Stepping back in time

Helena College’s Pre-primary students spent Term Two diving into the past, exploring what life was like in the ‘olden days’. The inquiry encouraged students to explore and develop an understanding of how things change with the passage of time.

The students visited the Kalamunda History Village, sparking lots of questions and lots of learning. They explored the village, discovering what shops, houses, schools, machinery and transportation looked like in the past. One of the highlights of the visit was the fruit grading machine, which thoroughly captivated the students.

The children also enjoyed sketching the things they saw at the Village. On their return to class, the Pre-primary students went over their drawings with charcoal. The children loved exploring this medium in their art activity.

They also started contributing items to their class’s ‘Olden Days Museum’. These items, which included family photographs, old toys, medals, and technology, allowed the students the opportunity to share their personal connection to the past, and especially to the context of themselves and family.

To further foster their understanding of the past from different perspectives, the children invited their grandparents, and even some great-grandparents, to share their stories over morning tea in the Early Learning Centre. Some grandparents travelled very long distances to participate, making it a very special occasion. The grandparents loved sharing their stories about the past and the children enjoyed hearing about how school has changed and how different it is to go school today. These firsthand accounts provided personal connections to history, illustrating changes over time in a very relatable way.

The ‘Olden Days’ inquiry was more than just a history lesson. By engaging with history in a multifaceted way, Pre-primary students are developing a deeper understanding and appreciation of the past while strengthening their sense of identity and community.