The Year 11 History class recently went on a day trip to Dunedin to learn more about the Scottish Settlers to the Otago Region in the 1840s to 1860s.

Whilst learning about the Scottish Settlers in Otago our class got to Dunedin for a day to visit the Toitu museum to gather information. To make the most of the day we were all forced awake at inhumane hours of the morning as the bus was left at school at 6:00 am. Despite the dark cold and early start everyone was on time and ready to go and it was completely worth it!

We first got to go to the Dunedin Railway Station to admire the architecture. Then, we were off to the main event: Toitu! Throughout the day we got to listen to Sean Brosnahan, a curator at the museum and explore various exhibitions such as Across the Ocean Waves and The Early Settler House.

Chris Manly, an educator at Toitu, was our guide and go to person for the day. Chris gave us lots of good information to help us develop an understanding of why the Socttish migrated to Dunedin, what the voyage was like for them and what the living conditions were like on arrival and in Dunedin.

We also went to the First Church in Dunedin, as the Presbyterian church was a key factor in the migration of Scottish people to Dunedin. This is an impressive building and we were very grateful for John Sinclair coming in to speak to us about the church building and the early Scottish settlers.

A personal favourite activity of mine, and probably most of the class, was getting to dress up in clothes made exactly to the pattern of clothes worn by settlers. This also gave us a great idea of how hard life would have been for the early Scottish migrants on their journey over and when they first arrived in Dunedin.

A big shout out needs to go to Mr Dawson for organising the day for us - THANK YOU!

By Kelsey-Anne Davis