Dwardu’s Scoops
Medieval Laptops? By Samantha Abela
During the course of the year, the Year 8 students learnt about Medieval Europe from the rise of the Normans, the Battle of Hastings, Feudalism, Castles and even Health and Medicine. Through the Lapbook exercise, the students revise the material that has been covered in class during lessons however it also sparks their curiosity and spurs them to investigate further. In fact, the students are given basic guidance as to what is expected, and the content presented is written in their own words after they have done appropriate research. Some of the topics investigated were: Medieval Cures, Causes of the Black Death, Plague Doctors, Superstitions, Medieval Castle parts, Weapons, the Domesday book, the relationships in a Feudal Society and other Medieval Curiosities. Such an exercise ties in perfectly with the ‘Think, Understand, Learn’ philosophy practiced at St Edward’s College. Not only does this project promote investigation and research skills but it also enhances creativity and presentation. The students are urged to show case their findings in unconventional ways. As such not only are they enhancing their knowledge but it is also creating a memorable experience for them which will help them to remember this information for years to come. WHAT IS A LAPBOOK? A lapbook is an interactive collection of completed learning tasks related to a specific subject. It's called a lapbook because of its large size, and it can be easily placed on your lap. Lapbooks act like a file folder. They help to organise different sections inside to make it easy to find specific information. Page 6
