The boxes are part of the ‘Museums in Schools’ project, which aims to take objects and artefacts out of a museum environment and into the classroom. It originally started in late 2018 with four boxes going into schools, but the full roll-out was interrupted by the pandemic.

This year, thanks to sponsorship by Ogier, the project has resumed and 11 more boxes have been created, which are specific to the Jersey curriculum and include information about each of the objects they contain.

The boxes are based around the themes of toys, food, cameras, health, schooling, communication, the Stone Age, Tudors and Victorians. They are clear like a display case to enable students to see what’s inside and include a mix of original objects and replicas. The number of items in each box depends on the theme. For example, one box contains a single large radio, while another includes a Tudor bonnet, cannon ball and depiction of a Tudor Rose.

The boxes are taken into schools by the Jersey Heritage Education Team, who explain the contents to teachers before leaving the boxes with them for pupils to view and discuss during their lessons.

Saul Turvey, Education Officer at Jersey Heritage, said: “We’ve thoroughly enjoyed curating the items for the new boxes, which we think will inspire and delight students. Reading about a period in history starts the learning process but seeing objects from a particular period of time right in front of them can really engage schoolchildren in history and the stories it has to tell.

“The boxes are available to both primary and secondary schools and can remain in a school for as long as the pupils need them for the theme they are studying. We’ve also been busy creating additional online resources, which complement the boxes and will aid students with their learning.”

The online information to accompany the boxes includes short films that can be accessed via QR codes. These enable pupils to interact with the objects, even though they can’t touch them. The films are also available for general use on the Jersey Heritage Education YouTube channel.

Kate Kirk, Director of Marketing at Ogier, said: “We are really excited to see there are some amazing objects and themes in the Museums in Schools boxes. This project really inspires children to explore these objects close up and discover the bigger story behind them. We are also impressed with the associated YouTube channel, which offers new opportunities for exploration of the objects in school using technology.”