Medieval times: explore the unique lifestyle of medieval castle dwellers through these creative activities

Instructor, Oct, 2002 by Mackie Rhodes

During Europe's Middle Ages, castles were built for one primary purpose: protecting people and property. As you begin your unit, ask students to share what they think they know about medieval life, and record their responses on a chart.

The Castle Community

Explain that there existed inside the castle walls a complex community of people who worked, feasted, and played together. Distribute the reproducible on page 58. Invite students to take a "crayon walk" through a medieval castle by coloring each numbered part as you discuss it. Then have them brainstorm what the structure reveals about how castle dwellers lived. For example, there was little privacy, the community was always prepared for war, animals were kept inside the walls, etc. What do they think it smelled like? Sounded like? Have students write a list of questions like these that they would most like to explore, then break the class into groups, each to research a topic in depth. To start, see "Castle Books and Web Sites," page 61.

Castle Facts Bulletin Board

As students learn additional details about the Middle Ages, display their research on a clever "Castle Facts" bulletin board. Draw a large stone-castle outline as a guide and graph the towers and walls into rectangles. Cut shapes to match our of construction paper, then keep these colored-paper "building stones" on hand so that each time a student discovers a new fact, he or she can add it to the wall. In no time your class will have built its own medieval castle!

Song and Story

When not engaged in warfare, castle residents enjoyed activities such as feasting, games, crafts, music, songs, and storytelling. The songs and stories of the medieval period often told of great accomplishments, courageous acts, or historical events. Characters such as King Arthur and Robin Hood and stories such as The Canterbury Tales were very popular. After inspiring students by sharing some of these stories, ask them to write their own, using what they've learned so far about the time period and the people that lived in it. Then gather students in the great hall of your castle classroom and invite them to read, tell, or sing their stories to the class.

Student Study Chambers

Because most areas in a castle were shared by all, dwellers often used screens to create private spaces. Let students transform their desks into quiet places to read and take tests with their own privacy screens. For each screen, fold a half-length of 22" by 28" poster board into three panels and have students decorate the outsides. To customize the interiors, copy reference sheets onto colored paper for students to choose from, such as a hundreds counting chart, manuscript or cursive-alphabet reminders, a vowel-and-consonant sound chart, or multiplication tables. If desired, students also can add the Reproducible diagram on page 58.

Maggie Samudio, Cumberland Elementary, West Lafayette, IN

Castle Careers

During the Middle Ages, each job in a castle community filled a specific need. But before a young person could get a job, he or she completed an apprenticeship--rigorous training by an expert in the field. As children research the period, have them list some different medieval jobs and the training required to do them. Talk about how the jobs compare with some modem occupations. Then take a vote to find out for which jobs students would most like to have apprenticed. Plot the results on a castle-shaped graph. For older students, invite one or more guests who are experts in a specific trade to demonstrate their crafts for the class.

Page-to-Knight Time Lines

Of all medieval professions, knighthood was one of the most important, as knights defended the castle household. Have students create time lines to illustrate the long and involved process of becoming a knight in medieval times. Typically, a boy of seven moved to a relative's castle and became a page. At 15, he became a squire. He would be dubbed a knight around his 21st birthday. Have small groups of students each research a stage in this process for its time line. What would a boy learn in each stage?

Chivalry Scrolls

A medieval knight was expected to behave a certain way. For example, he was expected to be loyal, to help his companions, to be honest, to defend the weak, and to show generosity. These standards were known as the Code of Chivalry. Invite students to create their own codes in this fun scroll activity. After discussing parts of the knights' code, challenge students to brainstorm other aspects of chivalry, then compare with today's expectations of conduct. Are they different? Similar? For students' codes, give each a strip of 11" by 17" paper.. Have students divide their strips into six sections, and label the first "_____'s Code of Chivalry." Students can name and illustrate a different ideal of conduct on each section, then decorate and add a border. After students share their personal codes, give each a fancy seal to make it "official." Then roll up each scroll and tie with fancy ribbon.

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