CHILDREN at a primary school are able to follow the history of the world as they walk to lessons using a “museum-quality” timeline on the wall.
The giant illustration starts in the Stone Age on the school’s ground floor then rises through the centuries on the wall of one of the school’s two stairwells.
It includes lines for UK and world history as well as a special line charting the school’s history since it first opened on Beaufort Road in 1958, using old log books and archives to piece its history.
Executive head teacher Simon Botten said: “We were keen that children understand our island’s history, but also how it connects to the history of Bristol, and the history of the wider world.
“Having looked at the timelines available on the market, we decided that we needed something more bespoke and therefore decided to work with designers at 2601 to create something special for the school.
“The project took six months to plan and design, as the timeline includes the history of Bristol, the history of the UK and the history of the world civilisations which the children study at the school. “We also wanted all the diversity of communities which attend our school to see their history in the timeline, so have included some aspects of world history which wouldn’t usually be found on regular timelines.
“It also includes the whole history of Bristol, from the first Roman settlement in Shirehampton, to the murder of a Saxon King in Pucklechurch, to the growth of the city as one of the most important ports in Britain.”
The timeline also includes a big world map to help children can find out where civilisations grew up and events on the timeline happened.
The school is using the timeline to set children monthly quizzes to test their knowledge.
Mr Botten said: “We want the timeline to be something the children engage with every day so that, over time, they learn how different periods of history fit together.
“We believe that a secure understanding and love for history helps children make sense of the modern world in which they are growing up.”