On Thursday all the Year 2 children were time travellers as they returned to the days of 1666! Their task was to find out all about the events of the Great Fire of London. We were introduced to the events which led to the fire becoming such a catastrophe, and everyone was soon immersed in the occupations of the time. These included the delights of being a rat catcher, chandler, baker, weaver, leather worker, barber surgeon or apothecary. The results of their labours were very impressive and showed how carefully everyone had listened and applied themselves to the tasks.
After lunch, the children returned to work as archaeologists unearthing artefacts from a soil-filled box. Using only a pastry brush they then had to deduce the occupation of the household, before reading documents which gave clues as to how many people lived in the property and what happened to them as a result of the Fire. There were lively discussions about the writing of that time and the modern-day translations were a great help.
This way of learning shows how life has changed and everyone thought that they preferred living nowadays! The children asked some brilliant questions, displaying a great level of curiosity. They were engaged in all activities and clearly learnt a lot from the day! It was an absolute pleasure to see our ‘little learners’ being inspired!
