Visit to Mary Arden's House Stratford Year 6/5 had a really enjoyable trip as part of their Tudor History topic. We watched a falconry display where we learned about one of King Henry's favourite sports and some children even had a turn at handling the birds. We sketched Palmer's Farm and learned about the construction of Tudor House. We now know that they used cow dung in their wattle and daub because it is so sticky! We also learned that houses were built on stone plinths, that there were more oak beams on the front of the house to 'show off' to the neighbours and 'wind holes' sometimes had glass or horn. During our tour inside the house we saw some Tudor furniture including some beds with woven rope bases. We learned that the rope stretched and had to be tightened every so often with a special tool and this is where the phrase "Sleep tight" comes from. The table was called a 'board' and only the man of the house had a proper chair so this is where "Chairman of the Board" comes from. We also had a chance to handle some Tudor artefacts such as bowls, combs and flasks. We tried to work out what the objects were and what they were made from. We even saw how flints were used to make a fire...the sparks really did fly! Lastly we worked as a group to assemble the frame for a model Tudor house. it was like a 3D jigsaw...if we put some of the pieces in the wrong places then our houses would be crooked. We all had a fantastic time and learned loads! We'd like to say a really big thankyou to the staff at Mary Arden's House, especially as they allowed us to increase our numbers after the traffic jam prevented our first visit from taking place. Thankyou to all of our parent helpers too. |