South Shields Museum launches sensory digital story-telling for children with special educational needs and disabilities

‘Sensory Journeys’ is a project developed by South Shields Museum, offering inclusive digital sensory story-telling sessions to children and their families which are linked to local history and provide engagement with the museum's collections.

Three unique, fictional stories have been developed for the project by local artists and writers.

The stories include ‘Davy's First Shift’, the tale of a 12-year-old boy working down the coal mines, created by local artist and coal miner Robert (Bob) Olley.

‘Little Bear and the Treasure Box’ is a love story about the famous Regina Tombstone at Arbeia, South Shields’ Roman fort, created by North East writer Bronwen Riley.

The third story is ‘To Catch a Smuggler’, the story of three children who catch a smuggler at Marsden Bay, created by flash fiction writer John Nicholson.

Foley Art (Foley is the reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added to films, videos, and other media) has been produced by Ruth Sullivan, an Emmy award winning Foley Artist and is used throughout to enhance the sessions and help the listener engage with the stories. Listeners are prompted to join in with the sounds, using objects found in the home to help bring the stories to life, or they can sit back comfortably and listen.

Each digital storytelling session has several components including an audio story file, a transcript, a Foley Art sound library, and lots of fun, sensory and creative activities to take part in.

The listener can: create their own sensory environments; learn how to make their own Foley Art sound effects, just like in the movies; enjoy activities that promote health and wellbeing; create their own sensory stories; and more. In addition, there is a cross curricular formal Primary Schools program, which includes the opportunity for completing an Arts Award and handling real artefacts linking to the stories.

Leslie Palanker, Assistant Learning Officer at South Shields Museum & Art Gallery said: “The project forms part of the museum service’s response to the SEND community, who said they would like more online museum programming for children and young people that is inclusive, on-demand, and that follows a regular structure.

"They wanted resources that allow children and young people and their families to learn at home, at their own pace, without being overwhelmed especially at a time when Covid-19 is disproportionately affecting the health and wellbeing of disabled people.

John Nicholson flash fiction writer and author of To Catch a Smuggler said: "I really enjoyed being involved in this project. During my career in science education, I often improvised equipment and models to enable my students to experience science as an active discipline - to do science rather than hear about it.

"This project gave me the opportunity to do much the same in a very different creative field. The project enables children to enjoy a story in an active way, improvising their own soundtrack to the images in their mind."Sensory Journeys can be enjoyed for free via the South Shields Museum website https://southshieldsmuseum.org.uk/learning/sensory-journeys

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