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The Maiden’s Leap
The legend of the Maiden’s Leap is set over 400 years ago at Huntingtower Castle in Perthshire. This poem by Fiona Davidson tells the story in Scots - have a go at reading it out loud! See the animated film at hes.scot/maidens-leap How many windaes (windows) are there in this drawing of Huntingtower Castle?
dorothea
Lang syne, there wis a lassie Dorothea wis her name. She steyed at Huntintour in a castle she cried hame.
This castle wis unusual an wis no quite aw it seemed fur it wisnae yin bit twa tours wi a fearsum gap atween.
Noo Bonnie Dorothea wis in luve wi a lad, John. Her faither didnae bless this an her mither wis fair thrawn. Sae whan John cam tae veesit Dorothea, they thocht best, thit she’d bide in the East tour an thit he’d stey in the West.
What names would you give your heroes if you wrote an adventure story?
This yin nicht, Dorothea thocht thit she an John should speak.
sae waited til maist ithers in the castle wur asleep.
She heided tae the West tour but her mither’s vyce caw’d oot, “That’s no you, Dorothea, oot yer bed, creepin aboot?”
In fricht, young Dorothea ran upstairs an oot the door thit led oot tae the rooftap whaur she’d nivver been afore.
She keeked doon at the gap that lay atween thae twa big tours. Tae get back tae her bedroom she’d nae choice but tae loup ower!
Her mither heided back doon, thinkin she hud been misled. Meanwhile, oor Dorothea quickly cooried intae bed.
The neist day Dorothea met wi John an ran awa sae they could baith be mairried an thegither efter a.
glossary Any Scots words you don’t know yet? Circle the ones that are new to you: (Thanks to the students of S1H6 at Perth High School for this list.)
lang syne cried wisnae yin /twa tours thrawn thocht bide
long ago called wasn’t one / two towers stubborn thought stay / live
maist ithers vyce fricht keeked loup cooried neist
Film link:
most others voice fright looked jump snuggled next
Mony thanks tae Dr Michael Dempster fur help an advice wi Scots leid yaised in The Maiden’s Leap poem.
Young Makars There are many tales about Huntingtower – from visits by Mary Queen of Scots to the story of Dorothea and her leap of faith. There are also lots of ghost stories including tales that say Dorothea herself, also known as Lady Greensleeves, still haunts the towers. S1H6 at Perth High School have written their own poems in Scots that are inspired by the stories of Huntingtower Castle.
castle Huntingtower is an auld thvens. Built by the ruthless Ru It’s a castle fu o history gap Fae a quine who jamp a s steying the nicht. Tae Mary Queen o Scot s oot fae a the rest But wan story that staun rothea. Is aboot a quine cried Do tae get mairret d She wis a lassie fa winte Tae a loony cad, John. ther and faither Baith wid hide fae her mi One nicht she ran awa A leap o faith er efter. Bit they lived happily ev wart, Leo McGillivray Winston Flynn, David Ste
Sum hink Dorothea is the only ghaist At Huntingtour castle, But yer wrang. There are far too mony tae coo nt. In canon holes, the cludgie, unn er tables Bed, fire places fir the lowe is het; Even oan rooftaps. But yer nae alood intae yon gap atween Dorothea’s bourie She cannae move She cannae leave A ither ghaists hink her frichts ome She skirls a day n a nicht Naebody tae hear. Sassenachs come, but niver lea ve Her ghaistly wally coupon the last They’ll keek.
A lassie moved tae Perth fae Leeds, And decided tae git sunfloor seeds, So tae Dobbies she gaes, but taks a wran g turn Intae Huntingtour ca stle insteid. Whilst wanderin ab oot, she met a lass in green They yattered askin “fir’s yer floor seed?” Sae sleekit Lady Gree nsleaves led her tae the roof an CRASH Doon the lassie went . An as her spirit flo ated oot She remarked “I dinna think yon wi s Dobbies”
Isla Ruddock, Mega
n Lees, Arabella Brow
n.
Miriam Flutur and
Try it!
