Teaching History Newsletter

[John Simkin]

September Teaching History Email Newsletter.

Here is this months email newsletter from our Professional Development Officer, Mr Alf Wilkinson:

The Midlands History Forum: the AUTUMN CONFERENCE is on Saturday 15th October at the Attwood Building, Perry Barr Campus, University of Central England. Fee: £8 (£10 on the day: students £4 (£5 on the day) http://mhfonline.info Our appreciation of the past shapes the way in which we understand the present. Technology has a major impact on our picture of the past and the way in which we share our ideas about it. With these thoughts in mind we are delighted to welcome Tim Lomas and Ingrid Falk as our keynote speakers. Tim Lomas will be exploring misconceptions and perceptions in History and Ingrid Falk will help us to explore the opportunities, which teachers' TV provides for primary and secondary school history. We also have five workshops dealing with issues ranging from citizenship, to enlightened approaches to assessment.

The HA is committed to providing top quality CPD for history teachers.

Following the great success of this year's CPD weekends, we are organising a series of new ones for 2006:

Tony McConnell and Anna Hamilton - 'Strategies for teaching Gifted and Talented in History,' - February 25th - 26th at the Marriott Hotel Northampton. Cost £230 per head.

Ben Walsh -a repeat of this year's weekend. 'Exciting history using ICT' -March 25th -26th - at the Lincoln School of Science and Technology and Courtyard Marriott Hotel Lincoln. Cost £230 per head.

Andrew Wrenn and Geraint Brown - 'Assessment For Learning in History' - April 22nd-23rd at Hemingford Grey House, near Huntingdon. Cost £260 per head.

Michael Riley/Jamie Byrom - 'Teaching History You Believe In' - May 13th-14th, at the Bristol Marriott City Centre Hotel. This will include some fieldwork in Bristol. Cost £260 per head.

Nicholas Kinloch - 'Teaching about the Holocaust' -in conjunction with Imperial War Museum North, June 10th -11th 2006 in Manchester - at the IWM North and the Golden Tulip Hotel. Cost £230 per head.

All weekends start at 10.00 Saturday, and finish after lunch on Sunday. This gives plenty of time to explore the topic fully, as well as time to socialize and exchange ideas. So, if you want some top quality CPD, led by experts in their field, and full of practical ideas to implement in your lessons, then contact the HA for further details. For more information and a booking form, contact alf.wilkinson@history.org.uk

'Introduction to teaching WW1 and WW2 in a multi-cultural context' A one-day course on Saturday 8th October, as part of Black History Month, - led by Rupert Gaze, from the Imperial War Museum North. There will also be an opportunity to explore the IWM North. This is limited to just 20 places, so book early. The day runs from 10.30 - 3.30. Cost £25. More details from alf.wilkinson@history.org.uk

Saturday 12th November. 'Yr 7 Medieval History day at the Tower of London'

in conjunction with the Tower of London. The day is limited to 50 places.

10.00 - 3.30. Cost £25.

Embedding ICT in the History Curriculum is a free Guardian Newsroom and learn.co.uk teachers' conference on Friday 18 November 2005 at The Newsroom, 60 Farringdon Road, London EC1. This one-day conference for secondary history teachers will explore ways to embed ICT across the History curriculum. Hear a range of speakers, share good practice and participate in workshops. Speakers include Ben Walsh, Tom O'Leary, from the National Archive and Alan Rusbridger editor of the Guardian. We expect demand for this conference to be high. For further information, email newsroom@guardian.co.uk or [t] 020 7886 9898.

BBC Schools TV History Programmes, Autumn Term 2005. There are several new history programmes for next term. Hiroshima, film from the NHK Peace Archives is broadcast in October, aimed at KSt3, as is Class Clips: History, aimed at 11-16 year olds, using clips from the BBC video archive, and The First Black Britons, which looks at the story of the West India Regiment using location film, archive film and dramatic reconstructions. For more details see www.bbc.co.uk/schools/guide.

