This photograph was taken over 100 years ago in Roker Park, Sunderland. It shows Victorian children playing in their local park.
Large Image
Teachers' notes
Whiteboard Activity (Smart): Going to the Park
Whiteboard Activity (Promethean): Going to the Park
Worksheet: Going to the Park
Image By Theme
Teaching Idea
Did Children in the Past have fun in the Park?
Ask pupils to look at the photograph. What can they see? Explain that it was taken a long time ago (in 1900) and it is showing us what life was like for these children. Make it clear that these are real children who lived a long time ago.
Ask them to say what the children are doing. Ask them to look for any toys. Ask them what the children are wearing - are they wearing everyday clothes or 'Sunday Best'?
Ask them if they think the children were having fun. Compare what the children are doing with what modern children do in the park. Which things are the same and which are different?
Check out the ready made whiteboard lesson
Learning Aims and Outcomes
- ask and answer questions about the past
- find out about the past from a range of sources of information
- find out about the way of life of people in the more distant past who lived in the local area or elsewhere in Britain
Prior Knowledge
- It will be useful to talk to pupils about going to the park nowadays.
- Arrange a visit to a local park - this will be particularly helpful if any of your pupils have not been to a park.
Extended Learning and Useful Links
- Look at other photographs of children in parks in the Images by Theme - Parks and Gardens. These include more Victorian photographs and also some from the 1960s
- Search Viewfinder for photographs of your local park and look for changes
- Find out about the history of your local park by visiting your local council website. Most have a section on the history of their parks. For example see the History of Parks in Preston
- Visit the Parks and Gardens UK website. This website has lots more information about parks and a Schoolzone with loads of ideas and activities for all Key Stages
- Search Heritage Explorer for more photographs showing Victorian children at work and poor children. Discuss how Victorian children were expected to behave and compare to modern children. Has the idea of 'fun' changed?