It was delightful to accompany the Modern and Ancient History Tour students to Europe over the term break. There were fantastic learning opportunities available as we visited the World War Two Battlefields and Memorials in France, the preserved ancient cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, an underground art bunker in Nuremberg, Dachau concentration camp and the historic rally grounds of the German Socialist Party. Some of these visits were very powerful and our students conducted themselves impeccably throughout the entire journey. I was impressed by the quality of the questions they often put to our guides and the explanations that they were able to provide to me to help me learn the history of these places!
Visiting iconic global landmarks such as the Coliseum, the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triumph was wonderful and we were often blessed with wonderful weather. Great learning occurred also in being able to convert and manage money in different countries, in dressing for a full days activities that could include sunshine, hail, rain and freezing winds, in meeting students from other year groups as well as people from other countries, in navigating over crowded rail networks whilst being on guard for pick pockets and not falling for scammers in the heavily touristed areas!
I am confident that the students benefited broadly from all of these experiences and I want to commend the other accompanying staff Mrs Pearson, Mrs Sharma, Mrs Blackwell and Mr Corbett-Jones who cared for the students and ensured that the tour was such a great success.
