Were the middle ages more a time of hope or despair?
In January 2017, the Year 7 expedition was called “Medieval Meddling”.
The learning targets were :
- I can give a narrative account of key events of medieval times.
- I can describe different forms of crime and punishment from medieval times.
- I can discuss how Chaucer presents the Medieval Period in his writing.
- I can produce a site study of Tickhill Castle.
- I can use ratio and proportion to determine the ingredients needed for, and nutritional content of a medieval banquet meal.
- I can use ratio and proportion to create accurate scale drawings.
- I can describe how the increased surface area of some cells in the gut leads to improved function.
- I can compare the diets of people from different classes in the Feudal System
- I can explain the possible consequences of an unbalanced diet on the body
- I can describe how a Medieval banquet is processed by the body.
- I can compare the fitness of people from different classes in the Feudal System
During the immersion of this learning expedition, students looked at the Tollund Man as an example of how they can make inferences about how someone lived based upon historical evidence. They also visited Barley Hall to see an example of religious medieval dwellings. Students then compared this with Tickhill Castle to get an initial understanding of how that important site in Doncaster was used differently during the medieval period. They also got to do some dissection of organs and analysed slides with tissue samples under the microscope.
In their HUMAN sessions we learned about the feudal system and the differences in the lives of people from different classes and backgrounds. They studied the church and the impact that this had on people’s lives including their relationship with people of power such as the King and the wider impact of the Crusades on Medieval Europe and the Middle-East.
In STEAM students studied how the lifestyles of different people from different walks of life impacted on their bodies, specifically the respiratory and digestive systems. Students also learned about the design and function of organs within these systems, including the effect that the increased surface area of some cells has on their effectiveness.
Students learned about ratio and proportion and used these skills to make scale drawings of the body’s organs which they turned into models using textiles. These were used to make a “pin the organ” game to recreate the systems they had studied.
Students also created lift the flap books which all started with Tickhill Castle and zoomed in on different people and illustrated aspects of their lives. These many stories all helped to provide many parts of a balanced answer to their guiding question.
They worked with the pupils of Tickhill Estfeld Primary School to get critique on their ideas for their organ game and lift the flap books. Students used this critique to help them improve their work, ready for the presentation of learning at Doncaster Children’s Library, where they read their books and played their organ game with young children from across Doncaster.
All resources relating to this expedition can be found below:
Final Product – “Pin the organ” Game
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Final Product – Lift the flap books
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