This is an interesting narrative and challenging in relation to world citizenship. There are several things to bear in mind:

• The story is probably most suitable for older pupils, who will find more to identify with. The teacher would have to find links to pupils' experience. Possible connections could include e.g. asylum seekers fleeing their own country and having to settle in a new place with different customs etc.. There may be pupils in the class who have had to start out on a new life, having come from abroad and their experiences can be used to introduce the material.
  
  
• Some customs will need explaining (for example, in relation to Ruth's attempts to marry Boaz), which would appear to be more suited to older Key Stage 2 pupils. The key to success lies in engaging the pupils in the narrative. The video Testament has an excellent programme on the Book of Ruth to capture pupils' imagination and set the scene for lively exploration of some of the suggested topics.
  
  
• Another way of introducing the Book of Ruth might be to precede it by looking at the lives of Christians who chose, or choose, to live in foreign cultures because they felt God had called them to a specific task there. Often those people ended up taking on the nationality of that country and adopting their customs and life-style e.g. Mother Teresa in India, Gladys Aylward in China, Trevor Huddleston in South Africa. But if some of the issues raised by the book are transposed into a Christian setting, it is vital not to 'de-Judaize' the story and its message.