In this unit children will have looked at the number and location of schools within the area, area populations, the different types of buildings, building materials, safety, the different types of schools, transport options to school, play spaces near or integrated into schools, schools in the community.
Sources for the unit have included the following:
(1) Photographs and aerial photographs of the school / schools and surrounding locations, including comparative photographs over time.
(2) OSI maps.
The Ordnance Survey 6" inch maps of Ireland are useful to locate schools in your area.
(1) Dublin Civic Survey or similar
The Dublin Civic Survey was commissioned by the Civics Institute in 1922. It was prepared by Horace T. O'Rourke, City Architect of Dublin, and the Dublin Civic Survey Committee, and published in 1925. It consists of a report setting out a town plan for Dublin, a series of aerial photographs undertaken by the Army Air Corps, and a set of maps to accompany the survey. The maps cover the central Dublin city area and the wider region. They show archaeology, geology, traffic, hygiene, housing, recreation and education, industry and commerce. Here we see the Recreation and Education map, showing schools, libraries, theatres, cinemas, parks, etc.
(2) School publications - newsletters, periodicals, annuals, records,
(3) City and county development plans are issued by local authorities to show how an area will develop over a five-year or ten-year period. The locations and types of schools within an area will be depicted, showing the spread, placement and variation in schools
(4) Plans for proposed schools may have survived. They could be found in periodicals such as The Irish Builder or may be available from the local parish or from the Department of Education.