Mary Jones’ Bible Resources and Activities for Key Stage 1-2
A supplement to Telling Tales of King James’ Bible Mary Jones’ Bible Resources from The Department of Biblical Studies A Supplement to Telling Tales of King James’Sheffield Bible. KingCopyright James (c) Project I.C. Hine in associationwww.sheffield.ac.uk/kjv with The University of Sheffield, 2011.
Mary Jones’ Bible
This guide provides suggested activities for exploring Mary’s story in association with the non-statutory framework for Religious Education and other areas of the KS1-2 curricula.
CURRICULUM LINKS Religious Education (AT1 the importance of belonging to a religion and trhe difference this makes to lives; AT2 identify what matters to them and others, including those with religious commitments) History (recognising and identifying reasons why people in the past acted as they did), English (expressing opinions, recounting, inferring and deducing). Also: Citizenship, PSHE, Drama. AGE-GROUP 5-10 (KS1-2) RESOURCES Essential The story of Mary Jones and her Bible* *Source suggested. Desirable For hot-seating, the facilitator should be familiar with background information about Wales in the 1700-1800s. This resource includes suggested sources. Simple costume to represent a woman from the early 1800s. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES Pupils will Listen to, anticipate, and recount the story of Mary Jones and her Bible. Ask questions about the value and meaning of the Bible for Mary Jones. Reflect on what has value and meaning to them (and identify similarities). “Pupil speak” Meet Mary Jones and think about why having a bible is important to people like Mary, and what is important to you. SUPPORTING MATERIAL Factsheets Mary Jones and Her Bible (leaflet) Available for download from the Bible Society: Mary Jones and Her Bible Ideal for use during a visit. Resources Mary Jones and Her Bible (book), ISBN: 9780564082056 Available for purchase from the Bible Society (£3.50) and elsewhere. Ideal for reading aloud in class. Background: E. Wyn James (University of Cardiff) provides in- depth information about Mary’s story in the online article “Bala and the Bible: Thomas Charles, Ann Griffiths and Mary Jones”. Also: Greater than Gold, a musical by Roger Jones, based on Mary’s story.
Cover image: Thomas Charles, illustration from Mary Jones and Her Bible, (Mig Holden / Tony Morris, Bible Society, 1992). Reproduced by kind permission of Lion Hudson plc.
Mary Jones’ Bible A Supplement to Telling Tales of King James’ Bible. Copyright (c) I.C. Hine in association with The University of Sheffield, 2011. Mary Jones and Her Bible: a précis
Mary Jones was born in Wales in the late 1700s. She learned to read through “circulating schools”, a system where teachers relocated periodically from village to village, giving children in rural areas access to education.
In the area of Wales where Mary lived, the circulating schools system was directed by a prominent clergyman, Thomas Charles. Reverend Charles lived in Bala, a town about 25 miles from Mary’s home village.
Mary was raised as a Welsh Methodist Christian and made her own personal commitment when she was just 8 years old. Soon after she began Illustration by Toni Morris, from Mary Jones and Her Bible. Copyright (c) Three’s Company / Lion Hudson plc. saving to buy her own bible. Used by permission.
The Bible was central to the faith of Welsh Methodists and Mary memorised bible passages from a young age. She would often walk the two miles to the nearest farm to read it. Mary’s family were very poor and it took Mary 6 years to save enough money to buy a bible.
Why is Mary important?
According to traditional accounts, Mary made a strong impression on Thomas Charles. He retold her story at a meeting which led to the creation of the British & Foreign Bible Society. The Society was founded to produce affordable bibles for people in their own language.
Mary lived to the age of 80. Her bible is now part of the special collections at Cambridge University Library.
Mary Jones’ Bible A Supplement to Telling Tales of King James’ Bible. Copyright (c) I.C. Hine in association with The University of Sheffield, 2011. Pupils may be introduced to Mary’s story using traditional story-telling techniques, including being asked to guess what will happen next. If the story-telling is done in the classroom, pupils may then be asked to prepare questions that they would like to ask Mary. These can be filtered by the teacher prior to the visit, to maximise learning on the topic.
Mary’s story may also be told during a visit.
Meeting Mary
A facilitator may take on the role of Mary, using the technique of hot-seating.1 Pupils then have the opportunity to ask questions about her story. In answering, the facilitator may treat topics including the importance of the Bible to Christians, life in rural Wales around 1800, the significance of the Bible Society, and the importance of being able to hear, read and understand important books in your own language.
Further Discussion
This may then develop, on site or in the classroom, into a discussion of the importance of the Bible, and why it was so important to Mary. Pupils can be invited to think about what is important to them and (according to age and attainment levels) asked to reflect on similarities and differences between their values and Mary’s. Imagine saving for 6 years and walking 25 miles. Is there something you would do that for?
