Pupils from Years 1 and 2 at Beech Grove Primary School, Wellington, presented the outcome of their history project on Victorian England to the whole school in dramatic style last week.
Dressed in a delightful array of appropriate costumes, their presentation imagined meetings between children and famous figures from Victorian times – including Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Florence Nightingale, Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan, Keller’s teacher and lifelong friend who taught her to speak. The children have already visited Brunel’s world-famous steamship, SS Great Britain in Bristol, and the narrative involved the pupils questioning him about his ship and its building before its launch.
Mob-capped maids, Crimean War nurses and soldiers, urchins and members of society in finery and stove-pipe hats provided an authentic backing to the story-telling which involved dialogue, poetry, singing and dance. The performance as a whole was written and managed by Years 1 and 2 teachers Terry Luke, Dana Pickford and Laura Richmond. Wellington Mayor Janet Lloyd and Beech Grove Governor Bob Bowrah joined the audience of staff and pupils for the performance.
