Developing and testing our learning resources!

We’re going back to school! Alice Millard describes the steps being taken to trial and test our vibrant schools learning pack…

We are in the process of developing our Know Your Place learning pack and have been putting together a range of exciting, initiative activities that support local heritage learning, with advice from partners Pete Insole from ‘Local Learning’ and Michael Gorely from ‘Heritage Schools’.

Our aim is to create a learning pack designed to support Know Your Place as an effective research tool for local history lessons and projects in schools up and down the West of England.

Pack Contents

Within the pack are a series of lessons with different ideas on how Know Your Place can be used to support learning. Activities within this are cross curricular, aimed at Key Stages 2 and 3 with further suggestions for key stage 4. We are also using material from our KYPexplore site which gives a great insight into the history of the places where we live, work and visit every day.

Know Your Place being used for learning in the classroom at Lacock C of E Primary School.

Testing in the Classroom

In the mean time we have also been building up contacts with 15 different schools and educational groups across the region. Plans are in place with primary and secondary schools, girl guiding groups, scout groups and leaders from Young Archaeologist Clubs across the West of England to help support, develop and test our pilot materials.

This week we will be sending out a range of activities and lessons to partner schools and organisations for testing and feedback.

There are a range of topics, subjects and lesson plans that they will use Know Your Place for, including local history and mapping skills, research and lessons in geography, design and technology, history, English and art.

We will also be gathering practical examples of how Know Your Place is used in lessons, to provide helpful Case Studies for the learning pack.

Pupils learning about their local area and using Know Your Place in the classroom

Evaluation is key!

The next part of testing is getting results! We will be asking for feedback on the activities and comments on what worked well, and how effective and helpful the activities were in supporting lessons and their next actions.

As a result this will help us shape and devise the final version of the learning pack which will be available to download from our website for free at the end of May.

Would you like to be involved?

To find out more, or get involved in testing resources at your school or education facility, please contact Alice Millard.