Does Saxon food matter?

[learnandsay]

When I can I take my daughter to historical re-enactments. We haven't been to many yet and those that we have been to she hasn't liked much, except parts of Norwich castle.) The Viking one that we went to recently had open fires and the smoke got in her eyes. Then men with chain-mail and heavy shields fought and she asked if we could go home! But she did seem to absorb lots of details about their clothes, their food, their cooking methods and so on. So, even though she claimed not to have liked it I think that trip was worth it. Thinking about King Alfred makes me think of Saxon food. But in practice it seems so similar to Viking food that it doesn't seem worth making a special effort to visit such a re-enactment. Would this be fair? My daughter is very young. I think perhaps we'll visit Winchester when she's older. But for now we'll read about Sutton Hoo, (maybe visit) but beyond that will leave the Saxons alone.

[learnandsay]

Well, your most recent post, theneblous, and mrz's are more or less the type of responses that I was after. I'm interested in mums who've wattled, daubed, dug post holes and carried out the embers with their children. What do I want my daughter/children to learn from such experiences? Nothing in particular any more than I'd expect them to be able to list a tea-clipper's rigging or regularly splice the mainbrace after one visit to the Cutty Sark. For me it's not so much about learning in its formal sense as experiencing. As far as I can tell, when you've experienced something you are in a far better position to learn about it. And initially I'm simply talking about visiting. I'm not talking about taking part in camps and so forth. I'm also not talking about how often we make such visits either. I'd imagine that we would only visit the Cutty Sark once. Do you need to know where I live for this conversation to make sense?

[JugglingMeYorkiesAndNutRoast]

DH complains bitterly of a childhood blighted by many a trip to see "Beam engines" around the country. I think it was his step-father's passion.
I'm not sure quite what they are - think steam engines that don't actually go anywhere and you may be on the right track

[TaggieCampbellBlack]

I feel somewhat inadequate.

I have never in my life considered whether saxon food matters

[QuickQuickSleigh]

Not Saxon, but this place is brill for children a bit older than your DD.

Off topic, wrong age group and possibly too far away. Sorry OP!

[fuzzpig]

It sounds like the name of a charity campaign!

[simpson]

But surely you don't need to go to a reenactment about it, read a book or something. Cook Saxon food at home (if it floats your boat)...

DD is currently obsessed about elephants (but I am not taking her to Africa to see one - or even the zoo for that matter as she went a few months ago)...

We just read about them, she draws them (again and again and again - you get the idea ) look up pictures/footage on the iPad....

[learnandsay]

Now that's quite brilliant, quickquick! I used to live don't in South Wales. We don't go there very often since the children were born, but we do still holiday there occasionally. We'll be visiting this one for sure. My daughter adores prehistoric people and has done ever since she saw the BBC history animations.

[FryOneFatManic]

DP and I like history, but while we were visiting places, events, experiences, we were always (and still are) conscious that this is our passion, not the DCs passion. They enjoyed things with us, sure, but we made sure that for each trip out to see our stuff, we had/have a trip based on things that they like.

We've always done our best to ensure that we didn't force our likes onto the DCs.

OP this is the point several people are trying to make to you. Yes, it's good if there's something you all enjoy, but you do need to remember that a) your DC is FOUR and b) your likes, dislikes, passions even, are not necessarily going to be hers.

I can see what you are saying about experiences, but please don't overload the poor child.

[GrimmaTheNome]

or regularly splice the mainbrace
I should hope not!

Its all a matter of finding an appropriate balance of activities for your child(ren), isn't it?

[tethersjinglebellend]

(mead for OP)

[LIZS]

are you sure you aren't just projecting your enthusiasm onto her - adores is a bit strong for seeing the odd programme surely ! At 4 activities should be fun in their own right not part of an educational strategy. Next week she might be equally keen on ballet.

[learnandsay]

I hear what you're saying, fryone. But there is sometimes a general panic abroad in these forums. And it seems as though saying that we went to see a Celtic roundhouse a year ago must also mean that I'm now forcing my daughter to build one in the garden and am beating her with nettles if she fails to raise the structure by at least three feet per day.

[GrimmaTheNome]

Well I should think not... surely you should be cooking those nettles in a cand-cast iron pot?

[LIZS]

but you aren't asking whether these experiences are suitable events to take your dd to , you are asking others to validate your decision to persist despite your dd not really enjoying them !

[mrz]

www.murtonpark.co.uk/html/dark_age_village.html

My children loved visiting Danelaw dark age village

[learnandsay]

No, lizs, I'm not. I'm asking: does Saxon food matter? The details about the re-enactment are incidental, (as people who have posted books on historical food have understood.)

[TheNebulousBoojum]

'Do you need to know where I live for this conversation to make sense?'

Are you being deliberately obtuse? I live in Sussex, we have a huge range of opportunities of the sort you crave within daytrip reach. If you live in Wick, or The Shetlands there's not much point in recommending things that are 800 miles away.
When she's older, and only if she wants to, you could let her join www.yac-uk.org/

[raspberryroop]

I'm a MRZ groupie and love the idea of her little girl joining in re enactments but think her dd at 4 enjoyed being around her mum and a group of probably very lovely people > outside doing forest school type activities, rather than 'being a saxon'. I'm sure it has sparked interest etc but how may 4 year old know how to place Saxons into context or a timeline or with real historical understanding.?

[MirandaWest]

I really should take the DC to Murton Park seeing as it's very near me. Just never got round to it .

I have never really thought about Saxon food.

[droves]

Sometimes museums do the " dress up as saxons/ medieval/ Vikings " activity days for children .

The one in Edinburgh did for awhile . Kids loved it .

Mabey she would enjoy that more than standing about outside looking at strange people pretending to be fighting.

[learnandsay]

Thanks again, mrz. I'm going to bookmark this thread.

[LIZS]

In that case given that the Saxon age is one of the least well documented eras despite covering several centuries of English social evolution, then no.

[learnandsay]

No, the nebulous, I don't think that I'm being deliberately obtuse. But thanks for asking. People have posted recommendations which are indeed 800 miles away from me and I'm very grateful for them. I'm not the only person reading this thread. And I do intend to visit roundhouse village in South Wales, even though I live nowhere near there. And I've long intended to see work on Viking York even though I live nowhere near there either. My daughter also loved the Roman excavations in Kempten, Germany, although we live nowhere near there either.

[MmeLindorNOTYET40]

Ok, as I understand it, you took your 4yo to a Viking reenactment, which she did not particularly enjoy, but was interested in some parts of, such as the food and clothes.

Your question is, should you take your daughter to a Saxon reenactment, since the things that she found interesting are likely to be broadly similar to the Viking camp.

Is that right?

I am coming at this question as someone who dislikes the kind of dress up historical stuff - I can go along to this kind of thing and find it interesting but am quite dubious about folk who do this every weekend and drag their kids along when they'd be happier playing on their wii.

Anyhow. My answer to your question, is that I don't think a Saxon camp would be sufficiently different to a Viking camp to further the interest of your daughter. particularly when she didn't enjoy the first one.

And I think that you should consider the many posters who have given you advice on how your hot-housing of your daughter could back-fire and turn her off learning about history.

This is a discussion forum, and people are giving you advice and tips, most of which you are ignoring to concentrate on the few who are giving you ideas on other places to take your DD.

[noblegiraffe]

Why didn't you ask for recommendations on good Saxon day trips if that's what you wanted? Instead of whether Saxon food matters to a 4 year old (answer obviously no)?