Flora Wylie
Didyouknow? © Julie Howden
e Yince upon a tim cad Dorothea. ie ss la There wis a gtower castle, She bide at Huntin ie named John. dreamin o a ladd ree. Her folks didna ag him. they let her meet y pp ha r he ak m e Ta West tower John slept in the st. Dorothea in the Ea esit John. hea winted tae ve Yin evenin Dorot mither hear. e couldna let her Sh d. oo al na is w She ble. ing she wis in trou She panicked kenn nger. da in is tae pit hersel The only option w o the castle, Reaching the tap ts she crept. tae the battlemen llest pairt. Standing at the ta ging. f wi naywhere to She foond hersel n tight. Scared irts wrapped aroo sk s: ae cl r he a in Gaither eath Takin a muckle br Jamp and lived The pair ran awa r. Happily ever efte
Makar is a Scots word for a poet.
nu
Nicoleta Scutarea
Can you write your own poem about your favourite place? It could be in Scots or another language you know.
een the The gap betw r, as filled in late two towers w ks o lo wer Castle so Huntingto ing now. like one build
Story Walk If you like making up stories, sometimes inspiration can be closer than you think! What can you see when you’re walking around your local area or from the window of a bus, car or train? Are there stories you can make with these ingredients? If you’re out for a walk or a drive, use these easy recipe lists for extra fun – or create your own! Simply cross off what you see and then turn some of your ingredients into a story!
Story Walk 1
Story Walk 2
Story Walk 3
puddle
church spire
bush
interesting stone
something mysterious
flower
something red
cat
three birds of one kind
something broken
hedge
oddly-shaped cloud
weeds in a funny place
indoor plant
poster
old wall
bin
dog
grass
tall tree
park bench
insect
something sunlit
coin
colourful shoes
narrow path
something wet
furry animal
river, stream or lake
berries
bird
nest
rubbish
gate
bus
mud
Lots of stories are about journeys. Can you draw your search for your story ingredients? Or maybe you’ve thought of a story that you’d like to draw.
Do you like making stories by talking or writing with others? Try starting a sentence and letting someone else finish it. Then they can start another sentence for the next person to finish.
Historic Fact or Historic Fiction? When we read about things that happened a long time ago, it can be tricky to separate out what really happened (fact) from the fictional (made up) stories that got passed down from generation to generation. A great example is the legend of John Damian’s flight: John Damian de Falcuis was born in Italy and came to the royal court of King James the Fourth as a doctor and scientist. King James loved learning and was interested in art, science and medicine. In 1507 John Damian tried to fly from the walls of Stirling Castle with wings made of feathers. They didn’t work and he fell into a mucky heap, breaking his leg. Some say he made his wings out of eagles’ feathers, along with some ‘inferior chicken feathers’ which is what he blamed the failure on.
Historic fact or fake news? Probably fake news! We think a poem written by William Dunbar in 1507 was where this story came from: He schewre his feddreme that was schene, And slippit out of it full clene And in a myre up to the ene Amang the glar did glyd
schewre: shed feddreme: feather coat schene: bright myre: muck-heap
ene: eyes glar: mud glyd: slide
It seems to have been written as a joke rather than as an account of real events – so we don’t think the attempted flight ever actually happened. But in 1578, historian John Leslie claimed it was all true so we can’t be totally sure.
So which bit of the legend is real? John Damian was a real person who was close to the King. Records show that John Damian played card games with the King and took part in shooting matches with him at Holyrood and Stirling Castle.
Why would William Dunbar write about John Damian? William Dunbar probably wrote his poem to mock Damian because he didn’t like him and was jealous of his close friendship with the King. However the King stayed friends with John Damian throughout his life.
Why is this story still told today? Maybe because the historian John Leslie said it was true over 400 years ago. But perhaps just because it’s a great tale of someone who tried to fly like a bird and had a disastrous descent but survived the fall. There are lots of other stories that give warnings about how humans shouldn’t show off – have you heard anyone use the expression ‘pride comes before a fall’?
Fact or Fiction? Which of these do you think is TRUE (fact) and which do you think is FALSE (fiction)?
