Key to terms used in physical descriptions
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The project is contained in a black, fabric effect, bound A4 ringbinder; it is slightly worn at the corners, suggesting that it may have been used for another purpose in the past. The binder contains 56 pages, inserted loosely (no plastic sleeves). Most of the child’s work has been done on lined A4 filepaper, but there are also some sheets of very thin, plain white paper, coloured card dividers, typing paper, and a few A3 sheets (folded in half with holes punched in the centre). The work is usually on only one side of the paper. Small rings have been stuck onto many of the pages, around the holes (on both sides), for protection.
The child’s writing and drawings are hand produced. The writing is in a range of media, mostly blue ink, fine fibretip or biro, with corrections or crossings out in the same medium. There is much use of colour in headings and lists; headings are sometimes in fine fibretip, and sometimes in the same medium as the rest of the writing on the page. A few pages appear to have been wordprocessed. Some contain drawings; either in pencil or outlined in pencil and shaded in with crayon. Arrows or lines from captions to drawings are freehand, in pencil. Pages are numbered in either pencil or biro.
Coloured card dividers are used to separate the sections. Section headings are outlined in pencil, on the card, and coloured with fibretip. Faint, ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The title is written again, on the small (1"x ½") tab at the right side of each divider (the tab may not be visible in the scan). The words on the tab are written either diagonally or vertically (given the narrow space) in small, lower case writing, using what appears to be fountain /cartridge pen.
The project contains a wide range of imported materials from different sources: leaflets and cuttings (from newspapers and magazines) glued onto the page; photocopies, inserted directly into the file; postcards and photographs attached with photo ‘corners’; and feathers, stuck onto the page with sellotape.
cover page [ next page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (Cover page)
The title has been written by sticking small gold and silver paper stars onto the front cover. Many more stars have been stuck all over the back and spine of the ringbinder. There are marks on the front cover, suggesting that some stars have fallen off, or been removed.
page 1 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ]
Erased pencil lines are visible beneath the words, indicating alterations to the size and position of some of the letters in an earlier draft. This is the only drawing in which crayon has been used. The soft, broken pencil outline suggests a certain hesitancy, which contrasts with the crayon strokes. It seems that the owl has been coloured in a fairly rough manner compared with the letters, in which softer, shorter strokes are more neatly contained within the firm, heavy pencil outline.
page 2 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ]
This is an orange card divider. Large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip. Very faint, ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written diagonally, in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen (the words change direction midway, in response to the limited space available: the first word suddenly bends downwards more, and the second suddently starts to flatten out a bit, as it nears the bottom of the tab; this doesn’t happen to the same extent in the later tabs, where the child appears to have become more skilled in adjusting her style of writing to fit the space). The tab is very soft and creased at the top corner.
page 3 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (contents page)
Title is in turquoise felt tip; rest in blue biro.
page 4 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (contents page ctd)
Title is in turquoise felt tip; rest in blue biro.
page 5 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 1)
The writing is in blue felt tip. The pictures of owls have been cut out of glossy card, and stuck down firmly with glue; the outline is a little rough, suggesting that the card may have been difficult to cut. The word ‘because’ appears slightly squashed, suggesting that the picture had been stuck down before the words were written. The writing at the bottom of the page is in pencil. There are red smudgy marks on the right of the page, which provide evidence of some kind of ‘accidental damage’; not clear how they were made (could be the circular base of a felt tip lid).
page 6 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s pages 2 – 6)
This page consists of imported material: it looks like an A4 photocopy. It is the first of a set of 3 photocopied sheets which appear to come from two different source texts. The first sheet is A4 size, the others A3. The two A3 photocopies form the child’s pages 3-4 and 5-6: each sheet has been carefully folded down the centre, then holes have been punched through the double layer of paper, along the folded side, so that, when inserted in the binder, it can be opened, from the right, as a double page spread. The reader is initially faced with a blank sheet and needs to turn over the page, and twist the project around, in order to read the information inside each of these double page spreads.
page 7 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ]
Second page of imported photocopy.
page 8 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ]
Third page of imported photocopy.
page 9 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ]
Fourth page of imported photocopy.
page 10 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ]
Fifth page of imported photocopy.
page 11 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
This is a purple card divider. The large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip; letters have been very carefully shaded. Faint, ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written vertically, in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen.
page 12 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 7)
The writing appears to be in felt tip/cartridge pen, except for the last line which is in biro. There are various corrections on this page, and an ink smudge on the right side.
