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Mossley schoolchildren take a trip back in time

Youngsters at a Mossley school got to experience a glimpse of what life was like in the Victorian era.

Year 3 pupils at St George’s CE Primary have been studying the history topic of Victorians as the Stamford Street school was built during this era.

Just before breaking up for the Easter holidays, the Swift class were invited to come into school dressed as Victorian schoolchildren for a themed day – which was largely a surprise!

Class teacher Rachael Foster told us: “They weren’t told anything about the day other than to dress up.

“The classroom was changed from the vibrant, fun learning environment it usually is to a Victorian classroom with walls only showing the Lords Prayer, times tables and letter formation and a fire on the interactive whiteboard.”

The day started with the school’s site manager Mr Mayall dressed as Headmaster Mayall, greeting the children on the playground.

Rachael explained: “There were a lot of confused faces as the children were stood into two separate lines and Headmaster Mayall talked to the children about the school rules and expectations, all whilst remaining in character. Even some of the parents got a stern talking to!”

Once in the classroom, pupils began the morning with the three Rs – reading, writing and arithmetic.

The children were able to try out their writing using slates and chalks hired from Quarry Bank Mill National Trust site – before trying some outdoor activities.

Rachel added: “They then made their own cup-and-ball game which we took outside.

“The children tried out a lot of traditional Victorian games which they were surprised to learn were played during the Victorian era: hopscotch, hoop and stick, egg and spoon, skipping and of course they played with their ball and cups.

“In the afternoon, we looked at old pictures of our school and then headed outside to sketch using charcoal. The day ended with Father David and Father Ian visiting for our outdoor Easter service, which was just the perfect end to such a fun day.”

The following day, the children explored the project boxes that were hired from Quarry Bank Mill – at a cost of £20 each to use for two weeks.

“We had access to the Machines and Homelife box,” Rachael said. “We looked at many different artefacts and the children enjoyed guessing what each time was for.

“They watched videos of the inside of the mill, looked at Victorian money and learnt more about how Samuel Greg ran the mill.

“Although we weren’t able to visit Quarry Bank, it was wonderful to be able to bring the trip to school.

“The hands-on experience these two days gave will be remembered by the children for years to come and was a wonderful way to end the half term.”

The youngsters certainly enjoyed the experience themselves – commenting how much they liked the outdoor activities and seeing what it would have been like as a Victorian child.

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