Friends of Abbey Gardens animation workshop at Ranelagh Primary school

This stop-motion animation shows how the artists got the young animators to dive into the history of the nearby Stratford Langthorne Abbey, connecting the children to their local area through history.  They learned how archeologists discovered remains of monks, the layout of the abbey buildings and why the abbey got buried for so many years and what clues are in the landscape today.

The young animators thought about how the medieval monks would have been able to read, have knowledge of medicinal plants and growing vegetables, keep animals and most importantly bees for making candle wax, before electricity.  They found out that the monks would have helped the people who lived around the abbey.  Today Friends of Abbey Gardens is a voluntary community garden, connecting local people to biodiversity, growing and helping each other.  Many of the young animators had never heard of Abbey Gardens and now they (and you!) can visit for free, attend gardening, yoga and bee-keeping events.

The children used Stop Motion Studio (free app) and worked in groups of 3 on a tablet with a camera, held above the table on a clamp.

The artists are specialists in using digital tools and drawing to make creative outcomes to bring technology and art together.  This workshop was developed to hone the Year 5’s experience in stop-motion animation.

Visit Abbey Gardens – www.abbeygardens.org