Does anyone have access to Jigsaw PSHE lesson plans?

[LittleCabbage]

I posted earlier today on a thread from earlier this year, which came up when I searched for threads about Jigsaw, a company providing PSHE resources for schools. But I think it is less confusing if I just start a new thread.

I have just seen that my child's school is planning to use the Jigsaw PSHE curriculum this year, and the thread I found here discussed concerns re encouraging secrecy, and also a mention of possible concerns with the teaching of equality.

I plan to contact the school and ask to see the lesson plans for these areas. I have looked on the Jigsaw website but they only give subject areas rather the the specifics of what is included in lesson plans.

Before I email the school, can anyone offer any insight into what is being taught, and their opinions on the subject matter? Thanks.

LittleCabbage,

At the link below it says 'External agencies that schools are firmly advised not to use include but are not limited to Stonewall, Mermaids, Gendered Intelligence, The Proud Trust, Jigsaw PSHE, Woodcraft Folk, Educate & Celebrate, No Outsiders, Allsorts Youth Project, Twinkl Resources.'
genderdesk.wordpress.com/2020/09/25/uk-schools-backtrack-on-gender-ideology/

However I can't see this list in the DOfE guidance - maybe someone else can help show us both where it is?

My DC school also sent us their RSE policy today and they too are using Jigsaw. Their policy is dated July 2020 and I will be contacting them about the new guidelines. I can't find much info on Jigsaw but will take a further look.

One of the schools we're applying for uses jigsaw too so interested to learn more.

@sultanasofa, that is interesting. The bit that lists all the dubious organisations, is not in inverted commas like the rest, so it doesn’t sound as though that advice comes directly from the DforE. “Schools are firmly advised....” - who is Baroness Nicholson referring to when she says this? Does she just mean “organisations who actually care about safeguarding” advise this?

I couldn’t find anything specifically about Jigsaw on either the Transgender Trend or SafeSchoolsAlliance websites. Like you, I also cannot find that list in the DforE guidance. Hopefully someone here know some more....

Dont think those Groups to Avoid is from the DofE - it includes No Outsiders.

I'm certain there are threads about Jigsaw here already. Can you do a search OP?

I remember one very specific account of what a child was told at school. It was horrendous and I saw it not too long ago.

Hope you find it!

I know Jigsaw from years back and there was nothing to alarm me then but it might have changed because of the recent GRA rubbish. I would imagine they will be rewriting parts of it in light of the new guidance. This may give you more info?
www.jigsawpshe.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Using-Jigsaw-with-Composite-classes.pdf
It's good practice for schools to show the resources they intend to use to parents beforehand so you have every right to ask to see them.

I am pretty positive that one of my DC's schools mentioned Jigsaw, I googled it earlier this month, but I can't remember if it was the primary or secondary school. There is no reference in the secondary policy, and I can't find anything for the primary school. I'll have to keep looking.

Dug around and found the letter, it is the primary school and it is Jigsaw, apparently a consultation will be next year, so hopefully any material will have been "cleaned up" by then.

Our primary school uses jigsaw and the phse policy is the model policy from jigsaw. I recommend you have a look at the policy first in order to familiarise yourself with it and see if there's anything you disagree with.

@OhHolyJesus

I'm certain there are threads about Jigsaw here already. Can you do a search OP?

I remember one very specific account of what a child was told at school. It was horrendous and I saw it not too long ago.

Hope you find it!