1
In 1300, Edward the First brought along almost 9,000 soldiers to fight against only 60 soldiers defending Caerlaverock Castle in Dumfries & Galloway.
2
In 1314, the King of Scotland, Robert the Bruce, rebuilt Edinburgh Castle after years of attacks from English soldiers.
3
James the First tried to run for his life through the sewers of a monastery in Perth in 1437, but the underground tunnel had been blocked up to stop tennis balls escaping so he couldn’t get through.
4
People attacking St Andrews Castle dug a tunnel under the walls to try to get inside. The people defending the castle from the inside built another tunnel to try to stop them. The two sets of tunnellers met underground and fought each other!
5
Mary Queen of Scots kept a unicorn horn at Edinburgh Castle in the 1500s.
6
Jacobite soldiers failed to capture Edinburgh Castle in 1715 because the ladder they brought was too short.
7
In his book Treasure Island, the author Robert Louis Stevenson wrote about the pirate ‘Black Bart’. 21 of Black Bart’s pirate crew were captured and put in prison at Edinburgh Castle in 1720.
8
Queen Victoria visited Tantallon Castle in 1878 and had tea in the Great Hall.
9
The Honours of Scotland (the Scottish Crown jewels) were hidden under a toilet for protection during World War Two.
10
In August 1941, the Banff distillery was bombed and the locals had to drink all the whisky that had spilled everywhere.
TRUE FALSE
Historical fiction Lots of books written today use real characters or real events from the past as part of the story. The authors who write them often use their own imaginations to invent what the characters might have been thinking or feeling – and to make the story more exciting they might change it a bit or add in extra characters and events that didn’t really happen. These books can be great fun to read as they combine real life with imagined bits! They are often called ‘historical fiction’ novels.
1. True – it was a bit over the top! 2. False – he ordered almost all of it to be destroyed so that the English wouldn’t want to capture it again! 3. True – poor James. 4. True – it would have been a really cramped place to fight! 5. Well, we know Mary thought it was a unicorn horn because it was on a list of her special things written at the time. But in reality the horn would have been narwhal or walrus tusk. 6. True – so close yet so far! 7. True – shiver me timbers! 8. False – Queen Victoria did visit Tantallon Castle in 1878 but she had tea while seated on a sofa at the edge of the cliff looking out to sea. 9. True – hide and stink! 10. False – the distillery was bombed, but the whisky leaked into a burn, making local cattle and ducks drunk!
Toss a Tale Want to invent your own stories but stuck for ideas? Get your imagination flowing by creating a tale-table! You can use them to invent stories out loud with your friends and families, or use them as inspiration to write or draw your very own story. Simply throw your dice to get a character and then again to get their trait for as many characters as you need. Then roll three times to get a problem, an object and a place. See what kind of story you can come up with using all these elements together! Keep rolling if you want to add new characters, problems, objects and places and make a longer story. Here are a couple of tale-tables to get you started – featuring some of the fabulous historic places and objects cared for by Historic Environment Scotland. Character
Traits
Conflict/Problem
Object
Place
queen/king
snooty
being lost
coin
cathedral
warrior
stressed
a rivalry
pirlie-pig (piggy bank)
Pictish stone
servant
energetic
theft
shoes
lighthouse
messenger
miserable
injustice
comb
Roman fort
stableboy
frustrated
natural disaster
bell
doocot/dovecot (pigeon house)
monk/nun
confused
a terrible mistake
crown
palace
Character
Traits
Conflict/Problem
Object
Place
dragon
scared
a fire
key
standing stones
cook
confident
a storm
ink pot
castle
knight
a risk-taker
betrayal
ballot box (voting box)
bridge
jester
rich
a chase
helmet
museum
healer
friendly
misunderstanding
map
well
ghost
determined
missing person
narwhal tusk walking stick
blackhouse
No dice? No problem! Make a spinner by cutting out a circle or hexagon from card. Write the numbers 1 to 6 around the edges and stick a pencil through the centre (mind your fingers!). Spin the pencil and see where the paper touches the table. Or you can hide the list from someone else and get them to choose numbers between 1 and 6 for you!
