School Craft Activities | Viking Heritage

Craft Activities

The title and photos say it all!

Fun hands-on activities are an extremely effective way of engaging young people with the past.

Pupils from Arrochar Primary School have carried out a wide range of art- and craft-based activities focussed on the area’s Viking heritage, both directly as part of the project, and also as part of the school’s Viking topic, which was specifically timed to coincide with the project.

As part of the project:

P6/7 children made a complete replica Lewis chess set, together with a wooden chess board. Viking expert Dr. Colleen Batey had told the children that the original pieces were made out of walrus ivory, and archaeologists thought some of them had been stained red with beetroot. Ours were made of resin, and ‘stained’ with red paint, but still looked brilliant!
P4/5 made replica Viking longships, complete with imitation wooden planks, colourful shields, scary dragon figureheads, and stripy sails. They’d hoped to sail their fleet down the school burn, but windy weather meant they decided not to risk damaging their masterpieces…
P2/3 made clay medallions with their names or messages imprinted in runes, and painted them ready to thread onto leather thongs. Imagination got the better of them, and they progressed to miniature model longships!
P1 pupils had fun with clay too, and with a bit of help, managed to crack the runic code to write their names on necklaces to take home and admire.
Children from all classes decorated shields to go on the playground boat made by the GalGael Trust, which is now a wonderful, walk-on musical instrument!
Pupils from P3-7 helped mosaicist Dugald MacInnes to develop ideas for a slate interpretation to mark the start of the new Hidden Heritage Trail.

The whole of Arrochar Primary School has enthused over the Vikings in the school project decorating their classrooms with arts and crafts depicting dragon heads, Viking brooches, longships, and Norse mythology. Check out some examples in the Gallery