Activity: Every name tells a story
Where?
This is an activity for you to lead either in the classroom or on a visit to one of the New Forest places named in the activity sheet e.g. Beaulieu/Lymington/Hythe
Who for?
Key stage 2 - England and Wales
Level - Scotland
Who by?
This activity is for you to take, using the resources below and activity sheet (print out PDF).
Activity aims:
To help pupils understand that place names can carry with them clues about the past. They will learn that names carry an imprint of the history and geography of a place and of their ancestors who lived there.
Learning outcomes: the clue is in the name!
Names and history
Pupils will learn about names can come from different historical periods:
- Roman/Latin names - in use from cAD43
- Saxon names - in use from c AD500
- Medieval names - in use from 1066
Names and geography
They will also discover that names can be derived from the geography of a place:
- is it on a river
- was there once a ford or bridge there
- is it on a hill
- was it in a forest clearing
Names and nature/biology
Place names can also reflects the plants or species that once thrived in that place:
- what plants once grew there
- was it once the site of a wood
Names and work/industry
Place names can also reflect the type of activities that took place there
- was there a mill there
- was it the site of a market
- was there a farm there
- was it an important trading centre
What you will need:
- activity worksheet - every_name_tells_a_story.pdf
- maps of New Forest showing relevant place names
- paper and pens for making field notes
For classroom activity:
- activity worksheet
- internet access - to research New Forest place names as here www.newforesthandbook.co.uk/placenames
and here www.newforestnpa.gov.uk/place_names - maps of New Forest showing place names
- paper and pencil to complete names quiz