page 13 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 8)
The title has been written on a piece of paper which has been cut out in a strip (about an inch wide) and stuck firmly, with glue, across the top of the page. The words of an earlier draft are visible through the paper, beneath the words of the final version, providing evidence of alteration, which appears to have been prompted by a mistake in the construction of one of the letters: the first version reads ‘Owl SkeL’, with the last letter written in upper rather than lower case. The draft is unfinished; this suggests that the child recognised the mistake, while in the process of constructing the word, and stopped at that point. The drawing has been produced in a very different way to the one on page 1. The pencil lines are fine, sharp and fluid, with no breaks, and the paper is very thin and semi-transparent; this suggests that the drawing was probably traced, using a sharp pencil, and a smooth, continuous stroke.
page 14 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 9)
This page consists of imported material: an A4 photocopy.
page 15 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 10)
The drawing is in pencil and the writing in blue biro, on very thin paper (as for p13).
page 16 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s pages 11)
This page consists of imported material: it looks like a photocopy. It is the first of a set of photocopies (eight single A4 sheets, and two sheets (positioned as a double page spread) which have been formed by cutting an A3 sheet down the centre. The photocopies appear to come from a range of source texts.
page 17 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 12)
Second page of imported photocopies.
page 18 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 13)
Third page of imported photocopies.
page 19 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 14)
Fourth page of imported photocopies.
page 20 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 15)
Fifth page of imported photocopies.
page 21 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 16)
Sixth page of imported photocopies.
page 22 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 17)
Seventh page of imported photocopies.
page 23 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 18)
page of imported photocopies.
page 24 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 19)
Seventh page of imported photocopies.
page 25 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 20)
Eighth page of imported photocopies.
page 26 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
This is a green card divider. The large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip; letters have been very carefully shaded. The letter ‘S’ looks as if it has been outlined later, over the felt tip. Faint, ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written diagonally, in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen. The page contains imported material: a glossy postcard carefully attached, using photo corners.
page 27 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 21)
This page appears to have been word processed.
page 28 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 22)
This page contains different kinds of imported materials: a magazine cutting and two feathers. The feathers have been stuck onto the page with sellotape, carefully positioned across the bottom of the feather, so that most of the soft, delicate upper part is loose and can be touched by the reader. The writing is in felt tip, letters in alternating colours.
page 29 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 23)
This page contains imported material: two glossy photos, attached with photo corners. The words are in felt tip, leters in alternating colours.
page 30 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 24)
This page contains imported material: a newspaper cutting, attached firmly with glue. It appears to have been cut carefully along the top, so as to fit around the rings in the binder. The protective ring round the top hole slightly overlaps the side of the cutting, suggesting that it was added after the page had been constructed. The date is written on the cutting in biro (it looks like an adult’s handwriting).
page 31 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
This is a yellow card divider . The large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip; letters have been very carefully shaded. Ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written diagonally in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen. The page contains imported material: a glosssy postcard attached with photo corners.
page 32 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 25)
This page appears to have been wordprocessed. There is a correction in black biro: the word ‘captivity’ has been crossed out, using a ruler, and replaced with the words ‘THE WILD’.
page 33 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 26)
This page contains imported materials: two glossy photos, attached with photo corners. Writing is in felt tip, letters in alternating colours. The sheet is two sided; the back of this page forms the working surface of the next.
page 34 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 27)
This is the reverse side of the previous page. It contains imported material: a glossy photo, attached with photo corners. The writing is in felt tip, a different colour for each group of words: purple, yellow, blue. (The yellow ‘Barn Owl’s ENCLOSURE’ is barely visible in the scan)
page 35 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 28)
This page contains imported material: a newspaper cutting, attached firmly, with glue. The writing is in blue felt tip. The work is done on the back of a photocopy, which forms the following page.
page 36 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s pages 29)
This is the reverse side of the previous page, although it is imported from a different source. This is the first of two pages, which appear to have originally been one A3 photocopy, but have been cut down the centre to form two separate sheets.
page 36 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s pages 30)
page 38 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 31)
This page contains different kinds of imported materials: a magazine cutting and two feathers. The feathers have been stuck onto the page with sellotape, carefully positioned across the bottom, so that most of the soft, delicate upper part is loose and can be touched by the reader.
page 39 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
This is a blue card divider. It contains imported material: a glossy photo attached with photo corners. The large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip; letters have been very carefully shaded. Ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written diagonally in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen.
page 40 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 32)
The writing appears to have been wordprocessed.
page 41 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 33)
This page contains imported material: a large feather attached with two short strips of sellotape across the bottom., leaving the rest loose. It is different from the previous feathers –stiff and shiny, rather than soft and fluffy -and dirty brown marks may point to its previous ‘real life’ experience. The other work is in felt tip (letters of title are in alternating colours). Different kinds of strokes are used to produce the various patterns that fill the background space.
