Case Studies
The purpose of this section is to give a flavour of the exciting work by museums, libraries and archives with Skills for Life and adult learning in Yorkshire. These case studies have been collected by YMLAC as part of our commitment to sharing the good practice taking place in the region. They represent a diverse range of work that has been carried out by various different organisations, as part of various programmes and with a range of funders.
Archaeology and Basic Skills
Learners with literacy skills below level 2 were recruited for a special ten-session summer course in archaeology, with literacy skills embedded into all activities.
Creative Writing in the Library
A 15 hour creative writing course was run in Dewsbury library, in partnership with Dewsbury College, for learners referred by the probation service.
Entertainment in the Past
This ten week WEA course used museum, library and archive resources to improve literacy skills of adult learners. The group spent a term researching ‘Entertainment in the Past’, using library books, information such as old newspapers and photographs from the local archives, museum objects and oral history memories from friends and family.
Kirklees Library Service Skills for Life pack
Kirklees library service produced a Skills for Life resource pack in partnership with Hudderfield Technical College. The resource pack can be used by Skills for Life tutors or by library staff, and is aimed at literacy learners. The activities in this pack are designed to be used by Skills for Life learners when they visit a library, to designed to demystify the library, and explain how a library works. The pack is generic, so could be used in any library setting and activities are mapped to the core curriculum.
Leeds Open Doors
The aim of this project has been to create learning / resource packs for literacy and ESOL students to be used during joint sessions in the Central library and the City Art Gallery.
Museum Pathways
The Yorkshire Waterways Museum provided work placements for 21 adults including resettling prisoners and the long term unemployed, over a number of months.
Opening the Doors to Family History
This partnership between Rotherham archives, Clifton Park Museum and Rotherham ACFL has led to the creation of a Family History resource pack for entry level learners and their tutors. The pack can be delivered as a twelve week course, or on a pick and mix basis, and provides an introduction to family history research with embedded speaking and listening, reading and writing activities.
People's War Gallery
North Lincolnshire Museum developed a new, interactive and user-friendly gallery based on the 2nd World War last year. The new gallery provides a resource for local Skills for Life tutors, and North Lincolnshire Museum staff hope to develop these links in the future.
Rock the Walls
Rock the Walls project ran a 12 week training programme for a group of young adults with links to the Skills for Life Curriculum. The learners would study the three venues (National Railway Museum, York Castle Museum and York library) and then work with a digital artist to use their knowledge to produce promotional materials such as postcards.
Skills for Life through Family History
In partnership with Preston Road NDC, Hull History Service took family history into the community, by running a series of taster sessions. The sessions provided an introduction on how to research family history, including using family trees, visiting websites, and buying family records online.
View from the Hall
As part of a wider project to explore country houses in the East Riding, a group of learners visited Burton Constable Hall to explore a new environment. The learners had some physical disabilities and studying basic and life skills between milestone 5 and entry level 2.
What's Your Story?
In partnership with Dewsbury College, Kirklees Community History Service offered a 6 week literacy course using objects, photos and oral history recordings from the museum collections as a stimulus for finding out about the local history of Dewsbury.