Discover a Stone Age World at www.mountsandel.com
Wednesday 25 June 2008
During the 1970s, Professor Peter Woodman and his team of archaeologists uncovered evidence in Coleraine of a Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) settlement dated 7900 to 7600 BC. Their discoveries dramatically revised our understanding of prehistoric life here and the site remains the earliest known evidence of human settlement in Ireland.
Now you can explore what life was like during the Stone Age through an innovative new e-learning resource for primary schools. Developed by the Causeway Museum and designed by CCEA Multimedia, the site explores the evidence found at Mountsandel and what it tells us about people who lived in Mesolithic Ireland.
The project is part of a three year Community Outreach Programme funded from the Causeway Museum Service, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund. The Causeway Museum Service has worked with three local schools, the Environment and Heritage Service and the Ulster Museum to design a range of activities to engage children and their families with our prehistoric past.
Community Outreach Officer, Gemma Reid said, “When there is so little left to see at Mesolithic settlement sites such as Mountsandel, this new resource really brings our distant past to life in a fun and accessible way. We hope that the website will raise awareness of Mountsandel and encourage schools and the local community to find out more about this fascinating period of our national heritage.”
Caroline Marshall from the Heritage Lottery Fund said, “We are delighted to support this project which will enable children to learn about life in prehistoric Ireland. With its interactive activities and fascinating facts the website engages people with our distant past and opens up this heritage for everyone to enjoy.”
The website has been developed with CCEA and is designed to meet the needs of the revised Northern Ireland Curriculum. It includes a wide range of Flash Media interactive learning activities on how archaeologists piece together clues from our prehistoric past, how people lived during the Mesolithic Period and how life changed with the arrival of new settlers in the Neolithic Period.
There are several quizzes and games to test pupils’ learning as they explore the website as well as a searchable database of additional photographs, drawings and video clips showing how other schools have brought the Stone Age to life. There is also a variety of teachers’ resources including curriculum links and further information on the excavation at Mountsandel and what we know of the Mesolithic and Neolithic periods in Ireland, as well as downloadable active learning workshop ideas, sources of more information and resources, and an interview with Professor Peter Woodman.
Discover a Stone Age World for yourself by logging in to www.mountsandel.com.
For more information, please contact the Causeway Museum Service on (028) 7034 7234 or cms@colerainebc.gov.uk
Ends
Notes to Editors
The Causeway Museum Service, which represents a partnership between the four local authorities of Coleraine, Ballymoney, Limavady and Moyle.
Mountsandel.com was officially launched at 12.00pm on Friday 6th June at Coleraine Borough Council Offices.
Contact: Gemma Reid, Telephone: 7034 7265 Email: gemma.reid@colerainebc.gov.uk
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Pictured left to right are: Gemma Reid, Community Outreach Officer, Causeway Museum Service, Andrew McAfee, Joanna McFarland, Malachy McDaid and Stephen O'Kane from CCEA Multimedia. |
