well that explains it

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just as thehobbit's medieval studies class comes to an end, i discover my own bit of medievalness (real word) -    i managed to trace one line of my mother's family back to some muckity-mucks the middle ages! yes, about six months ago, i joined the ranks of amateur genealogists, & began researching my family. in fact, that research is one of the things that has kept me from blogging on a regular basis. that, & a certain pesky toddler.

so! the short of what is a very long story: tinker (who has been addicted to genealogy vastly longer than i) thinks she may have found one of my ancestors on the bayeux tapestry. let me interrupt myself here to say that the more i learn about my the places & players in my family history, the more i am convinced that we are drawn to what is in our blood. if that makes no sense, i apologize. i'll explain what i mean more fully another day. back to the topic at hand - this morning i showed the bayeux tapestry to thehobbit, which led us to some fun. enjoy!

firstly, for those who may not have heard of the bayeux tapestry read this. 

some activities at britain's bayeux tapestry. our favorite is the interactive create your own tapestry link. (note :: this is not the original tapestry, but a victorian reproduction, that is housed in england.)

& now watch this wonderful animation, created by students at goldsmiths college.

~peace.

hello from the middle ages - part two

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cartoon :: property of  ???

today i am sharing the videos i have found. i hope to find many  more, & if i remember to hahaha, i plan to update this post. let's get straight to it, shall we?

lost castles of england i mentioned this one yesterday. the kids loved it. the documentary discusses the wooden castles that were built for about 250 years, beginning in 1066. the gore-factor is moderate. i found it on netflix, instant watch.

the dark ages this documentary is fabulous. i recommend it for middle school & up, as the gore-factor is seriously high. also netflix, instant watch.

clarissa & the king's cookbook is a short bbc show about what is possibly england's first cookbook. even if you aren't studying the middle ages, you should see this - it is so interesting. gore-factor is zilch.

part one

part two

part three

terry jones' medieval lives  i have yet to watch these, therefore do not know if they are child-friendly. it's terry jones, so they are bound to be wonderful. amazon has books that go along with this short series, by the way.

enjoy!!! (happy leap year!)

~peace.

hello from the middle ages - part one

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photo :: property of miss paper

i did not mean to be away for so long,my dear one & only reader. did you know that a pestilence can go through four people in the same home, at different times, & drag the whole blasted affair out for weeks on end? it was not the most fun few weeks of my life, i will say that much. however, all are well now, & i am slowly getting us back to our normal goings on.

one thing we are getting back to is medieval studies; thehobbit & some friends began studying together, just before the dreaded pestilence hit. the above photo is from our first class. they watched the documentary lost castles of england, then set about building a motte-&-bailey castle from pretzels & icing.

over the past few weeks, i have been compiling a list of books to add to our collection. in case your kids are interested, i thought i'd share the list with you. i'll begin with what we already have:

the measly middle ages

living long ago

time traveller books (tinker's book)

knights & castles (paper's book)

the door in the wall (tinker's book)

& now the list:

you wouldn't want to live in the  middle ages

plagues, pox, & pestilence

archers, alchemists, &...

terry jones' medieval lives

the forme of cury

it's not a complete list by far, but it is a good start. if you can only afford one book, i recommend measly middle ages. the horrible histories books are brilliant.

~peace.