Yes, when I mentioned I had posted on an older thread earlier today, it was this one:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3880125-Any-teachers-that-can-recommend-SRE-Resources

@ChickenonaMug posted the following worrying information:

I am not a teacher but a parent and I would not recommend Jigsaw. Jigsaw was introduced into my youngest two children's primary school in September. During one of the first Jigsaw lessons that my 8yr old had he was taught about the importance of privacy/confidentiality. The children were asked to get into small groups and tell each other something about themselves that the others do not know. They were then asked to share the other's secret with the rest of the class but only if the other child wanted them to. The class were then taught that they need to keep other people's secrets. They were told that they should not tell their parents as they would tell other parents (in other words gossip) and that if the teacher found out they had told others then they would end up in Reflection (Supervision). After my son happened to mention something about how we need to keep secrets on the journey home that day, I questioned him and this is how I found out what he had been taught. I tried to gently find out how far he thought that he should go in keeping secrets for other. He believed that if another child told him that something was wrong in his/her life then he should try and persuade them to tell a teacher but that he shouldn't ever tell their secret. Even more devastatingly, my child now believed that if any adult was tickling him and hurting him but asked him to keep it a secret then he should. I had always taught him to come to me and to tell me anything and to not keep secrets but in one lesson everything I had said had been completely undermined and I feel that he had been placed at risk. It has taken me sometime to convince him that what the teacher was teaching is wrong.

I know that teaching confidentiality was the Jigsaw lesson plan that day and I now know that it part of the Jigsaw programme that is taught to every year group from year one, at the beginning of the year. It is IMO a dangerous thing to teach to young children. I myself, was subjected to grooming and sexual abuse from the age of 7 and obviously being taught to keep secrets from other adults was a huge part of that, at least until the shame and fear of it all kicked and kept me quiet. I do not think that teaching primary age children to keep secrets is ever appropriate or in line with good safeguarding practice.

My other child in the school was also given a worrying lesson on equal rights which I will try and explain in a bit if that is helpful?

This is what concerns me, but the information on the Jigsaw website is so vague. I guess they only give specifics to people who have paid for it, i.e. the school.

(I see you posted on that thread OhHolyJesus).

LittleCabbage, I'll have a dig around and see if I can find out any more about who is doing the 'firm advising' about organisations. It seems strange to advise against certain organisations when the materials can be re-written to comply with the new guidance, as others have noted. Will keep you posted.

Thanks sultanasofa. I’ve spent the evening trying to find out more about the Jigsaw resources. This table is on the school’s website but I’m not sure whether it has been or will be updated in light of the new DfE guidelines. But under the information for 6-7 year olds, there are the headings “Gender Diversity” and “Secrets”, which I would like to know more about. The teaching relating to these headings may be perfectly acceptable, but I have emailed the school’s PSHE teacher to ask to see all the Jigsaw lesson plans, so that I can be sure what my child will be taught.

I see that table doesn’t show up very clearly on the attachment. It can also be viewed via this link. I would like to stress that this is NOT my child’s school. I just randomly found this school’s page when doing an image search for the table:

www.greengatesprimary.co.uk/jigsaw-pshe/

The 6-7 one is quite interesting - I wonder how they pair "gender diversity / Assumptions and stereotypes about gender" with "Differences between female and male bodies."

@TheGreatWave

The 6-7 one is quite interesting - I wonder how they pair "gender diversity / Assumptions and stereotypes about gender" with "Differences between female and male bodies."

Quite

Hi, I've obtained some further clarification on the list of agencies on the list and how it should be used.

The DofE guidance does not make any recommendations regarding specific external agencies, but it includes the following blanket statement:

'You should exercise extreme caution when working with external agencies and proceed only if you have full confidence in the agency, its approach and the resources it uses.'

Schools are further discouraged from using external agencies by the provision of free teaching modules for primary and secondary schools by the DofE.

If a school chooses to continue with an external provider, the standard against which they should be measured is as follows:

'We are aware that topics involving gender and biological sex can be complex and sensitive matters to navigate. You should not reinforce harmful stereotypes, for instance by suggesting that children might be a different gender based on their personality and interests or the clothes they prefer to wear. Resources used in teaching about this topic must always be age-appropriate and evidence based. Materials which suggest that non-conformity to gender stereotypes should be seen as synonymous with having a different gender identity should not be used and you should not work with external agencies or organisations that produce such material. While teachers should not suggest to a child that their non-compliance with gender stereotypes means that either their personality or their body is wrong and in need of changing, teachers should always seek to treat individual students with sympathy and support'

I understand that the list put together at the link are examples of agencies that have existing materials for use in schools that are not in line with the new guidance. This can be considered illustrative, but not exhaustive. With time, some of the agencies on the list may update their materials so that they are in line with the guidance. The yardstick against which to assess the suitability of any proposed materials therefore remains the new guidance.

