ABSTRACT
Where do you get resources from? If you remember that one of your main purposes in teaching history to children is to give them a sense of personal identity then you will look for sources within the community that the school serves. Artefacts-the correct term for objects looked at historically-are plentiful in every house and garden. Think of the change there has been in irons over the last fifteen years (even if you cannot get any older than that). Children will bring in pieces of clothing, books and various household utensils which can be handled in a historical way to discuss change and continuity, causation and time. Similarly, pictures and photographs are readily available to be used. A letter requesting artefacts from home for a particular topic will result in pupils bringing in a bewildering array of objects. Some schools still have access to loan collections which can be utilised when appropriate. The older members of the community are treasure troves of memories and opinions and welcome being interviewed about any of their experiences. The use of local experts such as archaeologists, local archivists and museum curators broadens children’s historical diet. Local crafts people and musicians, retired policemen, teachers, carpenters etc., add to the variety of historical sources that can be effectively tapped within communities. The local built environment is near at hand, familiar yet interesting to budding historians. Written sources do not have to be marriage or birth certificates. They can be local newspaper accounts of famous local events or sporting stories, they can be postcards and letters from different periods, or the school log, old advertisements, recipe books or catalogues.
