Comic gets out message to schools
Warwickshire County Council has taken a comic approach to engaging young people in an archaeological project in Bidford.
Buried under Bidford is an outreach project aimed at giving local people the opportunity to experience hands-on archaeology and learn more about the rich heritage of the Bidford area where archaeologists have unearthed evidence of Roman and Anglo-Saxon settlements.
To encourage children to get involved, the project has produced a comic featuring a picture story of two modern day children being taken into the past to live with Romans, facts from Roman times, puzzles, games and historical information.
The comic ties in with the key stage 2 National Curriculum and is aimed at 7-11 year olds. Copies of the comic can be obtained from the Historic Environment Record, Warwickshire Museum, Roman Alcester or Bidford library.
An exhibition displaying artefacts featured in the comic is also running at Warwickshire Museum in Warwick’s Market Hall. These include a tankard discovered at the site of a Roman fort, a Samian bowl from Gaul and a spike from the Roman bridge at Bidford which shows the roman practice of coating a wooden spike with iron to make it easier to drive it into the ground.
Project manager for Warwickshire County Council, Christina Evans, said: “The archaeology of an area such as Bidford is priceless and should be preserved for future generations.
“Speaking to young people helped shape the format of the comic so that it would be in a format they would understand and enjoy. Our feedback since it was published shows that it has helped the Buried under Bidford project to reach young people which is the only way to safeguard its heritage long term.”
For further information please contact Christina Evans on 01926 418023.