One of the most gratifying aspects of working with Ireland in Schools is the way
teachers imaginatively build upon the work of others and generously share
their resources.
Evacuees
An imaginative scheme of work for Year 6 by Yvonne Diaz of Waterloo Primary
School, Sefton, explores, through Dance, the experiences of evacuees in the
Second World War.
A series of dance phrases developed in the first six lessons build up to a longer
dance performance in the seventh and final lesson.
| 1. Off to war | 3. Journey to Ireland | 5. Grandfather's false leg |
| 2. The London Blitz | 4. Loneliness | 6. The rescue |
7. Performance |
The scheme appeals across the ability range and can be downloaded here.
Music
It is a pity that copyright considerations do not allow IiS to provide downloads of
the music suggested by Yvonne, including ‘American Patrol’, ‘The White Cliffs
of Dover’ and ‘Tripping up the Stairs’. However, the siren used to great effect
in Lesson 2 is available at
www.bbc.co.uk/schoolradio/history/worldwar2audioclipslibrary_clip02.shtml.
More cross-curricular possibilities
Yvonne's scheme draws inspiration from episodes in Marita
Conlon-McKenna’s historical novel Safe Harbour (O'Brien
Press, 0-86278-422-0).
When their home is destroyed and their mother critically
injured during the London Blitz, Sophie and Hugh are
evacuated to the house of their unsympathetic paternal
grandfather in Co. Wicklow in neutral Éire.
It also complements and extends an earlier IiS study unit
which uses Safe Harbour and another historical novel,
Faraway Home, to explore how helpful, or otherwise, historical
fiction is in understanding the experience of children as
evacuees and refugees.
Yvonne’s scheme can be thus be used on its own or in conjunction the earlier unit.