that fits. Model answers: Card 2 (Tomos’s face on a cartoon pig): not laugh-react, ask the poster to delete it, tell a teacher if it stays up; Buddhism. Card 3 (@PixelPanda in the game): type “unlucky, stick with me” and use the game’s report button on the 2 players; Sikhism, “no one is a stranger”. Card 4 (the joke about Amira’s fasting): message Amira privately to say it was out of order, and tell the form tutor because it targets her religion; Islam. Card 5 (fake one-star reviews of Dylan’s family café): reply “no, his family haven’t done anything” and tell an adult, because fake reviews hurt a real business; Hinduism. Card 6 (Jac’s forwarded secret): not forward it, delete it, tell the friend you are not sending it on; Humanism.

Walk the room: cards 2, 4 and 5 should include telling an adult. If a pupil says “this happened to me”, take their name quietly and pass it on the same day.

Slide 5 of 7 · Steps 3 and 4: rewrite, then evaluate · RE · Year 8

17 minutes

Step 3 & Step 4: rewrite 3 messages, then is the Golden Rule enough?

Step 3 (8 min): rewrite each unkind message so it is still honest but passes the Golden Rule test. If there is nothing kind and honest to say, write what you would do instead.

Original message	My rewrite
“lol ur so bad just quit the game” (to @PixelPanda, card 3)	“Tough round. Stick near me next time and we’ll get them.”

Step 4 (9 min): read “A criticism, and a reply” on the stimulus sheet. In 80 to 100 words: “The Golden Rule is all you need to behave well online.” One reason to agree, one to disagree, your conclusion, and at least 1 tradition.

Steps 3 and 4 on your worksheet · 17 minutes Honest and kind, or say nothing and act instead

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Say aloud: “8 minutes for the 3 rewrites. The first is on the board: it keeps the honesty, it was a tough round, and drops the insult. Some messages cannot be fixed by rewording; then you write what you would do instead. After that, 9 minutes for Step 4. Read the criticism and the humanist reply about the crisps first, then write 80 to 100 words.”

Quick check, Step 3: “nobody actually wants you at the cinema”: there is nothing kind and honest to send, so send nothing; instead write in the group “If we’re going, we should ask Ffion.” “worst café ever, avoid”: no rewrite, because the writer has never eaten there, so any review would be dishonest; a fair review would be about the food and service, not about Dylan.

Quick check, Step 4: a secure answer agrees that the rule is a good test before posting (Rabbi Hillel: if I would hate it about me, do not post it), disagrees because people are different and a joke I find funny might really hurt Amira, uses the humanist reply (imagine being them, with their feelings), and concludes that the rule is a strong start but online you also need to know how to report things and when to tell an adult.

Slide 6 of 7 · Step 5 and self check · RE · Year 8

5 minutes

Step 5: 4 rules for your class charter, then check your work

Write 4 short rules for your class chat. Each one must link to a teaching from Part 1, for example: “Before you post, ask: would I hate this if it were about me? If yes, don’t.” (Judaism, Hillel). Then tick the success criteria you have met and correct 1 thing.

I can explain the Golden Rule in at least 3 traditions and say whether each is a “do” or a “do not”.
For each situation I imagine the person on the receiving end and choose 1 realistic thing to do.
I can rewrite an unkind message so that it is honest and kind, or know when to say nothing and act instead.
I can argue for and against “the Golden Rule is enough”, using the criticism and the reply.
I know the adult I would tell in school and 1 helpline outside school.

Step 5 on your worksheet · 5 minutes Finished early? Try the “Platinum Rule” question

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Say aloud: “5 minutes. Write 4 short rules for a class chat in the box for Step 5, and put the tradition in brackets after each one. Then read the success criteria and tick the ones you have met. Correct 1 thing, for example a Step 2 row with no teaching named.”

Quick check: model charter: 1 Before you post, ask: would I hate this if it were about me? (Judaism). 2 Nobody is a stranger: players and people you have never met get the same respect as friends (Sikhism). 3 Want for others what you want for yourself; if someone is being picked on, back them up (Islam). 4 Picture the person reading it, with their feelings, not yours (Humanism).

Extension answers: the “Platinum Rule” (treat others as they want to be treated) matches the humanist reply, and card 4 is a good example: Amira wants support, not a joke the poster found funny. The pop-up task has no single answer; look for the Golden Rule in its exact words. For card 4, Amira’s own tradition is Islam: “None of you truly believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.”

Slide 7 of 7 · Plenary review · RE · Year 8

5 minutes

The help box, then quick-check answers before handing in

Fill in the help box: the adult in school you would go to first, and a helpline outside school with its number. Then check your answers.

Question	Correct answer
Which 3 traditions word the Golden Rule as a “do not”?	Judaism, Hinduism and Buddhism.
What is the humanist reply to “people do not all like the same things”?	Think about how they would like to be treated, with their feelings and wishes: buy the crisps she likes.
Name a helpline outside school for young people in Wales, and its number.	Meic, 080880 23456 (8am to midnight, Welsh or English), or Childline, 0800 1111.

Check your name and class are on your worksheet Leave stimulus sheets neat on the desk