If you want to know more about some of the intriguing objects in this table like the narwhal horn walking stick, take a look at hes.scot/collections
Story cards
Cut out these story cards to inspire your story-making or illustrate your stories! PLACE
Doocot/dovecot (pigeon house), Dirleton Castle
The Calanais Standing Stones
The Arnol Blackhouse
Glasgow Cathedral
Pictish stone, Elgin Cathedral
Cook
Jester
Stirling Castle Palace
Queen Key
Comb
Crown of Scotland
Stableboy
Knight
Ballot (voting) box
Dragon
Twopenny coin
Narwhal tusk walking stick
CHARACTER
OBJECT Comb: found at Caerlaverock Castle Key: found at Kildrummy Castle Crown of Scotland: Honours of Scotland, Edinburgh Castle Ballot box: Trinity House Maritime Museum Narwhal tusk walking stick: Trinity House Maritime Museum Coin: made in Edinburgh, over 400 years ago
2
5
4
[title]
1
Putting words or doodles (or both!) into an order can be helpful when you’re planning a story. Use the table below or draw out your own grid – you can use as many boxes as you like! Happy storyboarding.
Your storyboard This is a technique that directors sometimes use to plan films!
6
3
Create your own puppet shapes - anything goes!
Here are some shadow puppet shapes for you.
Shadow Puppets
Create a shadow puppet theatre to tell your stories. You will need: • Black card • Sticks e.g. lolly sticks, twigs, old pencils • Sticky tape • Scissors • A cereal box • Thin white paper - e.g. tracing / baking
Make your theatre: Grab a cereal box, carefully cut out a large window, and stick white paper over the gap the window makes. An old picture frame with the glass removed and white fabric stapled on works brilliantly too.
Make some puppets: Create your puppets using the black card in the centre of the magazine. You can cut out the shapes we have drawn or draw your own - mount them on sticks with sticky tape. You can cut out dragons and warriors, knights on horses, or even magic monsters – your imagination has no limits.
Try creating some backdrops too – cut out our castle or imagine your own. Or you could use real twigs to make a forest! All of these can be fixed to your frame with masking tape to keep them in place.
Put on a show:
A light source is all you need now – darken the room as much as you can, set up the light source (maybe a torch or a lamp) behind your theatre and hold your puppets up against the screen. If you can play a little music to add atmosphere, even better! Your audience on the other side will be spellbound.
Mary Queen of Scots’ Diary This story was written by author Maisie Chan. She takes us into the thoughts of Mary Queen of Scots when Mary returned to Scotland from France aged 18 - ahead of schedule! As a teenage Queen with a tough job ahead of her, Mary tries to find moments of joy and hope amidst her many worries. Dear Diary,
Soon we’ll arrive in Scotland, the land of my birth. I have been gone 13 years. The sea was unusually calm on our journey - it only took five days to get from France to near Leith. I hope everyone is ready for my arrival! The sea mist, which they call haar, is so thick that I can’t see my hand in front of my face! I’ve come back down below deck to tell you (and only you) my thoughts about this new adventure.
There are so many things I need to learn about my new home, and the country which I am going to rule as queen. I worry I’ll be rubbish at it. I feel very much alone since mother and dearest Francis passed away. I don’t know if I will laugh again. However, I’ve got a job to do, and I intend to do it well. I just wish sometimes I could be free to roam wherever I wanted to go.
Dear Diary,
I can’t quite believe I am writing this. No-one is here to welcome us. You would think being the queen that they have at least put up a welcome banner! To make matters worse, not all my baggage has arrived. I’ve had to borrow some dresses from the four Marys, who are the best ladiesin-waiting a queen could have. One of them went out to find me a Scottish cake which was a sweet gesture. The food is different here, but I am liking trying new treats.
The rooms at Holyrood Palace were not yet ready and so we’ll stay with a local merchant. My mother’s furniture has not yet been delivered. When it all arrives at least I’ll have something of hers close by. Yet I fear that even with my mother’s things around me, this place will still feel as foreign as can be.
