Ayr Academy wowed the judges with their knowledge of the Suffragette movement as they scooped top spot at the recent South Ayrshire Council History Challenge.
The young people from S1 and S2 at the Academy went head to head with budding historians from Belmont Academy, Kyle Academy, Marr College, Prestwick Academy and Queen Margaret Academy as they presented their unique take on the role South Ayrshire played in the campaign to get women the vote in the early 1900s.
The team explored the role of women in society over 100 years ago and the start of the Suffragette movement. They uncovered some interesting facts from South Ayrshire at the time including the attack on Ayr Racecourse in 1913 which saw one of the stands burned to the ground and the attempted bombing of Burns Cottage in 1914.
All the teams did really well, so it was a close run thing but Ayr Academy came out on top thanks to their creativity, seamless presentation skills and their lucky talisman — Oscar the Otter, said to be around 300 years old.
The winning team were Flynn Taylor, Beth McMaster, Jordan Lees, Jaydan Colquhoun, Zoe Ramage, Carly Hood, Amy Dempsey.
All those taking part received certificates to thank them for their hard work.
Councillor William Grant, Lifelong Learning Portfolio Holder for South Ayrshire Council said: “All the young people should be proud of their efforts; they really impressed with their depth of knowledge and showed just how these events still resonate today.
“The presentations were well thought out and it’s great to see what young people can achieve when they work together. Team working, communication and presentation skills are something which could be of use to them in the future, so I’m sure they got a lot out of the History Challenge.”
The challenge is run by the History Network. The network is made up of South Ayrshire teachers who share resources and advice and get together to organise events and challenges which promote learning.