Victorian London alive KS2 Gallery drama
Contents National Curriculum links and session description 1 Timetable 2 Practical guidelines 3 Character profiles 4 Pre-visit activities and follow-up activities 5-6 Planning your journey 7
Curriculum links KS2 History The aim of this session is for pupils to find out about life in Victorian London. It links to QCA units 11 and 12 on children in Victorian Britain and changes in the local area in Victorian times. The gallery drama promotes empathy and understanding of peoples lives. The gallery visit will develop investigative skills as pupils study objects, film and photographs as sources of evidence. Pupils understanding of chronology will be developed through the layout of the galleries, in which display cases are thematic rather than strictly chronological. Thus pupils will be encouraged to consider what life was like before and after, in addition to the changes that occurred during the Victorian period. Session description Set in the atmospheric streets of the Victorian Walk, pupils will meet one of the 3 characters described in the character profiles. Each character will share personal stories and reflections on London life. Pupils will be encouraged to ask questions and interact with the character, who will describe the busy streets of London, working children, life for rich and poor and the influence of the British Empire. The street seller and photographer (who are both set in the 1880s,) will also mention the Education Act and describe social and technological changes they have witnessed, such as photography, trains and underground travel. The rhubarb and spice seller describes life in 1851 (this character is based on a real man described in Mayhew s book about London poor written in 1851) and will concentrate more on the experience of migrating to London from Morocco. Gallery time You will be allocated an hour of selfdirected time for your pupils to explore the Expanding City, Victorian Walk and People s City galleries, this might be either before or after your session. If you wish to visit other galleries you will need to book these. To ensure that the galleries do not become overcrowded, please keep to the times you have been allocated in each gallery. To help you and your class to get the best possible educational value from your visit, we suggest some pre- and post-visit activities within this pack and offer a selection of activity sheets that can be used in the galleries. The gallery activity sheets are offered in Microsoft Word format so that teachers can adapt them to the needs of their own class if they wish. You will need to photocopy enough for each group prior to your visit, and provide clipboards and pencils. We recommend teachers make a preparation visit to the Museum. 1
Timetable Victorian London alive The session will run once only and at the times stated below so please arrive on time. There will be schools booked for the other sessions and you will not be able to overrun your allocated time. Your group has been allocated ONE of the following session times; please check your confirmation letter: Group 1 10.15am 10.30am 10.45am 10.45am 11.15pm 11.15am 11.45am 11.45am 12.15pm 12.30 1pm Lunch Arrival Visit to Victorian Walk Victorian actor session Visit to Expanding City gallery Visit to People s City gallery Group 2 10.00am Arrival 10.45am 11.15pm Visit to People s City gallery 11.15am 11.30am Visit to Victorian Walk 11.30am 12pm Victorian actor session 12 12.30pm Visit to Expanding City gallery 12.45 1.15pm Lunch Group 3 11.00am Arrival 11.30am 12.00pm Lunch 12.15am 12.30am Visit to Victorian Walk 12.30pm 1pm Victorian actor session 1 1.30pm Visit to Expanding City gallery 1.30-2pm Visit to People s City gallery 2
Group 4 11.00am Arrival 11.30am 12pm Lunch 12.15 12.45pm Visit to People s City gallery 12.45 1.15pm Visit to Expanding City gallery 1.15 1.30pm Visit to Victorian Walk 1.30-2pm Victorian actor session 3
Practical guidelines Arrival, cloakroom and toilets When you arrive at the Museum please check in and show your confirmation form at the information desk at the main entrance. You will be directed to the Clore Learning Centre where you will be able to leave your coats and bags and go to the toilet before entering the galleries. Please do not leave valuables in the cloakroom area. Lunch You will be allocated a 30 minute slot when you arrive at the Museum. There is no eating or drinking in the galleries, so please ensure that all food stuffs are left in the Lunch Space. SEN provision The Museum is fully accessible. Parking is available for SEN groups. Please contact our SEN Officer to discuss any specific needs on 020 7814 5549 or at SEN@museumoflondon.org.uk Shop The shop sells a variety of books and products to support learning, as well as pocket money items. Please request a time slot in the shop by calling 0870 444 3850 and quoting your reference number. If you would prefer the shop offer a time saving goody bag service at great value. For further details contact the shop by email at shop@museumoflondon.org.uk or call 020 7814 5600. Photography Photography is included as part of this session. You are also welcome to take photographs within the Museum galleries without flash or tripod use. These images may only be reproduced for personal or educational purposes, which include reproducing the image as a classroom teaching aid or as part of a school project. Any publication of the image for any other purpose is forbidden, which includes publication on any website. As an alternative pictures of many of our key objects are available to download from the Picture Bank on our website, www.museumoflondon.org.uk/picturebank. Postcards and posters can be purchased from the shop and prints may be purchased from our on demand print website www.museumoflondonprints.com Risk assessments It is the responsibility of the group leader to carry out a risk assessment and teachers are encouraged to make a planning visit and to carry out their own assessment. The Museum makes regular assessments of sessions and public spaces and this document is available on request, but this is only for teachers information and does not constitute an official risk assessment. Organising your group Split your class into small groups for working in the galleries and visiting the shop. Please ensure that you have at least one adult for every six pupils and that the adults accompany them at all times. Please ensure the children know the following information: work quietly other groups and members of the public will be using the Museum please do not lean on the glass cases only use pencils in the galleries. 4
