The Derbyshire Remembers exhibition launches on Friday 6th March 2015.
This is the culmination of a WW1 Centenary project that we began back in December 2013 and has possible thanks to a grant from the Heritage Lottery Foundation. We jointly developed this project idea alongside our fantastic partners: National Trust, Derbyshire Record Office and Derby City Local studies Library.
Derbyshire Remembers Volunteers
Derbyshire Remembers partners trained local volunteers around researching WW1. Our volunteers did a fantastic job of sorting through a great deal of material to really hone in on what they thought the children would be interested in. This research was used as the basis for resources that were created for school sessions.
Fifth Word Theatre led two, week- long intensive school sessions where pupils worked ‘in role’ as expert museum curators tasked with the responsibility of designing a brand new exhibition for Sudbury Hall. Using specialised drama techniques, the children delved deeper into what really happened in Derby during WW1 and selected the themes and sources they found most interesting. At the end of the sessions, each school created mock exhibition panels and presented back their ideas to be realised by a professional designer.
Year 6 pupils from Dale Primary school in Normanton transformed their classroom into an office where they were known as ‘Dazzling Designs’. As ‘experts’ they researched the effect the war had on the home front in Derby City and the families who were left behind. They explored the Zeppelin raid (which happened only minutes from their school) and the plight of the munitions workers from across Derbyshire. With help from the archives and volunteers, the children were able to analyse and interpret images, objects, newspaper cuttings and Art to tell the story of life on the home front a hundred years ago.
children from Dale School
The second design team came from Sudbury Primary School. Their class was known as ‘Super Sudbury Designs’ and their detective work enabled them to delve into personal letters, soldiers’ diaries, memoirs and official documents such as call-up notices and killed-in-action telegrams. They imagined what it might have been like to be in their shoes and used the expertise of drama practitioners to build up a picture of life on the frontline during the ‘War to End All Wars’.
children from Sudbury school
We believe that using drama teaching methods and resources from local archives quite literally brought to life the personal stories of Derbyshire soldiers and their families. All the children, volunteers and partners involved are so incredibly proud of what we have achieved. We are excited to share our fascinating findings with the public through this travelling exhibition.
The exhibition is open to everyone and will be housed at Sudbury Hall from the 7 March- 17 May, it will then transfer to Kedleston Hall from 23 May – 3 September 2015 and will then travel to local schools across Derby City and Derbyshire.
More info can be found here: derbyshire-remembers.fifthword.co.uk
The exhibition flyer