Exploring History at Half Term
On the first day of half term, a group of 11 keen KS3 historians came into school to complete a workshop with Ms. Gilbertson, a PhD researcher from the Royal Holloway University of London.
Throughout the day, pupils learned about the process of studying history at university and explored different stages of World War Two through the experiences of people who were children during the war and were then interviewed afterwards. What emerged from Ms Gilbertson’s research was a complex tapestry of experiences, showing how everything from age and gender to religion impacted how people experienced World War Two. The use of recorded interviews also helped to bring history alive and helped pupils to see how historical interpretations can be enriched by body language, tone, and emotion.
Ms Gilbertson, Miss Sayers, and Miss Manterfield were absolutely blown away by the behaviour and contribution of everyone who attended. The workshop was six hours in total and throughout all pupils were focused, attentive, and hard working. They were a credit to the school and Ms Gilbertson has asked to come back to hopefully deliver more workshops in the future, including an exploration of how World War Two helped to create the concept of being a teenager.
Miss Becky Sayers
Humanities Faculty Leader
Head of History
Head of Year 11
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