Year 7
Year 7 students have started the year in History by looking at a very important event in this country’s history – The Battle of Hastings, 1066. This event changed the course of History in Great Britain forever and as such, students have been looking at why this was. We have made judgements on who should have ruled the country in 1066 and students have been very opinionated on this! We have looked at how the country was ruled before 1066 and have learned that many of the words we still use today actually come from the Anglo-Saxons over 1000 years ago! We have also learned some key historical skills and words, such as what primary and secondary sources are and what chronological means. Moving into Half Term Two, we will be studying just what actually happened at the famous Battle of Hastings and the reason behind why we have castles in this country today!
Year 8
Year 8 students have been studying the Industrial Revolution and the crimes of Jack the Ripper this half term. We started by looking at what life was like in England before 1750, the start of the Industrial Revolution, when most people lived in the countryside and worked on farms. We then examined what changed in 1750 and the beginning of the age of factories and mass production in this country. We also looked at how and why towns and cities grew, why people started to live longer as well as the living conditions of the poorest people in society – the factory workers themselves!. We learned how these people lived in tiny cellars and had to share outside toilets with the rest of their street. We had many discussions about how lucky we feel to have a toilet in our own homes!
This then led on to the topic of Jack the Ripper, who lived during the second half of the Industrial Revolution. The students have analysed the terrible murders that took place in 1888, and have become detectives over the last 3 weeks to see if we can work out who Jack the Ripper actually was. We have discussed whether Jack the Ripper would have been caught if technology was more advanced and if the police had been better trained, and we have tried to reach a judgement on what motive Jack the Ripper could possibly have had for committing such horrendous crimes. Each student has concluded the topic by stating who they think Jack the Ripper was and why – there have been some very interesting and thoughtful judgements made on this!
