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First curriculum-matching teacher's kit launched at Furness Abbey
The first Bishop’s Crozier to be unearthed in Britain in over 50 years and a gemstone ring are just two of the important historic finds discovered at the majestic Furness Abbey, Cumbria, in the last year alone, and led to the creation of a new online and downloadable teaching toolkit.
A brand new resource for the new season opening 1st April 2014, English Heritage Teacher’s Kits are currently available at key sites across the north of England. This is the first kit of its kind, which has been specifically created to enhance historic sites’ relevance to teachers and enable them to match the demands of the changing National Curriculum with the styles of learning for this age group. This will be a vital resource to bring the historical significance of Furness Abbey to life and to engage schools and students with their local history and the grandest monastic ruin in the North West.
Working in partnership with the Lakeland Museums’ Education Network and Minerva Heritage, English Heritage has produced the new resource to explicitly link to the new curriculum. The pack addresses the artefact finds and the reasons behind the conservation work at the abbey, founded by Stephen, later King of England and housing monks for over 400 years when it was one of the richest Cistercian monasteries in the country.
Key Highlights of the Pack Include;
- 8 pages of images for visual learners, relating to specific uses of key areas of the site.
- 10 pages of suggested activities and a glossary, enabling pupils and teachers to bring the site to life in new ways.
- Curriculum enhancing themes set out to capture the imagination of all ages, including Death and Dying, Murder and Worship at the abbey.
- A focus on broader disciplines of the National Curriculum, including activities for maths, geography and science and technology.
Comments Zoe Spring, Education Visits Officer
“We’re really excited about this resource, it is a new way for us to communicate with teachers and schools across the area. When pupils visit, there is a real ‘wow’ factor in their response to the extensive 12th and 13th century ruins and we have focused on bringing the stories and visual elements to the fore.”
“This was a magnificent and affluent monastery and we feel the new kit makes it easy for teachers and pupils to exchange with us in new and interesting ways.”
Over 800 school children aged 5-14 visited Furness Abbey last year and the vision is to increase this in the coming year, particularly with the return of the Crozier and ring, which will be on permanent display at the site later this year, for the first time since their discovery.
Furness Abbey is currently open weekends 10am-4pm. From 1st April it will open daily.
Entry £4 / £3.60 / £2.40. EH Members free.
English Heritage provides free education visits to over 400 sites and expert-led Discovery Visits at selected properties. There are also a wide range of teaching resources and free planning visits available.. www.english-heritage.org.uk/publications/furness-abbey-teachers-kit/furness-abbey-tk.pdf