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Year 4

Guru Nanak's teachings on equality and acceptance

I can understand Guru Nanak's teachings on treating everyone equally and with respect.

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New
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Year 4

Guru Nanak's teachings on equality and acceptance

I can understand Guru Nanak's teachings on treating everyone equally and with respect.

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Share activities with pupils
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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Guru Nanak taught that everyone, no matter their background, should be treated equally.
  2. The story of the Milk and the Jasmine Flower reminds Sikhs of the importance of welcoming and accepting others.
  3. He taught that good actions change the world.
  4. He emphasised the importance of love, peace and respect, encouraging people to live in harmony with others.

Keywords

  • Teachings - lessons or things that help you learn

  • Equality - having equal opportunities and rights

  • Respect - showing care and understanding for others

  • Acceptance - welcoming and being okay with others as they are

Common misconception

Pupils might think the story is only about the physical objects (milk and flowers).

A clear explanation of the symbols is important, as the symbols represent the attitudes, behaviours and spiritual lessons of the story (such as purity, kindness or spiritual values).

Provide pupils with opportunities to discuss the characters' perspectives through role play. Invite a religious leader to talk about the learnt values of kindness, purity, respect and acceptance, and share how children can practise them in their lives.
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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on
Open Government Licence version 3.0
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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5 Questions

Q1.
Guru Nanak is considered the...
Correct answer: first Sikh guru.
last Sikh guru.
least important Sikh guru.
Q2.
As a child, Guru Nanak loved asking big questions about ...
health, wealth and happiness
Correct answer: life, God and nature.
maths, space and technology
Q3.
'Guru' means ...
'thoughtful teacher'.
'caring teacher'.
Correct answer: 'spiritual teacher'.
Q4.
Guru Nanak is considered a __________ by Sikhs.
God
Correct answer: spiritual guide
instruction-giver
Q5.
For how long did Guru Nanak disappear before he began teaching people about God?
Correct answer: 3 days
5 days
7 days

Exit quiz

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5 Questions

Q1.
What are teachings?
Something that gives you lots of homework
Opinions shared for debate
Correct answer: Advice that help someone understand how to live a better life
Q2.
What does the word 'Sikh' mean?
'teacher'
Correct answer: 'learner'
'leader'
Q3.
Guru Nanak’s teachings are very important for Sikhs as they teach Sikhs how to live ...
sensibly.
excitedly.
Correct answer: peacefully.
Q4.
Match the keywords to their definitions.
Correct Answer:equality,having equal opportunities and rights
tick

having equal opportunities and rights

Correct Answer:respect,showing care and understanding for others
tick

showing care and understanding for others

Correct Answer:acceptance ,welcoming and being okay with others as they are
tick

welcoming and being okay with others as they are

Q5.
The story of the Milk and the Jasmine Flower teaches Sikhs that there is always room in the world for more ...
Correct answer: goodness and kindness.
wealth and power.
anger and hate.

Additional material

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