Medieval Times

Resources: (lesson plans & curriculum)
Excaliber (for grades 9 - 12)
In King Arthur: Man or Legend?, students compare King Arthur's persona from the legendary and historic perspectives, and craft an outline for a theater piece featuring the symbolism, characterization, and context they have learned. In Castles and Cornerstones, students will explore the historic importance and function of castles in King Arthur's time, and create a castle of their own design in three dimensions, using found materials. In Chivalry and Courtly Love, students will examine the way the Arthurian ideals of chivalry and courtly love have influenced our modern concepts of love, inspiring students' execution of a short thematic play.


King Arthur: Man or Legend? (esp good for 7th grade)
Writing: The Middle Ages: Twelve Activities Take Students Back in Time! Learn how a unit on the Middle Ages inspired great writing among fourth and fifth graders in Chandler, Arizona. Included: 12 great activities for teaching about the Middle Ages.

Read The Door in the Wall, Marguerite de Angeli's Newbery Award-winning book about a boy growing up in medieval Europe.

Life in the Middle Ages This site includes a list of more than 20 possible projects on the Middle Ages. The activities are appropriate for middle school students and above.

The Middle Ages Global Studies Project This site contains ideas for two individual and one group project on the Middle Ages, appropriate for middle school students and above.

Sworn to Serve In this WebQuest, students in middle school and above explore the feudal system in medieval England.

Kids in the Castle: virtual tours, etc.

Life in a Medieval Castle: Five Art Activities for an Integrated Medieval Unit This site provides art activities involving stained glass, tapestry, and heraldic shields. The activities are designed for students in middle school and above but can be adapted for almost any age-group.

Cardboard Box Castle Enchanted Learning Software provides complete illustrated directions for building a cardboard box castle. Students in elementary school and above can complete the project, although younger students will need adult assistance with some of the cutting.

KinderCastles Nancy Yost, a kindergarten teacher at Indiana University of Pennsylvania's lab school, provides a variety of resources for teaching about the Middle Ages. Sections include literature, integrated activities, songs and poetry, software, recipes, armor, teacher resources, and links. Most activities are appropriate for students in kindergarten and above.

Days and Days of Knights: A Unit on the Middle Ages
Science-
Make your own paper. Although it's believed that the Chinese invented paper before the first century A.D., it wasn't introduced in Europe until the tenth century. Introduce your students to the science of paper making by sharing An Adventure in Paper Making, created by middle school students from Mancos, Colorado.

And do check out the list o f"Greta sites" / "Sites to see" at :
http://www.education-world.com/a_sites/sites001.shtml


Costumes:
Archer's Simple Hood
Knight's Med. Shirt
Teutonic Knights Ensemble
Child's knightly tunic and shirt
Child's Swordsman Shirt
Velvet Fighting Cape

(Renaissance Costume: renaissance-boy-costume-brown )

More medieval resources online

• Early Middle Ages http://homepages.udayton.edu/~schuerwc/study%20guide%205.htm
• (I think that year 7 in the UK is usually ~12 years old) http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/year7links/
• Castles http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/year7links/castles.shtml
• Medieval Life http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/year7links/life.shtml

Last updated: 2/5/2010

Patriot's Week in Trenton?

The last week of the year is Patriot's Week in Trenton. Some of the events sound really interesting.

Site tours & ongoing events. Site tours in past years have included:

• First Presbyterian Church, 120 East State Street: whose congregation was founded in 1712 and has been attended by Presidents John Adams and James Monroe, as well as the Marquis de Lafayette and Daniel Webster. Pamphlets are available for self-guided tours of the artwork throughout the building and for the historic burial grounds. Re-enactors will also be available to answer any questions. There will also be historic displays of artifacts from the Church and from the City of Trenton. Comfort facilities are always available.
• Masonic Temple Site Tours (Front & Barrack St.)
• Visitors Center Site Tours (102 Barrack St. Next door to the Masonic Temple.)
• State House Civics Tours (Tours occur at the top of every hour) 125 West State Street: Explore the New Jersey State House, where the laws that affect all New Jersey residents are made. This tour takes visitors through this beautifully restored historic building—listed on both the national and state registers of historic places. For more information, please call the New Jersey State House Tour Office at (609) 633-2709.
• Hidden Treasures (State House, 125 West State Street Entrance): the second-oldest continuously operating State capitol building in the nation. From timbers that date back to 1792 to contemporary art rarely seen by visitors, this tour will take you from the basement to the attic and everywhere in between.
• Old Barracks Museum Tours (101 Barrack Street, (609)396-1776): State and National Historic Landmark built in 1758 by the colony of New Jersey as winter quarters for British “regulars” returning from fighting in the frontier regions in the French & Indian War. During the American Revolution, the Barracks was occupied at different times by British/Hessian Forces or the Continental Forces. Following the Battles of Trenton in 1776, the Barracks was steadily controlled by the Continental Army and used as an army hospital for small pox inoculations. The Old Barracks is a “living history” museum portraying the year 1777 with historical interpreters guiding visitors through the infirmary to learn about mandatory small pox inoculations and surgeries performed on soldiers in the Continental Army; into the squad rooms that soldiers occupied as living quarters; through the Officers House; and exhibits. Admission is $8/adult, $6/child, $6/senior. Children age 5 and under are free.

Prehistoric American Food

It was harder to find information than I had expected.

My favorite site was Prehistoric Texas food.

Also worth checking:
http://www.answers.com/topic/food-producers-in-prehistoric-societies

This might help:
http://www.beanbible.com/