What we offer:
History Curriculum for Schools
The Complete Ancestors Programme
Introduce students, teachers, and your school’s wider community to the power of family history research and other untold histories. Ancestors unKnown has a complete programme for your school, including workshops, guest lectures, lesson plans, and special events!
Currently available for UK primary and secondary schools, key stages 2 and 3
Spaces are limited for our 2022-23 complete programme.
What you get:
- 1 introductory student workshop
- Topic: My story matters
- Time: 50-90 minutes
- Size: up to 30 pupils per session
- 8-week Ancestors unKnown course (aligned with UK national curriculum standards for primary and secondary schools)
- Topics: family history research + untold histories in the UK
- 3 guest lectures (50 minutes)
- 5 detailed lesson plans (50 minutes), including resources for teachers and programme packets for participating pupils
- Small closing event for school and/or local community
- A fun and enlightening opportunity for students to share their family stories and some new perspectives on history
- Topic: My story matters
- Time: 50-90 minutes
- Size: up to 30 pupils per session
- Topics: family history research + untold histories in the UK
- 3 guest lectures (50 minutes)
- 5 detailed lesson plans (50 minutes), including resources for teachers and programme packets for participating pupils
- A fun and enlightening opportunity for students to share their family stories and some new perspectives on history
Want to learn more?
Join an upcoming Information Session to meet a member of the Ancestors unKnown team, learn more about the programme, and get your questions answered.
Curriculum Package
The Ancestors unKnown curriculum package includes 10 detailed lesson plans, including resources for teachers and programme packets for participating pupils.
Lesson plans are in two categories: family history research and untold/marginalised histories. When taught in succession, the lessons encourage children to research their own family and community histories, while putting their ancestors’ into the context of a lesser known – but very relevant! – world history.
Lessons include:
- Who am I? Understanding identity and the definitions of family
- Oral history interviews
- What is your story? Documenting and sharing your personal history
- Resistance in the Empire
- Migrations to the UK
- Social movements and activism in the UK
Workshops + Trainings
Ancestors unKnown workshops encourage learning, sharing, and reflection about personal and untold histories. We deliver workshops and trainings about some of our most important and popular topics for students and teachers.
Available for small and large audiences, online and in-person (whenever possible)
Topics include:
- Your story matters: discovering and celebrating your own story (creative expression workshop delivered in 1 or 2 parts)
- Who am I? Connecting family, identity, and the importance of personal legacies
- Introduction to family history research: why it matters and where to begin (1 or 2 parts)
- What’s in a name? The loss and recovery of Black identities over time
- Untold history topics, including:
- the impacts of colonialism
- migrations to the UK
- resistance movements in the UK’s Black and Brown communities
- Teacher trainings:
- Nurturing inclusive classrooms
- A new way to teach the past: introducing students to their own histories
- the impacts of colonialism
- migrations to the UK
- resistance movements in the UK’s Black and Brown communities
- Nurturing inclusive classrooms
- A new way to teach the past: introducing students to their own histories
Custom Services
Looking for a bespoke solution?
Introduce your students to family history research and other untold histories with a custom Ancestors unKnown programme.
Services include:
- Student workshops – choose 1 or more workshops about family history research and/or untold histories
- Teacher training and workshops, various topics
- Lite curriculum package – teach all the lessons in the core Ancestors unKnown programme yourself, with the lesson plans and resource materials provided
Contact us to discuss a custom package and learn more about our bespoke services.
What our participants are saying
Our students in the Netherlands share what they learned about themselves and their family histories when they participated in the Ancestors unKnown programme.
Riva’s grandfather made little money at the shipyard in Turkey. He left for Amsterdam to work hard for a few years and then to buy a house in Turkey, but things turned out differently.
During the 1940s, Daksh’s ancestors were profoundly affected by the conflict between India and Pakistan. They were forced to leave their homes and relocate to a safer place.
Mayli’s mother’s family moved to the Netherlands from Suriname. Like many others who have ancestors who were enslaved, her family name is a reminder of the country’s painful legacy of slavery.
Tobi and Nick’s mother fled Vietnam with her parents during the war in Vietnam. With danger surrounding them, they have an incredible story of survival.
