Creative Arts Wales
Digital Story Workshops Bryngwyn Primary School
Bryngwyn Primary School
Taking part in this project were 29 pupils from Bryngwyn Primary School, Six Bells, and 6 volunteers from RSVP in Blaina Gwent who take part in a Reminiscence programme by going into schools etc., showing the children artefacts from WWII and sharing their experiences of what it was like to grow up during the war.
The aim of this project was to encourage seniors to share their memories with those too young to remember and in the sharing teach children about their heritage in a way which brought history alive for them. Bringing younger and older people together in this way helps to break down stereotypical barriers and promotes better understanding between the generations, forging stronger links within the community.
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- Adventures of Roy & the Evacuees
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- An Evacuee's Story
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- School Days
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- All the better to feed you
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- A Wartime Childhood
Local Senior volunteers visited the school and talked to pupils about what life was like for them during WW2 and showed them memorabilia from the era. During the 1½ hour weekly sessions the children created stories by developing scripts, designing illustrations, using digital media to photograph, scan and manipulate images, combining these with photographs from the seniors together with historical images to create digital stories in collaboration with the seniors.
This was a very successful project which brought younger and older people together in a way which helps to break down stereotypical barriers and promotes better understanding between the generations. The seniors were able to engage with the children and forge stronger links with the school and the wider community.
RSVP is an organisation which recruits volunteers aged 50+. RSVP believes that older people have a lifetime of skills and experience which is of immeasurable benefit in their own communities. Through their involvement in community activities, the volunteers themselves receive an enormous benefit in terms of improved health and self-confidence.