The Tanner's Story

Source: 

Second Nature - Environmental Studies Pack (5-14), SNH & RSPB -  available from the RSPB.

Inspired by an outdoor programme 'Woodland Ways' developed by English Nature at Lathkill Dale NNR.

Time

15 minutes 

You will need

• Blindfolds  (optional), one for each child
• The Tanner's story (see downloads)
• A costume or accessories for the Tanner to wear (optional)
• Wax crayons and paper for making bark rubbings (optional)

Did you know?

This character used the woods at the same time as the charcoal burner (see Charoal Burner's Story in this section). The tanner explains that oak bark is very rich in a chemical called tannic acid, which is ideal for tanning. Tanning is a process that takes animal hides and turns them into leather by soaking them in a liquid in that bark has previously been soaked in. Tanners were particularly busy at the turn of the beginning of the 19th century because Britain was at war with France and the army needed leather equipment and clothing. The best tanbark was made from young oak trees so that the woods were coppiced*. Stripping of the bark is carried out in spring and the tanner describes the role of each family member.

*Coppicing is the art of cutting of trees and shrubs to ground level allowing vigorous re-growth and a sustainable supply of timber for future generations. Trees and shrubs that are cut down in this way can produce shoots that grow over 30cm in a week and a coppiced tree can live many times longer than if the the tree had not been cut down at all.

Before the Activity

The Time Machine stories were originally written to be told as a sequence of six stories.  See Introducing the Time machine for further explanation of how to sequence and use the stories.  Prepare blind folds and the tanner's costume if required. If possible learn the basic content of the story so that you avoid reading from a script and thus can use gestures and eye contact to make the story come alive. 

The activity

Explain to the children that you want them to imagine that they are going to travel back in time. Five thousand years ago wildwoods covered most of Scotland however something happened that changed the wildwoods. To find out more about what happened to the woods, they are going to travel back in time 200 years and meet someone who lived here at that time. Use blindfolds or ask the children to cover their eyes, then all count back to 200 years ago, 20 years at a time. On an agreed signal they uncover their eyes and meet the Tanner who tells his story. They then re-cover their eyes and count forwards 200 years to the present day. Once they have returned to the present, use the discussion points below to reinforce what has been said in the story.

Discussion Points

• Can the children think of a name beginning with T to remember him by?
• What job did he do?
• Why were trees valuable to him?
• Who helped him?
• Who usually stripped the bark and why was this job carried out in the Spring?
• What did the young children do to help?
• How was the wood managed?
• How did the tanner feel about the woods?

Discuss the fact that the tanner (and the charcoal burner) depended on a coppiced wood. Grazing animals were fenced out to stop the animals from damaging the trees and that this also allowed seedling trees to grow. Explain that many of the remnant bits of native woodlands in Scotland today were used in this way and that it is likely that these pieces of woodland survived longer than others because the timber was valued and managed as a sustainable resource. Woodlands used by humans can still provide a great habitat for a variety of plants and animals.

If you have time you could go on to investigate the bark on the trees in the area around you. Explain that bark protects the tree in the same way that our skin protects us. In the Tanner's story, he says that trees can tell a story 'all you have to do is close your eyes and listen with your fingers'. Discuss what this could mean. Make bark rubbings using wax crayons and paper or try the activity Barking up the right tree.  Compare the size of various trees by seeing how many children are needed to span around a trees by holding hands. 

Suggested Follow up

The tanner's story leads on well to the activity Barking up the right tree.

This story can be followed or preceded by other Time-line stories, either taking place in the same spot or by moving to other relevant spots in the reserve or local area. 

Back in class you could enact a Timeline drama. Create props and costumes and count back in time, visiting stages of the timeline, with the children playing the role of the various characters.

Make bark rubbings and a wall display showing the bark, leaves and seeds/fruits and past and present uses of native trees.

Read other stories about historical characters across Scotland in the Time Team activity.

Research present and past uses of our native woods. 

Downloads

The Tanner's Story

Additional Information

• The Scottish Wood web site and the Trees for Life site provide in depth information on our native trees and their uses.
• Find out more about coppicing
  

Curriculum Links

• Language - main
• Social studies - main
• Technologies - main
• Expressive Arts - associated
  

Age Range

• 2. Primary
• 3. Lower Secondary