A Suitcase of History artefact gallery: World War II is a new CD-ROM for Key Stages 1, 2 and 3. Following the successful format of the previous CD, the Fifties, this consists of over 350 high quality images of original WW2 artefacts, arranged around themes - Victory, the Blitz, Headlines, Toys, at Home, Rationing and Food and Evacuation. There are thumbnails of all the images, as well as supporting texts and a few activities. The CD is produced to a very high standard, easy to navigate and, most of all, extremely flexible to use as the teacher wishes. It can't quite replace handling the actual artefacts, but it comes close. If you are looking for top quality photographs of a huge variety of artefacts related to WW2, to support your teaching then this could be the thing for you. Worth a very close look!

www.asuitcaseofhistory.co.uk

Learn in Berlin is a new company which specialises in taking GCSE and A Level groups on tours of Berlin. They are offering a free trip to Berlin, to see what the city and the company has to offer, for three HA members in February half term 2006. Al lthey ask is that you fill in an honest evaluation of the trip! Remember, February is very cold in Berlin [-10!] and there will be plenty of walking. If you are interested, or want further details, please do get in touch with me asap so we can sort out the details: alf.wilkinson@history.org.uk

Teachers' TV Associates. Would you like to be a champion for Teachers' TV in your school? Then apply to become a Teachers' TV Associate - a great way to find out more about the channel and help your colleagues tune in to see the wide range of programmes on offer. As a Teachers' TV Associate you will have access to a wealth of extra information, previews and other benefits.

Sign up online at www.teachers.tv or, for further information about the scheme, send an email to info@teachers.tv with the word 'Associates' in the subject line.

Ireland in Schools is a voluntary project aimed to enhance teaching about and understanding of Ireland. The main website is www.irelandinschools.org.uk/. There is also a link containing updates:

http://journals.aol.co.uk/kha200/IrelandinSchools

The General Teaching Council has set up a series of teacher networks designed to support good practice in schools. The networks are: Achieve for education professionals who promote race equality in schools, Connect for those who lead on CPD in schools, and Engage for teachers starting their careers. The GTC would like to invite you to join these networks. To sign-up or for more information visit: www.gtce.org.uk/networks/signup.

Wally Oppenheim gives talks on the Holocaust to schools in the Essex region.

An experienced teacher himself and a Fellow of Holocaust Education with the Imperial War Museum, he gives talks based on the experiences of his parents (who were Holocaust survivors) and grandparents (who were Holocaust victims). Talks can be tailored for different groups from Year 9 to Year 13.

He can be contacted at walteroppenheim@aol.com

The Humanities Association is holding its 20th annual conference in Portsmouth, in October. Excellence, Enjoyment and Creativity in the Humanities is the theme. The Primary Day is on 14th October, and the Secondary Day is on the 15th October. There will be key note speakers and workshops on both days. For more information go to www.hums.org.uk or email peter@j-walsh.freeserve.co.uk

Heritage Open Days. Every September, places not usually open to the public open their doors in a series of Heritage Open Days. On the website you can find the Teacher's Pack, full of helpful tips to make the most of field visits and using the outdoors as a classroom. There are also outline schemes of work, ideas to use in the classroom and on-site, and a range of case studies to help you devise your own visits. www.heritageopendays.org/days

Exploring Churches is a new resource for teachers of all ages and abilities to help you make the most out of a visit to a church and/or churchyard. It has lots of ideas for fieldwork activities, including worksheets and drawings. Have a look at the website for more information and to order this new resource book. www.visitchurches.org.uk

Inside the Spitfire is a new exhibition at the Science Museum London.

Running until February 2006, it is a chance to follow the reconstruction of a spitfire in the museum. There is also an opportunity to hear the stories of those who built and flew the plane. www.sciencemuseum.org.uk

Made in China is an exhibition of historic artefacts from China, especially relating to religion and wealth. Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, until 31st October. www.bmag.org.uk [t] 0121 303 2834

Nicholas and Alexandra is a collection of personal effects illustrating the lives of the last Tsar of Russia and his wife, and other Romanov rulers.

Admission £5. Royal Museum, Edinburgh, until 30th October. www.nms.ac.uk [t]

0131 247 4219

A shared tradition: The Commonwealth Navies 1939-1945 is now on onboard HMS Belfast, moored in the Thames near Tower Bridge. It looks at the part civilians played in supporting the naval effort in WW2. Cost £8, children free. Until March 2006. http://hmsbelfast.iwm.org.uk [t] 0207 940 6300

Living with Romans runs at the Museum of Liverpool Life until December 31st.

