Scotlands Culture

Robert Burns resources - secondary

Three images of Burns's head in grey, red and black

Addressing the bard

Read this collection of 12 contemporary poems, written in response to a selection of Burns's works.

Castle on an island in the middle of a lake

Scottish Culture - NQ resources

This section of the National Qualifications site brings together NQ resources with specific links to Scottish culture. The areas covered include Art and Design, English, Gaelic, History, Modern Studies and Music.

Thumbnail image of Illustration to “Contented wi' Little”

Illustration to 'Contented wi’ Little'

Pencil and watercolour picture from 1790 which illustrates a song by Robert Burns. It's available to download from NQ Online with an accompanying critical commentary.

Thumbnail image of Robert Burns and Alexander Nasmyth at Roslin Castle

Burns and Naysmith at Roslin Castle

Painting of a visit by Robert Burns and Alexander Nasmyth to Roslin Castle, available to download from NQ Online, along with more information about it.

An etched portrait of Robert Burns

Celebrating Burns - an enterprising approach

A range of enterprising ideas and activities to help you celebrate Robert Burns's birthday in your school.

Thumbnail illustration of bagpipes

Caledonian Medley

Teachers' notes on the 5-14 Music website, focusing on the medley drawn from three other Scottish music modules - 'Silver Darlings', 'Coilsfield House' and 'Ruidhle'.

A photograph of a man playing the fiddle

Scottish music for Access 3 to Intermediate 2

Recordings and online quizzes for students to test their knowledge of Scottish musical styles, forms and structures, instruments and composing techniques.

A photograph of a ginger-haired primary-age boy in a classroom

Scots soundbytes

Scots poems and songs, on the 5-14 website, created and recorded by children and read aloud by the authors.

An artist's portrait of the poet Edwin Morgan

Edwin Morgan

Text, and audio downloads of poems by the Scots Makar, on the Literacy website, performed by writer Liz Lochhead, Professor Jim McGonigal, Hamish Whyte and Glasgow's former Lord Provost Liz Cameron.

A photograph of two girls sitting at a computer

How to film and edit a poem

S1 pupils at Notre Dame High School make a film about a poem, helping them think about poetry and literature in a more creative way.

Related links

National Library of Scotland

A review of Robert Burns's life illustrated with paintings and manuscripts in his own hand.

Burns Night

An interactive guide to celebrating Burns Night, with performances of two poems and menus for Burns Night, including modern recipes.

Robert Burns World Federation

Learning resources, including information, activities, images, quizzes, crosswords and texts of the poems in Scots and English.

National Burns Collection

A searchable online gallery with images of objects, people, places and events associated with the poet.

BBC Writing Scotland - Robert Burns

Author Carl MacDougall considers Burns and his language within the literary, political and religious context of the time.

Dictionary of the Scots Language

A searchable online dictionary. You can search for definitions of Scots words or enter an English word and find its equivalent in Scots.

New Scottish poetry

Text and recordings of new poetry in Gaelic, Scots and English to reflect the diversity of language in Scotland today.

Scuilwab

A website in Scots for 'bairns o aa ages' with ideas and resources for using Scots in a classroom setting.

Tam O'Shanter Overture

More about the Tam O'Shanter Overture by Sir Malcolm Arnold, including a description and a sample recording. The page contains links to commercial sites.