Juniors enjoy Living as Tudors

The King's School's Year 5 young historians went back 500 years in time for a living history day with a relentlessly practical approach.

The fascinating day saw all the children come to school dressed as Tudors, and showed that Tudor history in schools is no longer merely about battles and beheadings but a-hands-on experience of how the common people lived.

Pictured left are Heath Stockton and Xanthe Watkin finishing their session as Tudor builders, applying their hand-made daub mixture to the wattle framework.

Buildings such as Cheshire's beautiful Gawsworth Hall were made by applying a combination of wet soil, clay, sand, straw and even animal dung to a wooden lattice framework.

King's Infant & Junior Challenge and Enrichment Coordinator Simon Thomas said: "Obviously, we stopped short of using all of the original mix but showed how the final construction produced a strong and resilient construction material as is proved by the many local buildings that still survive half a millennia later."

The boys and girls practised their writing just as Shakespeare would have done on scrolls and with a quill and ink. They learned Tudor dance steps and even made their own herb bags to ward off illness and bad spirits just like a respected Tudor apothecary.

Mr Thomas added: "It is important to learn about political history and the turn of events, but the children simply love social history and discovering how their ancestors got by day in day out."