page 42 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
This is an orange card divider. It contains imported material: a small card cutting attached with glue. The cutting is slightly rough around the edges, suggesting that the card may have been difficult to cut. The large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip; letters have been very carefully shaded. Ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written vertically, in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen. The tab is more creased than most of the others.
page 43 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 34)
This page appears to have been wordprocessed.
page 44 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 35)
This page contains imported materials: a large, matt, postcard and a smaller, glossy magazine cutting. The postcard has been attached using photo corners and the cutting is stuck down firmly with glue; the top left quarter of the cutting overlaps, and is glued to, the postcard. The child’s writing is in felt tip, letters in alternating colours.
page 45 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
This is a purple card divider. It contains imported material: a small card cutting attached with glue. The cutting is slightly rough around the edges, suggesting that the card may have been difficult to cut. The large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip; letters have been very carefully shaded. Faint ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written diagonally, in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen. The tab is a bit creased.
page 46 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 36)
This page appears to have been wordprocessed.
page 47 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
This is a green card divider. It contains imported material: three very small feathers, each attached at the bottom with a very small strip of sellotape. The large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip; letters have been very carefully shaded. Erased pencil lines indicate alteration to an earlier draft, showing that the letters ‘ittl’ in the word ‘Little’ have been reduced in height. Faint ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written diagonally, in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen. The tab is completely uncreased.
page 48 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 37)
This page appears to have been wordprocessed.
page 49 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
This is a yellow card divider. The large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip; letters have been very carefully shaded. Partially erased pencil lines indicate alteration to the shape and size of the first letter ‘N’ and the letter ‘O’in the word ‘INFORMATION’. Faint ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written vertically, in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen. The tab is completely uncreased.
page 50 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 38).
This page contains imported material: a glossy photo, attached with photo corners. The second heading has been heavily underlined, using a repeated stroke. The handwriting varies in size, shape, and stroke, suggesting that the child may be holding and using the pen in a variety of ways.
page 51 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 39)
The grid, letters within it, and numbers in list, are all in fine felt tip; a ruler has been used for the lines in the grid. Different coloured felt tips are used for each line of writing on the left, and for individual letters in words on right. The words and first number listed on left at bottom of page (but not words on right, or rest of numbers) have been drafted in pencil, visible under the fibretip. Erased pencil marks under the words ‘BARN OWL’ indicate alteration to previous draft. This page is glued to the following page.
page 52 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 40)
This page is glued to the previous one. It contains imported material; a small, glossy magazine cutting, attached with glue. The brownish-orange drawing bottom left is quite heavily shaded in felt tip, using short, partially overlayed strokes. The lines of the puzzle are in pencil, in mostly long, unbroken strokes. There are what appear to be a few light biro marks on the left side, in a straight line (look as if they could have been caused by a pen rolling over the surface).
page 53 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s pages 41)
This page contains imported material: two leaflets, loosely attached with glue, at the centre. This is the first of two very similar pages. In each case, the leaflet on the left has been positioned so that it overlaps the one on the right, so the one on the right cannot be completely unfolded. The leaflets appear to come from different places (those on the second page are about Muncaster Castle and Leighton Hall).
page 54 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s pages 42)
Second page of imported photocopies.
page 55 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
This is a blue card divider. The large words are outlined in pencil and coloured in felt tip; letters have been very carefully shaded. Faint ruled pencil lines, visible below the words, indicate careful drafting, to position the letters in a straight line. The words on the tab are written vertically, in what appears to be fountain/cartridge pen. The tab is slightly worn along the side.
page 56 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (child’s page 43).
This page contains imported materials: a large compliment slip. The quality of the print, and the sharp boundary (top and left) suggest that it is a photocopy of a slightly smaller sheet; the handwriting is in biro. At the bottom left, there are two small holes, just above and to the right of the words ‘TAWNY’ and ‘BROWN’. On the reverse side of the page, there are two strips of sellotape, bottom right, below the two small holes; the hollow ridges in the sellotape suggest that two very thin objects (such as feathers) were originally attached but have since been removed. The objects appear to have been inserted through the holes, so that they would appear on the front of the page, next to the written labels, but without the sellotape being visible.
page 57 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
Writing is in biro except for title and numbers which are in felt tip, different colours for individual numbers.
page 58 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
Writing is in biro except for title and numbers which are in felt tip, different colours for individual numbers. The title is in a different colour to the previous page: orange instead of blue.
page 59 [ next page ] [ previous page ] [ top ] [ AK53 index ] (not numbered by child)
Gold and silver stars have been stuck all over the back of the ringbinder, as on the front cover and spine.