Services to Schools
Part of the reason why I design and make things is because people spent time teaching me and encouraging me when I was younger. I love history, culture and finding out about other people because I grew up with people who are proud of who they are and where they have come from.
I am now able to offer my services to help you and those around you benefit from what I have learned.
Please explore the range of things I have done in the past, then get in touch to discuss how I can be of service to you.
I visit Schools as an artist and use my experience as a craftsman and historical knowledge to bring history to life for the class. My specialty is the early medieval "viking" period. At this time Scotland was home to a variety of cultures including Gaelic Scots, Cruithne (also called Picts), and Scandinavian settlers or viking raiders! I visit the school as a character from the time, complete with clothing and equipment, and give the pupils a chance to experience an encounter with the past. I hold public liability insurance through the Scottish Artisit Union, and mt most recent Enhanced Disclosure certifiate was issued 27/04/2007
I have visited schools from Hamwick in the south of England to Mossbank in the Shetland Isles as Cathbad the Craftsman or Somerled the trader. Some of the pupils I have visited even wrote to me ...
I can tailor my visit to emphasise the elements of the experience you want your pupils to learn from. The curriculum for excellence enourages pupils to be able to use eveidence to recreate the story of an individual or a place of local historical interest. this is what I have done and so I can provide an example which will fuel their imagination.
If you want to focus on everyday life for the majority of the people of scotland at the time, I can visit as Cathbad the craftsman and bring examples of the sorts of things I make and trade as a sail around the western Isles. Cathbad is rich enough to own his own farm and successful enough to be able to leave his sons to run it for a while. His father was a Norse viking who married a scottish lass and settled on the Isle of Arran. Mainly working in leather and Iron he has a love for understanding nature and working out how to make useful objects from things which live and grow, or can be dug out of the ground.
If you prefer to explore the lifestyle of the more wealthy warrior class, you will meet Somerled the trader. He sails the seas courting favour and winning honour with the leaders of countries along the whale road. He buys and sells goods from as far away as miklagard (the city of the greeks on the black sea). He is, of course, well armed and able to defend himself and his property. In his travels he has heard many stories and uses the Islands of the west coast of Sotland as a winter base from which to earn his place in the sagas during his summer wanderings.
On arrival I set up a display, with authentically recreated props to set the scene. Using this as a base I can then involve the pupils in a range of interactive talks and activities. Each talk has it's own selection of props and objects which the bairns can handle, and there is time for them to think and ask their own questions. What follows is a sample selection of activities and talks you can choose from when you book a visit.
Set up before Pupils arrive
Welcome and Introductions
Cathbad or Somerled
Hearth and Home
(an imaginary account of the viking day, explaining the household objects on display)
Choose one of these interactive talks |
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Rig the Walker A story walk through Viking society, showing the three classes of Thrall (slave) Carl (free man) and Jarl (ruler) and the king! Four pupils put on costumes at the front to illustrate each character in the story. |
Timeline Walk through timeline. A story of Scotland starting with the Picts and then placing the invasions and settlement of Romans, Scots, Vikings and Normans. Pupils volunteer to stand at the front (and dress up) to mark dates on the timeline. The whole class counts through the years. |
Morning break
Choose one of these interactive talks |
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Cathbad's Crafts This talk explores the materials available to Vikings, and how they were used to make everything they needed. Includes an opportunity to handle raw materials and finished objects as well as a explanation of how to make shoes. |
Somerled the Trader A look at the world the Vikings knew. The things they bought and sold, and the different ways they used to pay for them. Includes an opportunity to examine trade goods, and a demonstration of how bartering silver jewellery led to the making of Coins. |
Time to choose a game to play |
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Morris Games Simple games played throughout the middle ages. The easiest is 3 men’s Morris (like naughts and crosses). This activity involves discussing what Vikings would use to make a board, and then making a board and pieces out of what the children have available (paper and pens – bricks, clay or glass pebbles for pieces). Most p4 pupils will learn 5 men's morris quite easily. 9 men's morris is also easy to learn but has scope for advanced strategies. |
Hnafletafl (naf-il-tafl) This game is similar to chess. The game is like a Viking battle where one side tries to get their king to freedom. I can provide paper boards and pieces for one class of pupils. The board is a little more complicated than the morris games, as is the strategy, but most p4 pupils will cope! It is about as hard to learn how to play as draughts is. |
Lunch
Arts and crafts activity time, pick one. |
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Braided cord Make a bracelet using wool and a technique called trollen. (I can supply tools and materials, if arranged in advance) |
Writing in Runes What did Viking writing look like? Can you send secret messages to each other? Or make a memorial so that everyone remembers someone you loved? |
Why not finish the day with a story? |
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Saints and Trolls Two short stories, one from Norway about Trolls and one from Scotland about a miracle |
Thor goes to Jottenheim A story about the Norse gods and their war with the giants in Jottenheim |
A full days visit costs £140 (plus travel expenses if your school is more than 60 miles from Castle Douglas). This fee is based on an average sized scottish school, with teachers and usual classroom assistants being involved
. I have also worked with large year groups, and whole schools, to help arrange day programmes and history festivals. As this involves more preparation it costs a bit more! but please get in touch to discuss your needs.
If you would like a larger team to visit why not contact Glasgow Vikings, they visit schools as a team usually sending out three re-enactors. This means that they can provide a wider range of characters for the pupils to meet and interact with. Please contact them directly to organise a visit!
If you have a cluster of schools, or are based outside of the central belt which makes a day visit difficult, why not get together and arrange for a group of vikings to visit your area for a week or so? Together with The Viking Timeslip Experience I have been engaged to visit schools on the Isle of Man and Shetland. With a little co-operation it becomes financially viable for us to visit and bring the experience of viking life to those who don't usually access services available in the central belt! Council grants are often available to help cover the overheads!