Connections to Telling Tales of King James’ Bible
The importance of having a bible which everyone could understand, as contrasted with the Latin Vulgate. Mary’s Welsh bible was a revision of an older Welsh translation. Like King James’ translators, the revisors wanted to combine dignity and elegance: What kind of language is appropriate for “God’s Word”? Pupils may be invited to reflect on the different kinds of language that they use and when they use them.
1 See below for more information.
Mary Jones’ Bible A Supplement to Telling Tales of King James’ Bible. Copyright (c) I.C. Hine in association with The University of Sheffield, 2011. Hot-seating
Hot-seating is a technique used by actors to develop a character. The actor sits in the “hot- seat” and becomes the character. Fellow cast members ask the hot-seated actor questions about their motivation, background and so on. The actor responds in character, filling out their history and using their imagination to develop a fully-fledged character.
The technique is now commonly used in primary schools as part of literacy teaching. Pupils learn to explore different sides of the character. Here, it is suggested that an adult facilitator sits in the hot-seat and becomes “Mary Jones”, allowing pupils the opportunity to ask questions about Mary’s background, motivation and so on. The facilitator should learn the basic facts about Mary prior to the activity, but should also be ready to imagine details and improvise.
A male facilitator may prefer to take on the role of Thomas Charles.
Learning for the History Curriculum Pupils may learn about life around 1800, including: Typical trades (Mary’s family were weavers.) Situation of widows and orphans (Mary’s father died when she was a child, a factor in the family’s poverty.) Education (In the 1700-1800s, Wales had the highest literacy levels in the UK because of the circulating school system.) Industrial change (Steam-powered printing presses and paper mills emerged in the decades after the Society’s formation. Demand for bibles was one of the pressures leading to innovation in publishing.)
Learning for the English Curriculum
Discussion about different kinds of language may fit with pupils’ learning about different kinds of writing and speaking, and the contexts in which they are used.
Other links
Geography: Pupils may look at maps of Mary’s journey and the circulating schools. Numeracy: Pupils may make simple calculations based on Mary’s savings. Science: Pupils may learn about bee-keeping (one way that Mary earned her savings).
Mary Jones’ Bible A Supplement to Telling Tales of King James’ Bible. Copyright (c) I.C. Hine in association with The University of Sheffield, 2011. Background to Mary Jones
The following supplementary information may assist the facilitator:
Mary was born in 1784. She lived in a small village in rural North Wales, Llanfihangel-y-Pennant.2 Llanfihangel means “Church of the Angel Michael”. Mary’s parents worked as weavers. Sheep-farming was common and wool was a major industry in this part of Wales from the late 1600s until the 1900s. Mary’s first-language was Welsh. Her parents were Welsh Methodist Christians.3 The Bible was very important to them, but the nearest house with a bible was a farm two miles walk away. Mary memorised many bible passages. If a family owned one book it would be the Bible and this was the book that children learned to read. The first Welsh bible is older than King James’ Bible and used a common earthy language (like Tyndale’s English). Both James’ translators and Welsh revisers in the 1600s preferred a more dignified style. It is the revised bible of 1620 that Mary would have purchased. Mary had to save for six years in order to afford a bible. The cost was about 17 shillings. She worked to earn money. This included keeping bees and selling honey. As an adult, Mary married Thomas Jones. (Jones is a very common surname in Wales!) She had six children, most of whom died young. Mary herself died in 1864, just after her 80th birthday. In her old age, Mary’s memory of bible verses was very useful because she became blind. In 2010, the Bible Society published the first editions of the Welsh bible in Braille, allowing blind Welsh-speakers chance to read the Bible in their own language. Education in Wales in the 1700s followed the pattern of Griffith Jones, who believed that the minimum of education should be given in the shortest time so that the teacher could then move on to a different village and educate more children. This teaching was church-sponsored and children received a free education. (At this time most children in England received no education.) Usually, the schools were held during the winter months. Children, and adults who also attended these schools, would be busy during the growing season and the harvest. Teaching on Sundays was controversial, and was only provided for those children who were not able to study during the week (because they worked). Those who opposed teaching on Sundays believed that it broke the commandment about keeping the Sabbath holy (and not working).
2 The Welsh pronunciation of the “Ll” sound can be difficult for non-Welsh speakers. The opening “Ll” sound is like an “h” followed by an “l”, creating a kind of hissing sound. The “y” sounds like the “y” in “myrrh”. 3 The Welsh Methodist tradition is different from the English Methodist Church. It is closely related to the teachings of John Calvin, and Welsh Methodists were sometimes known as Calvinist Methodists.
Mary Jones’ Bible A Supplement to Telling Tales of King James’ Bible. Copyright (c) I.C. Hine in association with The University of Sheffield, 2011.