Ordinary to Extraordinary
The Rockfield Centre was one of 8 projects across the UK to receive funding from English Heritage’s ‘Shout Out Loud’ in partnership with the Young Archaeologists' Club to design and deliver an archaeology-themed project in our community as part of the From Ordinary to Extraordinary initiative. The project focused on exploring untold stories and narratives linked to a site/place chosen by their group. One aim was to reach out to support young people who have not traditionally been able to participate in archaeology and/or explore topics that might appeal to new audiences. This project was also to have a strong youth voice and co-creation angle.
Our Project Journey
When the group first started planning for this project we began with the idea of creating a type of game based on a map, like a treasure trail or maybe Monopoly. As the group began brainstorming, we realized that there were some interesting things to learn before embarking on the larger project of creating a game. The group expressed interest in discovering more about places in our town that they were curious about and do something with that because maybe others would be curious too. We were lucky to have had local historian Mhairi Ross spend time with the group for one session. The members wrote questions and then recorded an interview to make a podcast episode about the caves in the area, in particular, MacArthur’s Cave. The caves have provided evidence about the life of people living in the Oban area during the Mesolithic time period. Our group was fascinated by this because so many people didn’t seem to know anything about the caves. You can listen to their podcast episode below.
The second part of our project was an interactive walk around Oban led by YAC co-leader and archaeologist Tara Coggans. The group brought their families along to share the experience of learning about Oban’s past and its built heritage. During the walk, the group explored how to use our new 360 camera to capture images of the places they were learning about. These can be viewed as part of a playlist on the Rockfield Centre’s Heritage Youtube channel. The next step for the group is to record the stories about the places they saw.
The next step for the group will be to continue working to create a digital map game using the camera. They are full of great ideas such as making it have a time travel theme and using QR codes to unlock points or clues.
Our YAC group started in September 2021 and our members are fairly young. This is a new club activity for young people in the area that is different from the sports, music, Scouts, or Guide activities that are currently open. It attracts kids curious about history and wanting to learn about their surroundings. It is exciting to have had the opportunity to be involved with the From Ordinary to Extraordinary because it makes the members feel like they have something important to do and their work is going to be noticed even though they are younger. They like the idea that other kids will learn and have fun with what they make. This project has evolved from the initial idea by listening to the youth voice and letting the group guide the decisions.
Funded by From Ordinary to Extraordinary, a Shout Out Loud initiative in partnership with Young Archaeologists' club, to support grassroots, youth focused heritage projects. Shout Out Loud is a Kick the Dust project funded by National Lottery Heritage Fund.
