Craft Sessions for Schools

Day of Knights medieval craft sessions offer students the opportunity to intensively examine specific aspects of medieval life. The craft sessions can be run in 2 hour blocks, or all day. Obviously, the longer the session, the more detail and depth we can cover. Like most medieval education during the middle ages, the learning is through doing.

At the end of the session each student will have created an artifact they can take home with them, and will have experienced, hands-on, something of the life of a person in the Middle Ages. The nature of the sessions means that each student will be exposed to multiple VELS strands, and within those strands many of the domains and dimensions. For example, the "Skills of the Court" session directly covers domains such as health and physical education, interpersonal development, personal learning, the arts, English, the humanities - history and communication. Indirectly, through the facilitation of our VELS aware staff, several more domains are touched on too.

This type of hands-on learning is what the Day of Knights people do themselves as they learn and experience history. Our motto, "Sapientia per Effectus" is Latin for knowledge by doing. We have seen the benefits of this form of learning for students, no matter what sort of learning they have a valency for, as each session is presented in a way that can be absorbed kinesthetically, visually, and by auditory learners. This style of education is particularly suited to students who have been identified as having learning difficulties. We've had spectacular success with ADHD, cerebral palsy and other students with developmental difficuties.

Due to the intense nature of the sessions, we ask that class sizes be kept to a maximum of 25 students. Contact us for costing.

The sessions outlined below are by no means all we can offer. If you have specific needs, talk to us, and we can design a program that is tailor made for your students (and staff!).

The Skills of the Court

At the height of the Middle Ages the court of the King was a mobile centre of social, economic and political power. Many nobles found themselves being required, or requiring, to attend upon court, and to play the games of intrigue and manners that enabled one to be heard. Nobles were judged by such criteria as how well they danced, how literate and read they were, and how well the new the rules and manners of "polite" society in addition to the traditional criteria of economic and military strength.

In this session, students learn several dances, from easy basse dances to a more complex court dance, and learn why dancing was considered so important. They get to try their hand at calligraphy, using a quill pen and ink. Finally, they learn about the rules of court, and the manners of the Middle Ages.

1. Dances
   Why was dancing so important? What were the different types of dancing (basse vs court, line vs circle)? Learn a simple basse dance, a simple court dance and a more complex court dance.
2. Calligraphy
   Who was literate? Why did literacy become more important? Handedness (why was right hand dominance considered so important?). Learn to write using a quill and ink.
3. Manners and Chivalry
   Why were manners and politeness held in such high regard? The reverance, salutes and greetings.
4. The Arts of Diplomacy. A role-play examines the many factors that influenced the decisions made by the nobility in order to cement their futures and gain power and wealth. Trade agreements, marriage contracts, military options, nepotism and more are explored in this fun, interactive session.

Working with cloth

We all need to wear clothes. In the Middle Ages there weren't huge shopping malls where one could buy a dozen or more garments in one shopping trip. All the materials were, of course, natural, and this session delves deeper into some of the crafts associated with clothing, from spinning wool into thread, then weaving thread it into a decorated band, and also involves a fascinating look at dyeing (including some facts you probably didn't want to know about the craft!).

1. Drop spindle
   What sorts of textiles were available. Working with wool. Making thread.
2. Tablet Weaving
   Tablet weave a length of braid. What would it be used for? Why do it that way?
3. Dyeing
   What could be used to dye cloth? How did the process work? What colours were popular? What colours were hard to obtain? Dye some unbleached muslin.

The Art of the Knight

What would the Middle Ages be without knights in shining armor? During this session, we look at the reality versus the romantic myth, make some armor, and take a close look at what a knight did, wore and why the knight became obsolete.

1. Training the squire
   How were squires trained? Who would be trained as a knight? What did knights do? Real world knights vs knights in romantic tales.
2. Arming the Knight
   History of armor. Wearing the armor. Weapons and their uses.
3. Armoring
   Make some maille. Metal working for armorers (the basics).

Clothes maketh the man, but accessories maketh the man fine

The clothing and accessories of of the Middle Ages mirror the growth in wealth and sophistication of society as time passed. In this session, students make a simple cloak clasp that a Saxon, Viking or Celt would have worn, then make a felted wool square, and finally create a simple hat.

1. Jewelry (penumbral clasp)
   Why jewelry was important. Make a simple decorative cloak clasp.
2. Felting
   What is felt? What is felt use for? Make a small square of felt.
3. A hat
   Make a simple hat from wool/felted wool. A chapeau (Robin hood style), simple cap or simple round/flat.

Heraldry

Heraldry is a very colourful and visible aspect of the Middle Ages. This session looks at the role of the herald, the reasons why heraldry developed, and students learn about the design principles of a coat of arms, design their own arms and then use them to make a banner or a shield.

1. Coats of Arms
   Who was entitled to them? Canting, design elements and design. Design a coat of arms.
2. A banner
   Make your design into a banner (either using textiles or on cardboard) or shield or penant.
3. Write and perform a ceremony
   What else did heralds do? Write and perform a short ceremony (knighting, creating a noble, announcement).

Pleasant Diversions

Though primarily entertainment, the games and sports of the Middle Ages served a lot of other useful purposes. While creating a simple board game such as "Fox and Geese", and learning and playing other sports and games, students can place the importance of these diversions in context, and draw parallels with games and sports today.

1. Games
   Make a simple medieval game (fox and geese or similar). Learn a medieval game.
2. Storytelling/Songs
   How did stories come about? What were stories and songs used to do in society? How do songs and stories develop? Chinese whispers. Juggling.
3. Sports
   What sorts of sports were played? Why were pastimes like sport important? Tug of War championship.

Feasts and Fasts

Other than the fact that we all have to eat, the history of food could almost be the history of the Middle Ages. Food production was the major industry, consumed the greatest amount of resources, and it was increases in efficiency in food production and processing that led to the freeing up of resources that allowed the rapid growth in knowledge and prosperity from the 12 th century on. In this session students learn about the foods, recipes and lore of all things culinary in the Middle Ages, and create their own simple meal.

1. Food types
   What sorts of food were available? What were commonly eaten? Why were some foods so expensive (spices)? What modern foodstuffs were unknown to medieval Europeans?
2. Simple Faire
   Make a simple bread and a simple stew that might be eaten on a daily basis.
3. The daily grind
   Grain grinding.

Coming soon

• Seige weapons
• Navigation and travel
• Trade and Commerce
• Players and Actors
• Justice
• Crusaders and Saracens
• Vikings and Normans

Please contact us if you are interested in this aspect of our presentation.

Last updated on 13 May, 2008

Days of Knights Pty Ltd

Medieval Education, Entertainment and Consulting
History comes alive!

ABN - 3112 224 503