The Theme for the 2003 Competition was

"Changes since theSixties"

Certificates, prizes and trophies were presented by the Mayor of Newtownabbey, Alderman Paul Girvan Use the links below to read some of the winners from this and earlier competitions

Children discover if the Sixties really did Swing

It was an era of major events on the world stage. At the beginning of the decade there were bright hopes that man was reaching for a new frontier as Kennedy briefly shone at the White House even though the Cold War continued. His goal of landing man on the moon was achieved by the end of the Sixties but the Berlin Wall was created and Northern Ireland saw the beginning of thirty years of troubles.

Martin Luther King spoke of his dream and Mandela went to prison as the Wind of Change swept through Africa. America became embroiled in Vietnam and Chairman Mao proclaimed a Cultural Revolution in China. In Britain there was the excitement of a World Cup win, the music of the Beatles and the arrival of the mini skirt as London became the swinging capital of the world. At a more domestic level many of today's grandparents were getting married.

It was this that inspired the theme, Changes since the Sixties, for this year's competition for Primary Schools organised by Ballyclare and District Historical Society. Parents, grandparents and teachers gathered to watch the pupils receive their certificates and prizes from the Mayor, Alderman Paul Girvan. The competition was launched in 1995 as a tribute to Mrs May Craig and Mr Robert Grange, past Presidents of the Society. The aim is to encourage primary school pupils to do original research in their local area. Rather than simply ask for entries which described life here in the Sixties, entrants were required to analyse what has happened in the intervening years, fulfilling the educational aim of examining continuity and change.

There were nearly four hundred entries spread over P4, P5, P6 and P7. The information collected was so good that it was decided to publish a fourth volume of children's writing with the help of Newtownabbey Borough Council. Excerpts have been used so the work of eighty five pupils is fitted between the covers. The judge, Mrs Diane McCaughey, daughter of Mrs May Craig and a former principal of Dunamuggy Primary School, commented on the high standard of the entries reflecting the excellent teaching in our local schools. "I really enjoyed reading the entries and they brought back many memories. One in particular was of the heavy snow in 1963. My mother was very community minded and had us delivering supplies and making sure that the elderly were alright. I am filled with admiration for the way children today manage all their school work inspite of the many distractions."

The competition is divided into two sections and pupils in P4 and P5 compete for The May Craig Shield and those in P6 and P7 for The Robert Grange Shield. The individual winners receive certificates, copies of the book and monetary prizes provided by The First Trust Bank and points to determine which school is awarded each trophy.

First Prize in the Senior Section went to Simon Shannon from Ballyclare Primary School who created a detailed questionnaire given to people who were his age in the Sixties, Seventies, Eighties and Nineties. Using this information he was able to identify the major changes since then in an excellent in depth account. In the Junior Section Rebecca Crone from Fairview Primary School won a well deserved First Prize comparing her life with that of a little girl in the Sixties. Also among the prizewinners were pupils from Upper Ballyboley Primary School and Tildarg Primary School. Entries go to the judge without any school identification so that it is only when the winners' points are totalled that the shields can be awarded. This year both go the Ballyclare Primary School, one of whose teachers, Mr Colin McAuley, commented on the educational value of the competition and expressed his appreciation for the contribution the Historical Society makes to the teaching of local history in the schools.

Competition organiser, Mrs Lindy Reid summed it up "I would like to thank the teachers for their continued support. Without it there would be no competition. You can be very proud of the quality of work achieved by your pupils. Thanks also to the parents and grandparents who provided the information. I hope you enjoyed telling your stories as much as I enjoyed reading them and weren't embarrassed by the results, like the mother of the child who listed about twenty kitchen gadgets, new since the sixties, and finished by saying, "but my Mum doesn't use any of these. Unless my Nanny comes she just takes something from the freezer and puts it in the microwave."

 Selection of the Children's Writings

2003 Competition Winners

What a Difference

Survey of Changes

Oh-How things have changed

Changes in the Home Since the Sixties

Memories of a Ten Year Old Girl in Ahoghill

Catherine's Story

Cogry - the Village that Vanished

Farming Fifty Years Ago

Granny's Games

Fun in the Forties

Three Generations

Childhood in Fermanagh

When Granny was a Nurse

The House in the Painting

Wartime Grocer in Ballyclare

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