Our party has been taken out to explore Edinburgh, Many of the locals have been very friendly, One small girl gave me a posy of flowers. Perhaps all is not as bleak as it first seemed. Dear Diary,
We’ve moved to Holyrood Palace which is very nice and spacious. One of the servants said I will need my golden necklace that is also a pomander and that she can fill its chambers with lavender to remind me of France. This might help with the bad smell starting to seep into my chambers from below. With so many of us staying at the palace, I’m afraid to say that the number ones and number twos have steadily piled high. An almighty stench fills my nostrils each morning, but it is a good excuse to get outside and smell the crisp Scottish air. I love the scenery that surrounds us and am keen to explore further. I’ve been informed that in a few weeks we shall travel to Stirling Castle to allow the muck to be cleared out.
Having to move around the country to get away from bad smells is a good excuse for me to see more of my kingdom.
Dear Diary,
Today was my welcome parade. Everyone in Edinburgh came out to see me as we rode down the Royal Mile from Holyrood towards the castle. The people were waving and most looked happy to see me. My heart felt light, if only for a few moments. At the Lawnmarket a beautiful archway had been made from which a child dressed as a cherub was lowered down from overhead. The sounds of the choir were heavenly. But near the Netherbow, a dragon made from papier mâché was set alight in front of my eyes. I felt as if the dragon represented my Pope, and the burning was a challenge to my authority. I decided to show no reaction in public and rode by without saying anything. However, inside I was angry and hurt. Dear Diary,
I managed to get outside for a ride today for the first time since arriving. Scotland is truly a beautiful land. It was a lot of fun to have some time alone where I could just be me, Mary, rather than a queen. After doing my duties today, I shall play a round of golf! I am excited to play it here, in the country where it was invented.
I am beginning to love Scotland, even if not all in Scotland love me back. Will they ever take me into their hearts as I am trying to do with them? I hope so dear diary, I really hope so.
a diary? Do you write ally not Diaries are usu e to read. for anyone els write diaries Some people ber what to help remem when, and they did and only write some people had very when they’ve r very hard happy days o down your days. Writing feelings thoughts and helpful – can be really en they’re all especially wh your head. jumbled up in
Didyouknow? Mary Queen of Scots visited or stayed in lots of historic places across Scotland – we’ve listed some of them below. Circle the ones you’ve heard of or been to! Royal residences
Castles
Other sites
Edinburgh Castle* Falkland Palace Holyrood Palace Linlithgow Palace* Stirling Castle*
Balvenie Castle* Borthwick Castle Castle Campbell* Craigmillar Castle* Craignethan Castle* Crichton Castle* Dumbarton Castle* Edzell Castle* Hermitage Castle* Huntingtower Castle* Inverness Castle Lochleven Castle* Lochmaben Castle* Tantallon Castle* St Andrews Castle*
Alloa Tower Beauly Priory* Callendar House Dunfermline Palace Inchmahome Priory* Mary Queen of Scots House, Jedburgh Spynie Palace* Traquair House Whithorn Priory*
Mary Queen of Scots had to move home - and country - many times. What do you miss about home when you’re not there? We’ve got two stories about moving between homes that you can watch online: Finding Home by storyteller Mara Menzies and Princess Minakshi by storyteller Gauri Raje: hes.scot/inspired-by-the-past
*cared for by Historic Environment Scotland. Have a look at some of our places online: hes.scot/visit-a-place
Magnificent Manuscripts Have you read a book where you love the way the pictures and the words all fit together on the page? Hundreds of years ago, monks and nuns living in abbeys across Scotland worked to copy out and decorate religious books and other documents. These are often called illuminated manuscripts and would have had glowing colours and beautiful designs. The manuscript you can see in the picture was created by monks at Culross Abbey in Fife in the 1400s and is now cared for by staff at the National Library of Scotland, who have shared photos of it online.
