The children from 2nd Class recently went on a trip to the Museum of Country Life in Turlough. It was also National Tree Week so we started our visit with a ‘Tree Walk’ looking at the various trees in the grounds of the museum. We learned lots about the parts of the tree, names of trees and facts about trees. It took 3/4/6 children to stretch around the trunk of some of the trees. The older the tree the more children it took! We were surprised to learn how far the roots of some trees stretched. It took 46 children to stretch around the outer edge of the roots of the tree.

After our playtime and lunch we went in to see some of the things that are displayed in the museum. We started in the lobby looking at some of the old clothes that were there, particularly those from The Aran Islands. Some of us even got to try some of these clothes on. We thought we looked very funny!

Then we went to the ‘Straw, Hay and Rushes’ exhibition where we saw lots of things that were made from these materials including baskets, a mattress, chairs, a harness, a cradle and even a door!

Next was the ‘Hearth and Home’ section where we learned about all the things that happened around the fire long ago. We were very interested in the way the kitchen has changed nowadays and some of the things that are no longer used. We decided life is much easier now!

Finally we looked at the ‘Trades and Professions’ section of the museum. Some of the jobs here we had never heard of e.g. cooper, harness maker, blacksmith and we noted other professions that are very different today e.g. a shopkeeper and a teacher. School long ago was also very different!

We all had a great day at the museum and the children really enjoyed the visit. Lots of them plan to visit again with their families in the future.