What is MyUK?
MyUK is a playful digital learning activity that is free to use and designed to encourage young people to express their creativity while exploring the political context in which UK laws are made.
Which students can benefit?
We think MyUK ideally suits an audience aged 13-15, particularly those focused on political literacy.
Teachers have told us MyUK will also appeal to younger students. You may wish to make use of the 'Facebook-free' version which will be available once we launch MyUK.
Older students might enjoy the playful tone of MyUK, particularly if it's accompanied by some of the specially-created in-depth material about how laws are made.
You'll also find relevant curriculum links for each UK nation listed below.
What can students learn?
Through quick, engaging, playful interaction, MyUK introduces the 'big picture' of British politics.
Topics and themes might include:
- Where do laws come from?
The origins of laws. Where do ideas come from?
- Who's who in lawmaking and political Britain
The key players involved in making laws. Who has the most influence?
- How laws are made
MyUK introduces players to the institutions, principles, patterns and processes that underpin UK lawmaking.
- Parliament and government
Who makes the rules? Explore the roles of the executive and the legislature, and the relationship between the institutions.
- Power and accountability
How is political power distributed across the UK's democracy? How are those with power held to account?
- What is politics?
Not everyone in a democracy gets what they want. How should competing and conflicting demands be balanced?
See also the teachers' resources on the next tab.
How long does it take to complete MyUK?
Approximately 15-30 minutes.
Players can attempt to make 10 laws during their five-year term. Making a single law involves completing two or three mini-tasks. Each mini-task is timed, and lasts about a minute.
Players can also complete and unlock creative customisation tasks throughout MyUK.
These activities aren't timed, and so teachers may want to keep an eye on how long students are spending on these as a way of efficiently managing classroom time.
Can students save their progress?
Yes. Students' progress through MyUK is automatically saved, either via Facebook - if they choose to connect this way - or on their local computer.
Depending on your access to PCs, MyUK could be used over more than one lesson.
Facebook is banned in my school - can it be disabled?
Yes. A 'Facebook-free' version is available. You can access it here:
The social networking features are not intrinsic to the activity or the core learning objectives. MyUK can be used by teachers in a classroom context without access to these plug-ins.
How is MyUK relevant to the curriculum?
We think MyUK fits most naturally with the political literacy strands of the national curricula.
England
For Key Stage 3 and 4 students, political literacy is often taught as part of Citizenship and PSHE lessons.
Scotland
Learning about lawmaking and the UK Parliament is relevant to both the Social Studies curriculum and Moden Studies.
Wales
Elements of lawmaking and democracy are included in the Personal and Social Education framework of the Welsh curriculum.
Northern Ireland
Democracy and politics fit into the Citizenship and Learning for Life and Work units in the Northern Ireland curriculum.
Any tips or resources for teachers using MyUK?
We plan to build up our support resources over the course of 2011-12.
See the next tab for more about forthcoming resources, including Key Stage 3 worksheets and resources for older students.
Not answered your question? Email us
Get in touch. We're collecting FAQs.
Email us with your question at education@parliament.uk.
We'll get back to you and post the answer here for other teachers.
Preview MyUK today!
You can preview and play MyUK at createmyuk.org