Our visit to Herd Farm, to take part in the Forest Schools’ Time Travellers workshop, has been a perfect end to our Time Travel big topic. Herd Farm was an amazing setting, in glorious Autumn sunshine, to discover different types of homes from the past.
First of all, we went right back in time to set up our own Stone Age camp. Lots of teamwork and problem solving skills were needed.
Safety first – Tina taught us how to hold the sticks correctly.
Next, we went to explore the replica Iron Age village.
Tina showed us the frame of the Iron Age roundhouse to explain the materials used and how the houses were put together. What materials were needed to build the houses? How was this different to houses built today?
All the class managed to fit in the larger house. Some Iron Age roundhouses were 40m wide!
What was inside the house? Why were these needed?
Now time to have a snack, enjoy the view and ask Ian, an archaeologist, questions about another type of home we have learnt about, castles.
Ian lit a fire in a traditional way. How did he do this?
The Iron Age roundhouses provided a great backdrop to sketch.
Finally, we spent time looking at the buildings at the residential centre which date back to 1760 and used to be a farm. We spotted alterations made to the old stone barn and farm house since this time to make it into the centre that it is today. The most modern building at the site was a sustainable building made from metal and wood.
We thoroughly enjoyed our outdoor learning experience discovering a range of houses from the past.
