Scottish Clan
Project:
Kidnapped
begins with David Balfour leaving his home in Essendean after the
death of his father. Mr. Campbell, the minister of Essendean, gives
David a letter as requested by David's father. Mr. Campbell tells
David that his father wants him to go to the house of the Shaws
because "That is the place I came from and it's where my boy should
return" (Kidnapped, 1-2). Mr. Campbell, explaining the house of Shaws to
David, says "But the names of that family, Davie boy, is the name you
bear--Balfours of Shaws: . . ." (Kidnapped, 2).
Later in his adventures, David Balfour meets
Alan Breck Stewart (Kidnapped, 37). Alan
Stewart is from the Highlands of Scotland. Alan and David travel
throughout Scotland encountering various people of different Scottish
clans. Their journey ends when David returns to claim his inheritance
at the house of Shaws.
Procedure:
- Each Scottish Team will create a map of
Scotland (E.g. - 3-D map, 2-D colored map, etc.) Each map must
include:
- Scotland's three main land regions: the
Highlands, the Central Lowlands and the Southern
Uplands.
- The Highlands' two major mountain
ranges: the Northwest Highlands and the Grampian Mountains with
its highest peak, Ben Nevis. Also included is the deep valley
called Glen More which separates the two mountain
ranges.
- The Central Lowlands' three major
rivers: the Clyde (Scotland's most important river), the Forth
(one of the longest suspension bridges in the world crosses the
Firth of Forth) and the Tay (Scotland's largest river).
- The Cheviot Hills which rise from the
Southern Uplands.
- Various Scottish lakes (called lochs in
Scotland): Loch Lomond (Scotland's largest lake) and Loch Ness
(famous for its monster).
- Various Scottish Islands divided into
the Hebrides, the Orkney and the Shetland islands.
- Atlantic Ocean, North Sea and the
Scottish Sea.
- Scotland's capital city,
Edinburgh.
- Each team will write a brief paper on the
history of Scotland and its people. It can include information
regarding Scottish
- language
- clothing
- culture
- traditions
- daily life
- religion
- Assign wach team a clan. Each team will
create a display that represents its clan. Information on the each
team's clan should include information on the following:
- Clan crest
- Clan Tartan colors
- Clan flower
- Clan motto
- Brief history of clan origin
- Clan chieftains
- Clan territory
Shaw Clan
You are David Balfour and the name you bear
is the Balfours of Shaws. You belong to the Shaw Clan and you
want to know more about your family clan.
Campbell Clan
You are a member of the Campbell Clan.
According to Alan Breck Stewart, the Campbells are enemies of
the Stewarts. You want to find out about the Campbell clan and
why the Campbells do not like the Stewarts.
Stewart Clan
You are Alan Breck Stewart, son of Duncan
Stewart, the best swordsman in the Highlands of Scotland. You
want to find out about your clan and the Highlands of
Scotland.
- Each team memeber must do one of the
following individual projects:
- Research information on a Scottish
castle (E.g. - Torosay on the Isle of Mull mentioned in
Kidnapped). Using recycled items from class or home,
members will create a Scottish castle and present the castle to
the class, explaining various parts of the castle.
- Locate Scottish recipes. Members will
create one or two of them to be shared with the class.
(CAUTION: Ask teacher and/or parents for help with ingredients
and cooking.) Students will turn in a copy of the recipes that
have been discovered.
- Find and learn a folk song(s) or music
from Scotland. Members will lead the class in singing the folk
songs.
- Learn to play a Scottish game. Teams
will teach the class to play the game. Turn in a copy of the
instructions for the game.
- Study Scottish battles, the clans wars
or the Jacobite rebellion of 1745. Describe the events that
occurred. Create a map of the battle site. Study the events
leading up to the clash (E.g. - Why did the fight start?) and
the outcome of the conflict (E.g. - Who won?). Also describe
and find pictures of various weapons used.
- Each team member will keep a personal
journal or log of progress towards completion of the team project.
Each member will include individual and team work being done, the
team's successes, problems and any other information they want to
share with the teacher.
- Each team member will assess all the other
team members in their group. (See Team Member Assessment
Rubric)
Possible Resources:
- History of Clans in Scotland can be found
on the Internet at
http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/Heritage/FSCNS/Scots_NS/About_Clans/Scottish_Clan_System.
html
- Information on Scottish Clans can be found
on the Internet at
http://www.almac.co.uk/es/webclans/index.html
- Scottish maps, region and places can be
found on the Internet at
http://www.geo.ed.ac.uk:80/home/scotland/maps.html
- Scottish Fair and Folk
Tales by George Brisbane Douglas
(Arno Press, 1977)
- Book 11 Favorite Fairy Tales Told in
Scotland retold by Virginia Haviland
(Beech Tree Paperback Books, 1995)
- Book 4 Favorite Stories and Songs The
Bookshelf for Boys and Girls (The
University Society, Inc., 1991)
- The Historical Geography of Scotland
since 1707 by David Turnock
(Cambridge University Press, 1982)
- Highland Bagpipes [Phonodisc] by Seumas MacNeill (Tradition/Everest,
1971)
- (Cambridge University Press, 1987)
Go to:
Scotland and
Pirates Lesson
Schedule and
Summary of Lessons
Lesson Plans List