The Tyn y Wern Primary School ‘Trench Detectives’
Pupils at Tyn Y Wern Primary School are celebrating, having been presented with a prestigious national award for their extra-curricular history club project.
The pupils, in Years 5 and 6, led by the school’s History Coordinator Caroline ap Hywel set up a research project to commemorate the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War – aptly naming themselves the ‘Tyn Y Wern Trench Detectives’.
Their hard work and detective efforts were rewarded when the school was informed that it had won a Welsh Heritage Schools Initiative award for their project. The school received their award and a £1,000 prize at a ceremony held at the University of Wales Caerleon Campus on Monday 7th July.
As part of the project, the pupils researched the origins of the war and discovered details of the main events and battles using the internet, archive footage and documentary evidence. They also linked up with a school in Verdun, France – College Maurice Barres – and gained their perspective on the Great War, and in particular the Battle of Verdun.
The ‘Trench Detectives’ then turned their focus to the local men and women who lost their lives during the war, with some pupils researching family members and others beginning a quest to discover the story behind the soldiers’ names on the local cenotaph.
Much of this research was carried out at the Winding House in New Tredegar, and through this the pupils developed high level research skills through looking through military service records, census returns, medal index records and the Commonwealth war graves.
The project culminated in the pupils creating their own ‘Trench Detectives Museum’ to showcase all their work. This has been transferred to the Winding House for public display as part of a large-scale exhibition on World War 1, which will open to members of the public at the beginning of August.
Headteacher Steve Noel said: “I am so proud of our students, led by Caroline ap Hywel, for their enthusiasm and hard work on this project. As a school, we feel it important that we appreciate and value the rich history and culture of Wales and the winning of five consecutive awards is clear testament to this. I am pleased that our pupils have really grasped the opportunity to learn more about this important subject, in this the centenary year of the outbreak of World War One. Well done to you all.”
Cllr Rhianon Passmore, Cabinet Member for Education and Lifelong Learning said: “My congratulations go to all at Tyn Y Wern Primary School for receiving this prestigious accolade. The ‘Trench Detectives’ should feel extremely proud of themselves for their commitment to discovering more about the First World War, and especially in remembering those who lost their lives during the conflict. I look forward to seeing their museum exhibition taking pride of place at the Winding House for many people to enjoy.”
