Liverpool Bridge Project 2013-2014
Case Study
School
Longmoor Community Primary School
Title
Working with ‘Big Heritage’ to trial their ‘Pop-Up Trench’.
Focus
Working with ‘Big Heritage’ to trial their ‘Pop-Up Trench’ as part of our World War 1
Commemoration Week, and to possibly develop a history scheme of work around
World War 1.
Context and Objectives
We were very keen to trial this workshop as part of our World War 1
Commemoration Week, but also with a view to developing aspects of World War 1
into our new curriculum for 2014.
We are exploring ways to incorporate World War 1 into our history curriculum as our
school has its own War Memorial, offering the valuable opportunity for a study linked
directly to the children’s own school and locality.
Activity
What did we do?
The ‘Pop-Up Trench’ and artefacts were set up before the children entered the hall.
They sat in a semi-circle, listening to the presenter talk about life for soldiers in the
trenches during World War 1. The children had the opportunity to handle original
artefacts, ask and answer questions and experience the feel of sitting in the ‘trench’.
The activity formed part of a whole-school history week, with each year group
exploring a different aspect of World War 1. As Year 4 was studying the life of one
soldier, they were selected to experience the session, although it would have been
suitable for any Key Stage 2 year group.
How did ‘Big Heritage’ support the activity?
‘Big Heritage’ were able to support the children’s learning in class by offering the
opportunity for them to explore original artefacts in detail, thus bringing the books
and video clips previously studied in the classroom, to life.
How did we motivate the children to engage in the activity?
A significant amount of work had been undertaken prior to the session, which was
really beneficial to the children’s ability to engage effectively in the session. The way
the trench was set-up and all of the artefacts on display really caught their attention
as soon as they entered the room. It offered the ‘WOW factor’ straight away and the
children were hooked.
Impact and outcomes
How did we measure the success of the activity?
During the session, success was evident from the beginning through the
engagement and enthusiasm of the children. They were very responsive to
questions and willing to share their own ideas. Photographs of the children handling
artefacts reflected their enjoyment and engagement with their learning during the
session.
In addition, pupil questionnaires were completed to gather a variety of opinions about
the session.
Finally, the impact of the session was evident in the days following the session as a
large number of children were completing additional work at home, without the
prompting of staff. This work extended beyond their focus in the classroom, to
incorporate facts they had learned during the session, such as the structure of the
trenches and the weaponry used – which had not been a main focus for the class
teaching.
Impact
The impact of the children’s learning, enjoyment and engagement with the task was
evident through:
 Observations during the session
 Their ability and eagerness to ask and answer questions during and after the
session
 Their ability to recall a wide variety of facts from the session in the days
following
 The amount of individual home research completed by the children
 Analysis of questionnaires (see attached)
Barriers
Overall, the session was extremely successful. The only small barrier was a slight
lack of information supplied in enough time for us to plan for the session effectively in
school. For example, we didn’t know how much space would be required, how many
children should participate and the structure of the session. As this was a trial
session, this type of barrier was not unexpected, however, in future we would expect
a little more detail of ‘logistics’ prior to the session in order organise the children
effectively, while ensuring the event doesn’t impact upon the daily routines of other
year groups.
Next steps
The Commemoration Week was very successful and we are now keen to incorporate
a study of World War 1 into our history curriculum for the school. We would
definitely use ‘Big Heritage’ again, both for the ‘Pop-Up Trench’ session and some of
the other sessions that they offer.
Results of Questionnaire
Thirty questionnaires were completed.
I enjoyed the ‘Pop-Up Trench’ visit.
 100% of the children strongly agreed with this statement.
I think I learnt lots during the visit.
 100% of the children agreed or strongly agreed with this statement.
I think the length of the visit was just right.
 73% of the children agreed with the statement, the other 27% disagreed;
stating that they felt the visit was too short.
I like the way it was presented.
 100% of the children either agreed or strongly agreed with this statement.
I liked the resources
 100% of the children agreed with this statement.
I would enjoy another visit from ‘Big Heritage’
 100% of the children agreed with this statement.
I understood the majority of the ideas discussed.
 100% of the children either agreed or strongly agreed with this statement.
Please tell me about your favourite part of the visit:
‘I enjoyed touching all of the objects’ (Joe)
‘I enjoyed the smell and holding the artefacts. Please come again’ (Sam)
‘My favourite part was hearing the stories from World War 1’ (Jack)
‘I enjoyed smelling the trench’ (Louise)
‘I think the best part was that you got to hold things that were 100 years old’ (Maisie)
Could you make any suggestions how the visit could be improved?
‘You could let us talk to our friends and discuss the smells and what we are touching
with each other’ (Angel)
‘I think it was great just the way it was’ (Jodie)
‘I think everything was alright and there is nothing that could be improved. Big
Heritage is a great company’ (Hollie)
‘Maybe you could let a few more children into the trench’ (Sophie)
‘Could you make it a little bit longer please?’ (John)
‘No! I enjoyed every bit of it’. (Luke)
‘I wish it was one hour longer’ (Jessica)
‘Give us more time to answer questions and to talk to the person next to us’ (Oliver)
‘It was just perfect!’ (Olivia)
‘Give a piece of paper to everyone so they can write facts down’ (Joe)
Would you like the school to use ‘Big Heritage’ again?
 100% of the children said ‘yes’, the school should use ‘Big Heritage’ again.
Other comments:
‘I think it was the best visit ever, the Big Heritage should be more popular. Miss
Pennington, book another visit please. Dean was telling us lots of things and I could
understand it all. I gazillion rated – I can’t write all of the stars. I really liked the
smell of the trenches. How did the scientists do this?’ (Sam)
‘I would like Big Heritage to come again because it is a fun way of learning instead of
sitting in the classroom’ (Joe)
‘I thought Big Heritage did an excellent job’ (Jodie)