It uses recent archaeological evidence to interpret life in the North West of England during the Roman occupation. www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk [t] 0151

478 4080

We'll Meet Again: Memories of the Home Front in Oxford runs until November 27th at the Museum of Oxford. Shows how the ordinary inhabitants of Oxford coped with the many restrictions and rationing during WW2. Cost £2.

www.oxford.gov.uk/museum [t] 01865 252761

A Scottish Family History Service is due to open in early 2006. It is to have exhibitions, search rooms. Also of interest is the Scotland's People website that has been updated and now contains wills and testaments dating back to 1513. Information from www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk

We Also Served is a pack produced by Birmingham Advisory and Support Service aimed at KSt2 and KSt3. It explores the experiences of sixteen Commonwealth war veterans in WW1 and WW2. These accounts are supported by contextual information, photographs, maps and diagrams that help bring the experience of Commonwealth soldiers to life. There is also a pack of 12 A2 posters to support the product. For more information or to order contact BASS Publications [t] 0121 303 8081.

Black History Month is a website that details events linked to Black History Month, and lots more. There are reviews, links, a bookshop as well as features and details relating to Black History, including a piece about the 24,000 black Germans who were living in the country when Hitler came to power. The core of the site is a listing of events relating to October 2005.

www.black-history-month.co.uk/events.html

Irish Protestant Identities is a multi-disciplinary international conference examining aspects of past and present Protestant identities in Ireland, north and south, and in the Irish diaspora. Aspects of historical, contemporary and possible future developments within the Protestant population of Ireland and amongst Irish migrant populations may be covered.

The religious, class, gender and political cleavages within Irish Protestantism may also be analysed. It takes place at the Research and Graduate College, University of Salford 16th-18th September. More details and booking forms from:www.esri.salford.ac.uk

A date for your diary: Embedding ICT in teaching and learning History. BETT Show, 2006. The Historical Association seminar. On Saturday Jan 14th, at 1pm, Ben Walsh, one of the country's leading experts in the use of ICT in the history classroom, will explore practical ways teachers can really use ICT effectively to deliver history skills to pupils of all ages, but especially Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4.

One of the Becta Interventions over the last year was awarded to Chris Wilde, History and IT teacher at Churchill Community College, North Tyneside and Peter Hepplewhite, Outreach Manager at Tyne and Wear Archives Service based in Newcastle. They have put together a website - walks on the wilde side - exploring Victorian times using, amongst others, local archives. You can see the result at: www.walksonthewildeside.co.uk

The National Archives has lots of interest on offer, including, in the 'Art of War' exhibition, WW2 documentary films, including the famous 'Britain Can Take It' film from the Blitz. You can view the original footage, and other films, on the National Archives website at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/theartofwar/films/

The HA and the IHR are co-promoting a second one-day conference in the Wolfson Room at the IHR later this month: History in Schools and Higher

Education: Issues of Common Concern is on 29th September, starting at 10.00am. Following an Introduction by David Bates, the day is split into three Panel Sessions focusing on 'Transition and Progression' 'The Current Framework and the Potential for Change' and 'Perceptions from the Classroom and the Lecture Theatre.' There will also be sessions led by teachers and students. Further details and registration forms are available from Richard.Butler@sas.ac.uk

Villiers Park Educational Trust is a registered charity with over forty years' experience in providing high-quality courses for 14-19 students and their teachers. Much of their work relates to supporting universities in their outreach activities, in particular in running Masterclasses for the gifted and talented cohorts. Key to this is the work with lecturers to ensure that courses are stimulating, interesting and appropriate to the needs of the participants. Villiers Park is one of a small group of Core Partners of the National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth, the body responsible for developing provision for able students.

Villiers Park has been working with the University of East London (UEL) for two years. The two organisations have developed an exciting range of History events for the 2005-2006 academic year. These courses focus on providing participants with an insight into the use of documents to further their understanding of major historical events. They are coordinated by Dr Peter Claus, a UEL lecturer who has worked with Villiers Park for several years. He has a strong awareness of school needs and a wide ranging interest in the history of London.