Tyntesfield School Trip

Tyntesfield School Trip Idea

Primary Trainee Teacher - my portfolio outlining ideas for a Christmas term trip to Tyntesfield for a range of age groups.

 Tyntesfield Manor House photograph, Chilli Head (2008)

Tynesfield is a Victorian gothic revival house under the National Trust. Rich in history and with a range of information and experiences available, it seems to be a perfect place to host an enquiry. The more we read about Tyntesfield the more avenues appear, there prove to be a range of pathways we could take to create an enquiry. For example, the history of the manor house during the World Wars; how it had to adapt to serve the war and how the family of Tyntesfield, (the Gibbs) and its stakeholders, had to adjust their lives during war. Another option could’ve been based in mystery, pulling on their Sherlock connections (a few Sherlock episodes were filmed here). There are many opportunities at Tyntesfield for learning and exploration making it an ideal location.

Not only does Tyntesfield offer flexibility but also relevance for Bristol students. Located in Wraxall, a short drive from Ashton. The Gibbs family were Bristolians, generations of Gibbs experiencing Bristol during the Victorian Era and during the 1900s, like many of the students’ families would’ve.

In this portfolio, I’ve decided to hone in on the Victorian element of Tyntesfield, I’ve chosen to do this in the context of Christmas. The enquiry would be centred around the idea of hosting a Victorian Christmas. This is a broad topic that allows us cross curricular opportunities for research and exploration.

The Story that Inspired Christmas, Jim (2013)

To introduce this project to my class I may consider looking at Charles Dicken’s Christmas Carol (1837), for it is said that this book inspired much of the Christmas traditions (family, mistletoe, holly, church, charity, turkey, plum pudding and mince pies). It also allows us to pick out what wasn’t mentioned (for example, Father Christmas and presents). Which leads to the influence of the industrial revolution. For example, the custom of sending Christmas cards was started by a local man, born in Bath and lived in Bristol, Sir Henry Cole (in 1843). Also, the introduction of the Christmas tree, by Queen Victoria (due to her German husband, Prince Albert). I could incorporate stop motion animation here, giving a group each a chapter from the book and creating our own class adaptation of Dicken’s Christmas Carol (we could do this at this stage or after all our research as a way of presenting our Victorian Christmas).

List of Servants, S. Louise (2016)

Tyntesfield provides a range of information about the Gibbs family who owned and resided in the house for generations. This local family would make a good central research point for the project because these are real, relatable people who lived locally – it offers a new level relevance and connection. For example, much of our knowledge of the Gibbs’s Victorian Christmas came from letters between Anstice Katherine and her fiancé Stafford Crawley, as a class we could write our own letters between the two, considering how the language may be different to our language today and using our new historical understanding to aid the content.

There is also a lot of information about the servants of the Gibbs, listing a few of them, names and job role. Students could apply for their jobs with a cover letter. They could investigate the differences between servants and slaves (after the abolition of the slave trade – for this allows the students to delve into Bristol’s rich history within slavery).  

Chapel’s Stain glass Window, S. Louise (2016)

 The manor house has its own Chapel; this highlights the value of religion and shows the changes in society. Christmas was more about Christianity within the Victorian period. This offers further exploration for the students, what types of Christianity were there, what were the differences, what makes a religion? Gives opportunities to consider other religious festivals.   

The fact that the manor house has its own Chapel once again highlights the social status of the family and the students could investigate this further, what would a lower income family’s Christmas look like? They could try and find censuses from that period, it may pull on their own family history.

In the context of hosting a Victorian Christmas, the students could consider electricity, what inventions would’ve changed Christmas during the Victorian period (an era rich in innovation). They could consider how they would sustain the family home, on their visit they would see solar panels which may lead them to explore renewable energy resources. They could also consider growing food and sourcing food for the day – where would they’ve got it from or how could they grow enough? What would the menu consist of? How would it be cooked and how long would this take? They could also explore textiles, what did people wear, how would the house have been decorated? Leading onto architecture, the house is Victorian gothic, what makes it gothic? What other Victorian housing styles were there? What games would’ve been played at Christmas (they could learn to waltz).

All this research and various avenues of thought could then be applied by transforming the school to host a Victorian Christmas (which could prove to be a brilliant assembly/experience for the rest of the school and parents). This enquiry offers such rich learning opportunities under various curriculum canapes, I’d be truly intrigued to find out what different classes would create and explore.

Referenced Images

·       Chilli Head (2008) Tyntesfield Manor House [photograph]. In Wikimedia [online]. Available from: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tyntesfield_2.jpg [Accessed 26 January 2017].

·       Jim (2013) "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens - This Edition Published by Macy's; Illustrated by Daub's Studio (Macy’s Christmas Display) [photograph]. In Flickr [online]. Available from: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jcapaldi/11358442236 [Accessed 26 January 2017].

·       S. Louise (2016) Tyntesfield ‘A Very Victorian Invitation To The Gibbs Family Home This Christmas’[photograph].

·       S. Louise (2016) Tyntesfield Chapel ‘Stain-glass Window’ [photograph].