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‌Educational Services and Resources in Donegal County Archives

 

COLMCILLE 1500

 
 
 

Colmcille  Life and Legacy Education Pack /Pacaiste Beatha agus Oidhreacht Cholm Cille 

As part of the Colmcille 1500 Commemoration (2021 - 2022), Donegal County Archives (Donegal County Council Archives Service) with Abarta Heritage produced a primary school education pack Colmcille: Life and Legacy, containing a booklet outlining the history and legacy of St. Colmcille plus a workbook containing exercises and questions for students in class. The pack is available in hard copy and online (below) for schools in both English and/or Irish.

Funded in part by Creative Ireland.  

**For hard copies of the pack please contact the archivist at [email protected] **

 

English language booklet and workbook

 

Colmcille Education Pack for Primary Schools, Booklet

Colmcille Education Pack for primary schools workbook

Pacaiste agus bileoga as Gaeilge

 

Beatha Cholm Cille, Pacasite Oideachais

Beatha Cholm Cille, Pacasite Oideachais bileoga

 

 

 

 

The Archives Service undertakes programmes of activities aimed at students and education providers in County Donegal.

The aim of this programme is to increase awareness of the importance of local archives and of the potential use of the extensive collection of documents preserved by the County Archives in Lifford to students and teachers.

 

Sources for the Study of the Decade of Centenaries in Co Donegal (1912 - 1923)

 

Sources:

List of sources relating to the Decade of Centenaries  (1912 - 1923) 

 

Decade of Centenaries sources updated

 

Presentations give to schools on the history of the Decade of Centenaries (1912 - 1923)

 

Decade of Centenaries History Presentation

 

 

Decade of Centenaries illustrated history

 ‌

  

Presentation given to history groups on the First Dail and Donegal.

  

Donegal and the First Dail 

  

Short presentation on Life in 1916  (for primary schools)

 

Life in Donegal in 1916 Presentation

 

 

County Donegal in 1916 (Presentation on Co. Donegal in 1916 including impact of the Easter Rising - for more details on this topic see the History and Heritage Pack below.)

 

County Donegal in 1916

 

  

 

Educational Resources in Donegal County Archives for Primary and Second Level (especially Leaving Cert History) students: Archivist's presentations to Teachers

 

Archives resources for Second level

 

Archives Sources for Leaving Cert students

 

 

  

A Decade of Change: Donegal and Ireland, 1912 – 1923 Document Study pack (Education pack for second level students)

 

Ireland is engaged in a decade long commemoration of what is generally known as the revolutionary period in recent Irish history, covering the years from approximately 1912 to 1923. Donegal County Archives' commemoration of these crucial events in our history includes a document study pack aimed at second level schools and people interested in this period of Irish history. This education pack consists of: (1) an illustrated booklet documenting the history of this period in Ireland and focusing on Donegal in particular; (2) high quality facsimiles of documents from Donegal County Archives and other collections, and transcriptions; (3) questions designed to assist students to examine evidence contained in the facsimiles, (4) brief biographies of the main national and local players in this period in history.

 

The booklet examines this critical period in our recent history both from a CountyDonegal and a national perspective. The pack includes an introduction to the major events in Ireland from 1870 – 1912 and then examines the period 1912 – 1923, focusing on specific themes, nationally and in Donegal: The Third Home Rule Bill; Resistance to Home Rule; World War One; The 1916 Rising; The War of Independence; Truce and Anglo-Irish Treaty; the Civil War and Aftermath and Legacy. 

 

The document study aspect of the pack features 18 high quality reproductions of archives (facsimiles). These documents relate to each of the key themes and provide varying perspectives on these major events as they happened in Donegal. Transcriptions of handwritten documents are included.

 

This study pack is ideal for teachers and students of history in both the junior and leaving certificates and includes a selection of (junior certificate) curriculum based exercises on the back of each document.  The pack would also serve as a very useful introduction to the subject for undergraduates of modern Irish history. The pack is a resource for teachers and students that can be used throughout the decade of commemorations and beyond. The pack is available free of charge to teachers, schools and colleges.

 

Decade of Change pdfs: booklet and worksheets (facsimiles):

 

 Decade of Change

 

Decade of Change worksheets

Decade of Change Pack Facsimiles 12 & 16

 

 

County Donegal in 1916: From the Edge Donegal County Council History and Heritage Education Pack

 

As part of the 2016 Easter Rising Centenary commemorations Donegal County Council's Archives, Library, Museum and Heritage Office produced an education pack, a 64 page illustrated booklet giving an overview of the history of the county of Donegal in that year, and 19 facsimiles of archives and photographs with questions and exercises for students.  Please find below the education pack divided into three pdfs, also the facsimiles in three pdfs. Copyright remains with Donegal County Council, and all other owners of images contained in the pack; and they cannot be reproduced without prior permission. The pack can be printed off and used for schools or for private research. (The pack is also fully translated into Irish, see Irish version of our website.)

 

1916 Education Study Pack - 1  

1916 Education Study Pack - 2

1916 Education Study Pack - 3

1916 Facsimiles English - 1

1916 Facsimiles English - 2

1916 Facsimiles English - 3

 


Primary Schools Facsimile Pack



The Primary Schools Facsimile Pack (2006 project) was an innovative primary school history curriculum project supported by the Heritage Council and the Donegal Education Centre.

The aim of this project was to increase awareness of local archives and local history by introducing archival material to children at a young age, in a manner that causes no threat to the preservation of the documents.

