Tag Archives: History

Museum Trip

June 7, 2024 Mrs Henderson Leave a comment

Primary 4/5 visited The Shetland Museum on Wednesday 5th June to learn more about Shetland in World War Two.

Lots of changes were taking place in Shetland during that time and it was interesting to learn about how people lived and adapted to these changes.

We looked at World War Two exhibits, learning about the Home Guard, The Shetland Bus operation, stories about men who were fighting in other countries and how soldiers created their own entertainment here in Shetland to boost morale.

We learned that materials were rationed and it was common for children to make their own toys out of things they could find around the house. We made our own peg dolls! What a creative bunch in P4/5!

Research Projects

June 27, 2023 Mrs Henderson Leave a comment

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This afternoon we got the chance to share our learning with each other and the P6/7 class. For the past few weeks, P4/5/6 have been busy researching and learning new things about Shetland in the past.

Each pupil got the chance to choose an area of local history that interested them and they could decide how they wanted to present their information. Everyone was encouraged to think creatively about the different ways information can be shared.

In our classroom, we displayed posters, leaflets, models, and stop motion animations.

Pupils chose to find out about The Braer disaster, Jarshoff, Shipwrecks, Historical landmarks in Shetland, World War 2 in Shetland, The Quendale Mill, Sumburgh Lighthouse, The Shetland Bus, Sumburgh Airport, Mousa Broch and Whaling.

We also got the chance to see what P6/7 had chosen to research. It was a lovely afternoon of sharing and learning new things. How lovely it was to hear so many wonderful compliments being given by everyone!

Magical History Tour

June 1, 2023 Mrs Henderson Leave a comment

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What a week it has been in P4/5/6!

On Monday, P4/5/6 and P6/7 spent the whole day in Virkie, learning about what went on there throughout history.

First we took a little walk to see the remains of the Braer oil tanker, which ran aground 30 years ago. Some pupils have chosen this topic to research further and we look forward to seeing what they have to share with us later in the term.

We could see one of the funnels stuck between some rocks.

I wonder if it will still be there in 30 years time?

Next it was time to visit Old Scatness and the iron age village. Archaeologists from The Amenity Trust took us around the site and gave us a little insight into what life was like and how archaeologists can learn more about how people lived in the past.

We made a timeline jigsaw together. We could see just how long ago Old Scatness was built!

We dissected some “poo” to see if we could find out what had been eaten. (Thankfully, it wasn’t real!)

Was it easy to make flour using this method?

We enjoyed sitting in the reconstructed round house. I wonder what it would have been like to live there?

After some lunch in Betty Mouat’s Bod, we set off to Mrs Leslie’s farmland to find out about what was going on there during World War 2. We were amazed to find out that around 5000 men were stationed there at that time! There are still some remains of buildings and roads that were built for them. We had fun trying to guess what some of the different structures were used for.

The remains of an old house that had to be knocked down to create a clear view of the runway during the war.

On Wednesday we walked to the Crofthouse Museum to find out about life in Shetland over 100 years ago. It has been so well looked after, one of the pupils asked if it was a reconstructed house. We are grateful that it continues to be cared for and enjoyed by so many visitors.

We learned about the crofting way of life and all of the different things people used. Everyone listened really well to the information and there were some super questions being asked too.

We passed around some items inside the crofthouse. These are some “rivlins” that were made from seal skin.

We did a scavenger hunt around the garden area and tried to answer questions on what we had just learned.

Thank you again to all of our parent helpers who accompanied us on our trips this term. Your support is greatly appreciated and has given the children the opportunity to safely explore all of the wonderful things on offer in their local community.

Swan and Museum Trip 15th May 2023

May 15, 2023 Mrs Henderson 2 Comments

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What a day! The pupils in P4/5 had an exciting day in Lerwick today, learning about life in Shetland in the past.

On our way to set sail with The Swan, some pupils were unsure and feeling a bit nervous. It wasn’t long before these feelings disappeared as we got busy on deck with the skipper and his 2 crew mates. We got some hands on learning to see what it takes to sail a traditional vessel, the history of the Swan – and our maritime heritage.

It was good fun, working as a team to raise the sail and have a go at steering the boat! Some future skippers at Dunrossness perhaps…? One of the highlights was definitely exploring the bunks downstairs. Most folk thought it would be quite a comfortable sleep in there, apart from when you would have to put in the extra plank of wood across the bunk opening, to keep you from falling out on a rough night out at sea! On Wednesday, P6 will have a whole day on board The Swan, learning “the ropes” and working as a team. We know they’ll have great fun!

We learned about the history of The Swan.

We found a secret compartment in the table.

We took a moment to stand and look out at the exact spot where The Swan was built.

As well as our sailing experience, we spent time at the Shetland Museum, hopping through the ages and discovering the different people who have settled in Shetland over thousands of years.

We learned about crofting and fishing life in Shetland and the different jobs men and women were responsible for. After our tour, we got a chance to do some “carding” with sheep’s fleece, to make it soft enough to then spin into yarn. We can certainly see how hard life must’ve been in the past!

Monday 30th January

January 30, 2023 Mrs Henderson 1 Comment

Our class had fun exploring the human body with the visitors from The Glasgow Science Centre today. In the morning we were given the chance to play with different interactive exhibits relating to different parts of the body.

The girls were looking to see if they could spot when this patient needed an x-ray.

These boys learned about the different organs in our bodies and where they are.

Putting the brain back together wasn’t very easy!

Can you see which parts of their bodies were the hottest?

