Electronic resources: The National Archives launch e-learning resource on Victorian Britain

An unique e-learning resource The Victorians launched by The National Archives. The resource combines documents from The National Archives with objects from the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) to teach primary school pupils about the Victorian era.

The Victorians website encourages primary school children to think like historians, by examining and evaluating artefacts such as census returns, newspaper articles, illustrations and photographs.

Clare Horrie, Education Web Manager, The National Archives said: “As well as being new and quirky, the material is significantly different to what already exists in textbooks and other web resources, and it offers pupils and teachers a combination of documents and objects to evaluate”.

The resource will enable pupils to develop skills in interpreting primary sources and learn the concept of using 'evidence' to answer questions about the past - and thereby discover more about the Victorian period.

The resource comprises online activities for independent study as well as interactive whiteboard activities for teachers to use with a class or group.