Create your own funny folk tale. We’d like you to create your own modern-day illuminated manuscript – but by playing a game of chance to come up with the words. Ask a friend or family member, who hasn’t seen the story, to give you a word to fill in each blank. Give them the prompt underneath the blank to help them choose a word. For example, if it says adjective (a describing word), they might say huge, blue or scary. If it says verb (a ‘doing’ word), they might say swimming or cooking. Once you have filled in all the blanks, read the silly story back to them and make up a title. Enjoy decorating your page with doodles. Can you draw the magical creature at the end? You could play again with someone new and see how different their story is. Or try creating your own story with blanks!
Stories of growing up at Edinburgh Castle Sometimes stories are told through plays and films where the actors learn what to do and say from a script. Young people from Lyceum Youth Theatre, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig (the National Centre for Gaelic Language and Culture) and Deaf Action Youth (with support from theatre company Solar Bear) created some great scripts and were filmed acting them. Each of the 12 young people imagined a moment in the life of an Edinburgh Castle child. Some are famous children from the past like young kings and queens. Others are made-up characters, but based on what we know about how children would have lived back then.
Fun fact!
Ten of the films are in English, one is told in BSL, and one is in Gaelic.
Take a look online at hes.scot/castle-children to enjoy the 12 films (mostly under a minute) and get swept up in the Castle Children’s thoughts and feelings.
Which character do you think you’re most like? Which character can you imagine yourself acting? If you were to make a play or a film about a child who lived in the past, would you pick a child with an easy life or a hard life? Would you choose a moment in time where they were angry, happy, sad, afraid or excited? That feeling would guide which words you would use and how you would say them.
eep in the
mountains of Scotland,
(ADJECTIVE)
on an island in the middle of a(n)
(ADJECTIVE)
loch, there was a castle made of
. (SOMETHING RED)
In that castle lived a knight who always wore
(COLOUR)
They loved castle life. Every day, they would wake up and go a big bowl of
(FOOD)
(ITEM OF CLOTHING)
(VERB ENDING IN ING)
and play
(GAME)
.
, then eat
until bedtime.
ntil one day a magical creature arrived from over the mountains, with the head of a(n) (ANIMAL)
and the body of a(n)
.
(ANIMAL)
The creature warned that a great disaster was coming! And they were right - the knight spotted a giant wave of
(SOMETHING BLUE)
rushing towards the castle. But the creature knew just how to stop it.
They pulled out their magical
(SOMETHING LONG)
(YOUR FAVOURITE WORDS)
They both lived there
(FEELING ENDING IN LY)
and shouted the magic words -
. The wave disappeared and the castle was saved!
ever after.
Who tells Scotland’s stories? Storytelling can be a hobby and it can be a job. Here are six people whose job it is to tell Scotland’s stories. Read on to find out how they tell stories and hear their top story-making tips.
Mara Menzies, Performance Storyteller
Sally Gall, Interpretation Officer I use words and images, films, games and music to tell the stories of historic places. It’s my job to tell the stories of lots of different people, and open up history for as many people as possible. I want everyone to be welcome when they visit, and to feel that the stories being told are their stories too. My top tip is to think about all the senses – touch, taste, smell, sight and sound – and try to use them all in your storytelling.
I live and breathe stories every single day learning, creating, and sharing them at festivals, in theatres, in schools, in fact, wherever anyone needs a story. I love to think of how differently they can be used by people in all sorts of situations, either learning from them, being inspired by them, or simply being entertained for a short while. My top tip for storytelling is simply to tell stories that you really love.
Sally organised for Deaf tour guide John Hay to share stories of historic places in British Sign Language (BSL) – watch his tour of Edinburgh Castle: edinburghcastle.scot/bsl-tour
n, Dr Laura Harriso es Cultural Resourc Advisor ories! My job ork is all about st w y m n, ia or st hi tand what As an story and unders hi om fr s ie or st is to take the past. I love t people living in ou ab us ll te ey th ies today, so lp share these stor he to t ge en th I ns too. that to future generatio on ed ss pa be n they ca of the about the narrator k in th to is tip p ns they My to e different emotio th ow sh to y tr d story an feeling. might have been
Mara created a ‘storytelling top tips’ video and a story filmed in Kenya and Edinburgh called ‘Finding Home’: hes.scot/inspired-by-the-past Laura and her colleagues Morvern and Judy told us about some great stories to look into, then helped us research and check some of the facts in this magazine.