The packs are potentially a very versatile teaching aid for use in history, geography, civics or social studies classes and are easily manipulated in the classroom.

Archival material demonstrates the nature of evidence, introducing the concept of primary and secondary sources and can also help develop a broad range of investigative and interpretive skills in students.

Documents in the pack are arranged under topics taken straight from the primary school curriculum and include: Homes and My Locality, Schools and Life in the Nineteenth Century.

There are packs for four different regions in the county of Donegal, with accompanying facsimiles of documents from the Archives relating to the regions. Documents include past and present day photographs of towns, railway notices and photographs of trains and other means of transport, plans of labourers’ cottages, school records, extracts from workhouse registers, and fisheries’ posters. 

 

PDFS OF PRIMARY SCHOOLS FACSIMILE ARCHIVES PACK


Introduction

Primary pack- Schools section

Primary Schools pack Homes

Primary Schools pack Farming

Primary schools pack- 19th Century

Primary Schools pack Transport

Primary Schools pack Glossary

 

Flight of the Earls Study Pack

To mark the 400th anniversary of the Flight of the Earls, with the financial support of the International Fund for Ireland, the Archives Service has produced a Document Study Pack for second level schools in Counties Donegal, Tyrone and Derry. The pack contains a selection of facsimiles of 16th and 17th century documents covering the events leading up to the Flight of the Earls of Tyrone and Tír Chonaill and the subsequent Plantation of Ulster. It also contains an introductory background to the history of the Flight, as well as worksheets. This pack was researched and written by Ciara Joyce for Donegal County Archives.

Copies of the pack are available on request to schools throughout the country.

 

Flight of the Earls Education Pack

 

Flight of the Earls cover of pack

 * Note: the Flight of the Earls' Pack facsimiles are available on request from [email protected]

 

 

Ulster Plantation Study Pack

 

The Ulster Plantation pack, produced to mark the 400th anniversary of the Plantation in Ulster, is aimed primarily at second level schools, and provides an introduction to this crucial period in Irish history, including the major events surrounding the Plantation up to the arrival of Oliver Cromwell in Ireland in 1649. It includes a background to the official scheme for plantation, the divisions of land, the newcomers to Ulster and also the subsequent rebellion in Ulster in 1641.

The pack uses facsimiles of original documents from the period to outline these historic events in Irish history, which students are asked to examine and answer a selection of questions on. This not only demonstrates the value of archival documents it also helps to develop essential research and analytical skills in students.

Documents in this pack include, letters, proclamations, maps and illustrations, provided by leading archives and libraries in Ireland and the UK, including Trinity College Dublin and Lambeth Palace Library, London.

The pack has been distributed to school in Counties Donegal and Derry and schools and colleges as well as individuals can still received copies on request.

 Ulster Plantation pack

 

Ulster Plantation pack facsimiles 1

 

Ulster Plantation pack facsimiles 2

 

 

A Decade of Change: Donegal and Ireland 1912 - 1923

The Archives Service produced a study pack for second level students on the theme of Ireland and Donegal's Decade of Centenaries (Revolutionary period), 1912 - 1923.‌

 

A Decade of Change: Donegal and Ireland, 1912 – 1923 Document Study pack

 

Ireland is engaged in a decade long commemoration of what is generally known as the revolutionary period in recent Irish history, covering the years from approximately 1912 to 1923. Donegal County Archives' commemoration of these crucial events in our history includes a document study pack aimed at second level schools and people interested in this period of Irish history. This education pack consists of: (1) an illustrated booklet documenting the history of this period in Ireland and focusing on Donegal in particular; (2) high quality facsimiles of documents from Donegal County Archives and other collections, and transcriptions; (3) questions designed to assist students to examine evidence contained in the facsimiles, (4) brief biographies of the main national and local players in this period in history.

 

The booklet examines this critical period in our recent history both from a CountyDonegal and a national perspective. The pack includes an introduction to the major events in Ireland from 1870 – 1912 and then examines the period 1912 – 1923, focusing on specific themes, nationally and in Donegal: The Third Home Rule Bill; Resistance to Home Rule; World War One; The 1916 Rising; The War of Independence; Truce and Anglo-Irish Treaty; the Civil War and Aftermath and Legacy. 

 

The document study aspect of the pack features 18 high quality reproductions of archives (facsimiles). These documents relate to each of the key themes and provide varying perspectives on these major events as they happened in Donegal. Transcriptions of handwritten documents are included.

 

This study pack is ideal for teachers and students of history in both the junior and leaving certificates and includes a selection of (junior certificate) curriculum based exercises on the back of each document.  The pack would also serve as a very useful introduction to the subject for undergraduates of modern Irish history. The pack is a resource for teachers and students that can be used throughout the decade of commemorations and beyond. The pack is available free of charge to teachers, schools and colleges.

 

Decade of Change pdfs: booklet and worksheets (facsimiles):

 

 Decade of Change

 

Decade of Change worksheets

 

 

 

Guide to the Archives for Teachers and Students


The Archives Service has also produced a Guide in  to the archival collections aimed at teachers and students. The Guide includes details of the major collections held by the County Archives as well as notes for teachers on how they might be utilized for the teaching of local history.

 

Teachers Guide

Treorai do Mhuinteoiri

 

 

Visiting the Archives

Teachers are welcome to visit the County Archives to view documents and receive information on the history of the collections. An appointment is necessary.