Political awareness
Knowledge and understanding of political issues at local, national and international levels, and being aware how these issues affect individuals. This includes support for teaching controversial issues.
Political processes
Knowledge and understanding of political processes and how individuals can make an effective political contribution.
Pressure groups
Knowledge and understanding of campaigning groups and the methods they use to persuade members of the public and influence decision makers.
Websites with practical activities
BBC Scotland Education - Citizenship: Using Democracy
Games and activities looking at laws, making decisions and democracy for young people aged 10-12.
BBC Scotland Education - Citizen X
Online activities for ages 11-14 covering rights and responsibilities, community action, crime and global community amongst others. Excellent lesson plans and materials to help pupils understand how Westminster and elections work - see in particular the lesson plan on Government and Parliament.
Children's BBC Newsround
News written for young people which gives all the top stories as well as games, competitions and chat.
Demgames
Three games and accompanying lesson plans aimed to inform young people about key aspects of the UK political process. Captain Campaign gives an overview of the major challenges involved in running a public campaign around a political issue. Councillor Quest II introduces the work of local councils and councillors. A third game, Money Manager is currently in production.
Explore Parliament
UK Parliament's education website aimed at young people which has everything you could ever want to know about the Parliament. The website can be a bit tricky to find your way around but good explanations of how Parliament works.
The Red Box
Government-produced website with activities to help students understand tax and spending. There are two versions of the site, one for 7-11s and another for 11-16s. Includes worksheets and teacher's notes, which can be used in conjunction with the game or as stand-alone resources.
Government and Parliament
Directgov
Details of government information and services. Advice and information on how the UK is governed and the public services you can access online. Interesting features and broadcast archive which includes Prime Minister's Questions, the Budget and the Queen's Speech.
Europarl: The European Parliament
Everything you could ever want to know about the European Parliament, which represents 15 countries.
Number 10 Downing Street
The official No 10 website with all the latest news and information. Opportunities to e-mail the Prime Minister, take a virtual tour of No 10 and get a comprehensive guide to government and the history of this famous address.
The Scottish Parliament
The official Scottish Parliament website covering every aspect of the Parliament and all the latest news. Special section dedicated to education and outreach with information on how to set up a visit.
The Scottish Parliament Live
View all debates and activities live online. Full timetable of information is provided covering the Main Chamber and Committee Rooms as well as a users' guide to help you view.
UK Parliament
Find out about the work of the House of Lords and the House of Commons, their members and their committees, as well as accessing contact details and publications. The latest news and information on the work of the Parliament is featured as well as historical information.
UK Parliament Live TV
Live audio-visual coverage of both the House of Commons and House of Lords and of Sittings in Westminster Hall. There is also coverage of Select and Standing Committees as well as archive footage and links to relevant background material.
Information
Ask Your MP
Directory service with contact details of all members of Parliament in the UK and MEPs as well as information on all UK political parties.
Europa: The European Union at a glance
Europa is the portal website of the European Union. This area of the website provides bite-sized information about the EU, including a quick overview of the member states, maps, treaties and laws, EU history and a guide to the eurojargon.
Junior Exec
News, features and games aimed at young people from the Scottish Executive (now the Scottish Government).
Organisations
Hansard Society
Independent, non-partisan, educational charity which promotes effective parliamentary democracy. It has a citizenship education programme for young people and lots of good information on parliament, government and e-democracy.
Political parties
Scottish Conservative Party
Scottish Green Party
Scottish Labour Party
Scottish Liberal Democrats
Scottish National Party
Scottish Socialist Party
It must be emphasised that inclusion of these web links does not in any way represent endorsement by Learning and Teaching Scotland, nor are we responsible for the content of external websites.