Do you like the stories & activities in this magazine? Let us know at hes.scot/ magazine-feedback or tag #LearningWithHES
Barbara Henderson, Children’s Author children I write historical adventures for travel to to and young people. I also get my work, tell schools to talk to pupils about rkshops. My them stories and run drama wo is the magic of favourite thing about stories ry, aloud or the ‘head-cinema’ - telling a sto motion in the on a page, sets something in in to see reader and listener: They beg words and something in their minds. My ething unique their imaginations create som g when you together. You know it’s workin s! eye ir spot a faraway look in the elling is like a My top tip is that good storyt Come in when party: arrive late, leave early. and end the story is already kicking off e is resolved. when the major conflict or issu
Dr Alasdair Whyte, Gaelic Singer
I enjoy sharing people’s stories through song. As a Gaelic speaker, I like learning the stories of people who also spoke Gaelic and chose to share their stories in Gaelic. Stories in Gaelic song make me cry, laugh and, above all, proud to be from Muile/Mull and from Alba/Scotland. My top tip for telling stories is to put your heart into them. Put yourself in the shoes of the person who first told the story and tell it like it’s your own.
àidhlig Òrain is sgeulachdan Gh
bruidhinn na Tha daoine air a bhith a’ n an Alba. An Gàidhlig fad linntean an ag innse robh fhios agad gu bheil òrain na sgeulachdan agus a’ seinn Gàidhlig? phàirt mhòr de chultar na ith air seinn bh a Tha òrain Ghàidhlig air se mun cuairt agus sgeulachdan air inn n an caistealan, theintean, air muin eich, an chaighean air aig cèilidhean, ann an da a-nis air feadh an t-saoghail agus ideothan de loidhne! Coimhead air bh àidhlig an seo: òrain is sgeulachdan Gh es hes.scot/gaelic-resourc
Helen Wyllie, Illustrator My job is to illustrate people’s stories, so I either back up their words or I convey them purely by image. Sometimes I’m illustrating a wh ole story - a picture book, or the eleme nts for an animation. Other times I’m creating a single image that can convey some of the story to an audience perhaps a poster for a theatre show, or an album cover. My favourite thin g about telling stories is that I’m given words to interpret, and then I get to produce what I imagine! My top tip is to really understan d what you’re telling. Research, think, build a back story in your head. Mean it.
Barbara dreamed up the toss-a-tale, story walk and pupp et activities. She’s created a grea t recommended reading list that you can browse at: hes.scot/inspired-by -the-past Helen created most of the illustrations in this magazine, fro m MQoS’s sketches to the Maiden’s Leap . She also designed the pages so the im ages and words fit together. See the Ma iden’s leap animation at: hes.sco t/maidens-leap Hear Alasdair’s Gaeli c songs at: hes.scot/gaelic-reso urces
Gaelic songs and stories One of the languages spoken in Scotland is Gaelic, which people have been speaking for centuries. Did you know that telling stories and singing songs is a huge part of Gaelic culture? Gaelic songs have been sung and stories have been told around fires, on horseback, in castles, at ceilidhs, in homes around the world and now online for you to hear! Watch videos of Gaelic songs and stories at: hes.scot/gaelic-resources
A picture is worth a thousand words. Today we tell stories using pictures in cartoons, comics, and graphic novels. In the past they did the same in tapestries and stained glass windows. Woollen tapestries kept rooms warm and looked impressive on the walls. The tapestry below is part of a set that hangs in Stirling Castle, telling the story of the Hunt for the Unicorn. What do you think is happening in this scene? Write it in the caption box below the picture. What are the characters thinking and saying? Fill in the thought and speech bubbles.
How many dogs can you spot? Can you find the bunny rabbit? Which is your favourite hat?
Didyouknow? What do you think happened before this scene? What do you think happened after? Draw your own cartoon to show what happened next.
Tapestry weavers have a giant drawing of what they are weaving behind it, so they can follow the pattern. It’s called a cartoon!