Talkin' Saxon

A History Trail video History Trail is an award-winning video series which brings history to life through an entertaining and imaginative approach to enquiry. Using a children's TV show format, the videos stimulate classroom discussion of key• ideas such as evidence and interpretation, associated with the characteristics of a particular period. Each programme uses evidence from many different sources and comes complete with teacher's notes.
Talkin' Saxon comes live from the Saxon gallery of a museum where celebrity presenter John Shuttleworth introduces on the spot Saxon cookery, clues challenges, a rune game and the secrets of Saxon weaving and jewel craft. Scattered through the programme, a series of Saxon Sum-Ups and contemporary advertisements add detail to the basic facts and provide pause points for classroom discussion. Meanwhile out on location at West Stow, a re-constructed Anglo-Saxon village, roving reporter Mark Mywords shows how the Anglo Saxons farmed, built houses and kept the home fires burning. The programme uses both authentic and replica Saxon artefacts vividly and imaginatively and concludes with a Saxon Superbrain contest drawing together some of the key facts in a fast moving summary. The video can be watched over several lessons as a basis for discussing historical truth.