Character profiles You will meet one of the following characters. Please ring the Programme Manager (primary schools) on 020 7814 5773, 1 2 weeks before your visit if you would like to know which one. Rubarb & Spice seller Set in: 1850s Name: Jacob Age: 50 Biography: Born in Moroco, which he describes as Al-Mamlaka al- Maghribiya, which translated means The Western Kingdom (of Africa). He came to London in his mid-teens, because he heard a good living could be made selling spices. He has a good understanding of how spices can be used medicinally. Sadly, when we meet him he is only just scraping a living as established shops are taking over his trade. Fact or fiction? Directly based on Henry Mayhew s interviews with a real man, from London Labour and the London Poor, 1851. The characters costume is based on the illustration from this book. The ancilliary material is based on historical fact supported by curatorial research. Photographer Set in: 1880s Name: Johnstone Brindlecombe Age: 50 Biography: His father, a schoolmaster, wanted him to be be a clerk, but an exhibition of photographs from the American Civil War (1861 65) made him realise the truth that new medium of photography could have. He descibes himself as a social photographer. 5
Photographer (continued) Fact or fiction? This charachter did not exist but is an amlagam of people fighting for social justice at this time. Rather than taking the viewpoint of the people actually experiencing poverty, this piece is seen through the eyes of a social campaingner. With his camera he is trying to create a photograhpic history of the people he sees in the streets in London. Based upon Mayhew, Booth and historical fact supported by curatorial research. Street seller Set in: 1880s Name: Jeremiah Age: 50 Biography: Born in the 1830s, his story is one of the life on the streets of London. He never attended school but worked from an early age and has learnt how to get by. He sets great store in understanding the ways (and language) of the streets, the Street Seller Slang ; the people he meets and knows and lodges with. He discusses the social and technological changes he has seen during his life-time, including that it is now law that children attend school (although he is aware that this law is not always enforced and that many children still need to work). Fact or fiction? Based on Henry Mayhew s interviews from London Labour and the London Poor, 1851, we have pulled the facts from Mayhew forward to the 1880s so the character can discuss changes in London since 1851 up to 1885, such as the Education Act and train travel. The life of a street seller would have been fairly similar in 1880s to those described by street sellers, including the costermongers that Mayhew interviewed in 1851for his book. The character s costume is based on the illustration from this book. The ancilliary material is based on historical fact supported by curatorial research. 6
Pre-visit activities We highly recommend doing one or more of these activities before the session. Historical evidence Discuss how we know about the past. Introduce the idea of historical knowledge being based on evidence. Discuss different sources of evidence for the Victorian period: documents, books, newspapers, art, buildings, music, objects, film etc. What sources of evidence do we have for the Victorians that we don t have for the Romans? Victorian photographs Collect photographs of Victorian families, schools and your local area in Victorian times. Ask pupils if any of them have old family photographs from the 1800s. Use photogrpahs to generate discussion and questions. Record children s statements about the photographs and questions. Encourage children to find answers to some of their questions during their learning in the Museum of London and in school. Discuss childhood in Victorian times and the differences for rich and poor children. British Empire Discuss London and Britian as the centre of an Empire and how it influenced other countries. If your pupils families were not living in Britain at the time discuss how Britain related to the countries they came from. Explore the KS2 Victorian activities on the Moving Here website: www.teachingmigration.com The Victorian Thames Explore the website www.portcities.org.uk/london/timepirates to find out about: Mudlarks: Investigate how children from poor families tried to make money from the River Thames itself. The Dock Strike 1889: Why did London dockers strike, and how were their lives and those of their families affected during the 5-week strike? Sailors from the British Empire. 7
Follow-up activities for the classroom These activities are designed to apply and extend the knowledge gained from your visit to the Museum of London. Creative writing Set some extended writing based on the character they met, or someone that the character described. Use knowledge of the Victorian period from visit to Museum of London when planning their writing. Pupils might write an interview with a working child (as if carried out by Henry Mayhew, or the Victorian photographer). What else might have happened that day? (First journey on an underground train, they visited the Great Exhibition, the Thames was very smelly because of the Great Stink, they started school etc.) Pupils could write a biography for a character including historical events and social and technological changes (the character might go to Crimea as a nurse, become a soldier, go prison because of debts, open a toy shop, become a photographer etc.) Groups of pupils could devise short drama sequences about their characters, contrasting life for rich and poor children in Victorian times and perform for each other, or in assembly. Further investigation of objects, photographs and websites Ask pupils to choose subjects for a more detailed research project on particular aspects of Victorian Britain and Victorian childhood, as inspired by their visit. They could do this individually or in pairs and could present in book form or as a PowerPoint presentation. They might want to focus on: schools working children the British Empire toys Local history Research your local area in more detail. If your area was on the Booth map of poverty how have the streets changed? Are there Victorian buildings or parks, was a railway or underground station built nearby and if so when? 8
Planning your journey Museum of London Free admission Open Mon to Sat 10am - 5.50pm Sun 12-5.50pm Last admission 5.30pm Museum of London London Wall, London EC2Y 5HN 0870 444 3851 www.musuemoflondon.org.uk info@museumoflondon.org.uk Free travel All schools within the Greater London area can take advantage of Transport for London s School Party Travel Scheme. See www.tfl.gov.uk/schoolparty or call London Underground Customer Services on 0845 330 9881 for details. Getting to the Museum By tube - St Paul s, Barbican By rail - Moorgate, Liverpool St, City Thameslink By bus - 4, 8, 25, 56, 100, 172, 242, 501, 521 Travel by coach The Museum does not have a coach park. Coaches may stop briefly to drop-off and pick up at bus stops on London Wall (travelling towards Moorgate) and Aldersgate Street (travelling towards the Museum). Please note that coaches must move on if requested to do so by a traffic manager/parking warden. Cancellation charges More than 8 weeks 30 8-4 weeks 50 Less than 4 weeks 100 On the day 150 9