Thanks sultanasofa, that is helpful. Hopefully I will hear back from the school today and can update here.

Placemarking for the update. DD's school uses Jigsaw; they wouldn't let me see their materials during lockdown but said I was welcome to come in and have a look once the kids were back, which they now are - must get on with that!

I share your frustration at how hard it is to find out exactly what they're teaching. Should be easily googleable, but nope.

I am sorry there isn't something more definitive to refer to eg the DofE does not recommend organisation X because of the following teaching material...

Whilst the guidance is welcome, if a school chooses to use an external agency, it seems the onus falls back on parents to demonstrate why they are not suitable - which requires full access to the teaching materials.

Organisations are also re-writing their materials to fit the new guidance, which makes unsuitability more difficult to prove. There may be cases of agencies complying with the letter of the law, but not the spirit.

Good luck

www.thurnby-tmet.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Jigsaw-LGBT-Parent-Leaflet-A4.pdf

This is a parent leaflet explaining Jigsaw. A couple of highlights:

Being transgender is discussed in the following terms:

Most people are not transgender. A transgender person doesn’t feel their body matches with their gender.

Looks like "born in the wrong body" to me; also clearly demonstrating that transgender people believe bodies and stereotypes can "match".

Let me explain…a person who was born with a male body may feel they are female, and a person born with a male body may feel they are a female. There can be all sorts of reasons why this happens.

School were a bit horrified when I asked them (a few months ago) how they'd be teaching my daughter which feelings correspond with 'female' and which with 'male'.

I presume schools aren't holding physical meetings with parents but they should provide some sort of parent forum to discuss this.
I'm very surprised to hear about the lesson on confidentiality, totally inappropriate. I trained teachers in PSHE and this is not what would be recommended, quite the opposite! Confidentiality was taught in the context of possible disclosures made in class, not to encourage keeping secrets. Some of this poor practice is often the result of poor teacher training in the subject. Trainees get about one day's training at university. I could write a book on teachers' misconceptions or crazy ideas e.g the headteacher not allowing the word 'penis' to be used

My school is also using Jigsaw (one of the threads was probably mine). I would be very interested in lesson plans. The curriculum I have seen looks OK but the devil is in the detail!

School were a bit horrified when I asked them (a few months ago) how they'd be teaching my daughter which feelings correspond with 'female' and which with 'male'.

This is a good way of pointing out the problems with defining what transgenderism actually is.

The curriculum I have seen looks OK but the devil is in the detail!

Absolutely. I am determined to find out what that detail is.

@LittleCabbage I see that you have seen what I wrote about my youngest son's lesson on confidentiality. I did ask to speak to the headteacher about it and she spoke to the teacher who had delivered it to find out whether the lesson had gone as planned. The headteacher told me later that day that the lesson had followed the plan and showed me a piece of paper which set out the aims of the lesson and this included teaching the children to respect other's privacy (confidentiality). I have not seen a full lesson plan but I accept that the teacher was following the plan. I now know that Jigsaw PSHE have a charter/set of ground rules and have seen that respecting other's privacy is one of the six rules. I get what Jigsaw are are trying to do however I think that it is very dangerous to teach children, especially young ones to keep secrets, which is what this must sound like to a child when they told to hide or not reveal information to other's including their parents. I very much doubt that my child is the only one to understand the lesson in this way. I am especially and incredibly cross that my child and his class was both guilted and threatened with punishment (being put into reflection) into keeping things confidential/secret, as this is how abusers groom and abuse children. It is, imo as someone who was subjected to years of grooming and CSA, making it far easier for abusers to groom and abuse children and persuade them to keep it secret. I think that it is horrendous.