All the images are in the correct order! Well done!

This memory game was very competitive! We had to remember the correct sequence of flashing lights and try to repeat it.

Later on we took part in a Disgusting Digestion interactive show.

It was great fun and we learned about the journey of food throughout our bodies.

We learned how long our intestines are…up to 7 or 8 metres long!

What is going on here? Can you have a guess based on their facial expressions?

Somehow, we also managed to squeeze in a session with a local musician today! We were treated to some dialect singing and fiddle playing by Claire White. She planned a busy session looking at some interesting local stories and how she managed to turn these into songs for people to remember.

Then we split into groups to write our own stories and eventually turn these into songs. Some groups chose their own local stories to develop. These included the St Ninian’s Isle treasure, The Queen opening our school in 1969 and the Braer Disaster. It was a lot to do in the short space of time, so we didn’t quite manage to finish this today. Next term we are looking at local history, so we will save what we have achieved for now and build on these again at a later date. I look forward to seeing what we can produce!

Well done Draatsis!

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Platinum Jubilee

June 4, 2022 Mrs Smith Leave a comment

This week P4/5/6 have been finding out about the history of our school and they have been looking at all the amazing artefacts that have been kept following the Queen’s visit to our school in 1969, when she opened it. Some pupils were surprised to hear that there were once 5 small village schools in the South Mainland and that these schools were all closed to make the school that we have today….although it’s grown over the years too!

We invited Mary Andreas in to talk to us and prepared questions to ask her about her memories of the Bigton school and how she felt about moving to a much bigger school, out with her community. She also recalled how the children and teachers prepared for the Queen’s visit and talked to us about her feelings on the day. We looked at photographs and enjoyed spotting some relations.

Our discussions this week ahead of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, have definitely sparked an interest in the pupils to go home and ask their older family members about their experiences of school. Well done everyone!

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The outside brick work of the original school was kept when the new office area extension was built. The commemorative plaque that the Queen unveiled is still displayed and we still have the curtain she used to unveil it!

Here you can see the bunting that was used to decorate the school. There is a photo of the Queen with the plaque and two signed photos of the Queen and Prince Philip that were gifted to the school. We have also enjoyed looking at the photo of all the pupils who started at the new school!

This piece of writing explains some of the history of our school and how it quickly grew in the coming years. It also gives a little more information about the Queen’s visit.

Any former pupil will remember the excitement of the annual magazine coming home! This one is from 1971 and we found pieces of writing by lots of our relations. Leah’s Grandad and Uncles had lots of entries!

When the school was up and running, there was another official ceremony in November and this programme details what the new school looked like at the time.

The school was opened officially on Wednesday 12th November, 1969. The hall was full of pupils, parents, photographers and members of the Zetland Education Committee.

These photos are an amazing reminder of the past.

A big thank you to Mary for giving us her time and sharing her memories. Thanks also to Carolyn Smith for sharing her recollections of the day too.

Blackout!

April 28, 2021 Mrs Henderson Leave a comment

Today Mrs Douglas did a science experiment with the class to find out which material would work best to black out our windows during an air raid in World War 2.

We had 4 materials to choose from. We made a hypothesis, writing down which materials would be most effective or which materials would be least effective.

Then we attached the materials to the windows and went outside to test them. From inside the classroom , Mrs Henderson shone a torch behind each material and we had to see if any light could be seen on the other side of the window.

Then we had to attach our different materials to the windows.

We didn’t think this would block out the light.

We were surprised that the white paper blocked out the torch light.

The red cellophane was the least effective and we were surprised to find that the light was blocked by the white paper!

P5/6 CLASS ASSEMBLY ON WW1

February 8, 2019 User deactivated 5 Comments

Today was the big day for all of us in P5/6, time to share our learning with friends, family and the whole school. There were a few nerves building as the day progressed and much relief when it was all finished – also some pleasure in being able to reduce some parents and staff members to a tear at the end!

Isabel, Jay and Alex sharing details of how WW1 started.

Emma, Carla and Tory sharing details of women in WW1

Robbie, Ronan and Robert shared information about life in the trenches.

Kelsi, Mia and Evie talked about some key Shetlanders from WW1

Amy, Koll and Frankie spoke about the battle of the Somme, where Shetland suffered the biggest loss.

Hayden, Isaiah and Lucien shared some details of the weapons used in WW1.

Becca, Hannah and Daniel shared their thoughts on the end of the war and our learning.

Ellie, Evie, Hannah, Isabel and Robbie all shared information about their own connections to WW1. This was a lovely addition to the assembly and all of the pupils had found this information in their own time!

Quiz time (Abi, Ellie and Kayla): time to check if the audience had been paying enough attention to the assembly… Well done audience!

Getting ready to sing “Keep the Home Fires Burning” – we are blessed with such beautiful singers in P5/6

Soloists: Emma, Evie, Hannah, Tory, Kelsi, Abi, Becca and Carla.

Quartets: Robbie, Lucien, Hayden and Koll and Ellie, Kayla, Jay and Frankie.

I can honestly say that I could not have been more proud of all of the P5/6 pupils. They have put so much thought and effort into this. They have been very instrumental in deciding how we should do it, what should be included, all slides and scripts were prepared by themselves too.

We have thoroughly enjoyed the topic of WW1, both the pupils and myself, and I believe that was clear in the presentation of their assembly this afternoon.

Well done P5/6, you should all be super proud of yourselves – have a well deserved break over the weekend!

P4/5/6 (2024-2025)