Morningside Primary School, Hackney

26 November 2015

LETTER FROM CHARLES WILLIAMS MORNINGSIDE PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dear Mother,

I hope that all is well and you are not suffering as others are here.

We are tired and starving

Faces stiff from the cold,

In great pain and sadness

We get no rest night nor day.

Cannons blare loudly but there’s too much smoke to see.

Fire bombs dropping from the blue sky.

Rusted machine guns,

Never stop, never stop, never stop,

Firing into No-Man’s Land.

But the men in my unit never give up, never give up,

The men in my unit never give up,

As they slip in wet, muddy trenches.

They struggle through waist deep mud, but survival is not guaranteed.

Their bravery gives me great courage, that I’ll make it through this war.

I’m proud to fight for my country and nation.

Pray for me and the men, especially.

God is everywhere to help us.

Your loving son

Charles Williams

It was awesome touching the artefacts. – Ruzgar

I learned it is important to learn about the trenches. – YunJin

I liked that we were acting about the things that happened in WW1. We learned how to march. – Cody

Making the puppets – we learned how to thread something through a small hole, how to neaten up the different parts and how to use the material and fold it to create different shapes like the turban. – Class 4M

It (the performance) was really fun. So excited about professional actors and singers helping us get ready for our show. Very proud we were the youngest cast and it was such a great show. – Class 4M

Staff cannot believe what the year group did, and the children now believe they can do anything. – Staff at Morningside Primary School

Wonderful experience and would do it again in a heartbeat. A very fulfilling and interesting project to be part of. – Staff at Morningside Primary School

Two of my boys had the biggest smile on their face when they were chosen to sing a part in front of the class because Tertia and the composer liked their idea. All the class said they were proud of their song and couldn’t wait to sing and share it with their parents. Ay, Isiah and Romeo sung in front of the class and told the headteacher straight away that she had to listen for their bit when she heard it on performance day. – Sam, Teacher at Morningside Primary School

The artefacts handling session was hands on and interesting. Children were desperate to share their facts with parents and other teachers. Ely dressed up as a soldier and used this in her writing. – Staff at Morningside Primary School

The Education zone was well resourced and easily accessible. I understand the importance of fully immersing the children so they really understand the importance of the play. I now use relevant and purpose based hooks in my maths lessons. – Sam, teacher at Morningside Primary School