Pink Sheep Spotted in Consett: why our Geostories projects are pure joy
Here at Digital Voice HQ, we love our Geostories projects. They preserve local history stories for future generations (more than the statistics that you might find in history books) and in uncovering the stories, we find the beating heart of a community, the personalities, the people. And that’s not all. These are just some of the positive outcomes you can expect:
Young people hearing first-hand what life was like in their town or village ✓
Older people learning digital skills ✓
Young people learning film-making skills ✓
Local history stories preserved on film ✓
Teachers provided with resources for future lessons ✓
Smiles all round ✓
Our recent project with Castleside Primary School and their discoveries about the Consett Steel Works has definitely ticked all the boxes!
Following the success of our project with the school on Consett Bowling Club, this time their focus was the former steelworks, once a major employer in the town. An open call went out to people living in Consett who would be happy to share their memories of the town and the steelworks, with a great response. Children from Year 4 at Castleside started by devising questions to build a picture of what life was like. The stories they uncovered were rich and varied, everything from why Consett sheep were sometimes pink to the fact that Consett steel can be found on the other side of the globe in Australia.
Everyone involved gained so much from the process and of course, these stories are now preserved for everyone to enjoy.
“Wonderful looking back at the real Consett. Plus meeting the people in this room. Fantastic sharing experience with all involved.”
- Participant
“I enjoyed using the iPads and drawing things and learning about the steelworks and the olden days.”
- Year 4 pupil
Alison Spence, headteacher at Castleside, is delighted to have a permanent history resource that her staff can continue to use. She also reflected on the impact of experience that the children have had:
“I would say not only the history side of it, for me, giving the children an opportunity to work with digital technology and to raise their aspirations (...) when they see the fantastic production, then think ‘this is something I would like to pursue as a career’, it just gives them a taste of something that they wouldn't normally have an opportunity to do. I think it's a really valuable experience that we've had in school, so I'd like to thank you for that.”
You can watch the brilliant Consett films here.
If you’d like to explore the history of your area with one of your groups, please get in touch, we’d love to hear from you.
Thanks to National Lottery Players
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