Autumn 2016

I learnt that some of the people that went to war were very frightened and they knew what it was going to be like but they had to be strong.

We learned about those soldiers affected by war. Getting to act out roles of soldiers in the trenches. Holding a badge that was from World War One. It was interesting seeing what the soldier’s in the Indian army wore. We enjoyed the role playing and marching we were involved in.

Making the song, the singing, creating the tune/melody, part of my letter was used and it was very creative and unstructured, and the teachers listened to our ideas.

What I learnt from this activity is that you can make a puppet from every day objects and I was amazed about that I couldn’t believe that everyday objects turn into amazing puppets.

Children got opportunities to work with a number of professionals in the art world to be a part of something very special. This project helped visualise the context topic for the children in a way that we couldn’t have asked for.

It is hard to make music and write a song. We learned what a composer is and their role and learned some good singing techniques from the session.

I learnt that you really don’t have to go to the shop and buy things and some things you can make with the things in your house.

One boy never speaks about what he has done at home. His mother said that he couldn’t stop talking about how much he has learned and who came in to work with them.

What I learned from this activity is that soldiers had a life I could not imagine possible! It seemed like a terrible life, seriously how could you survive things like that?!?

[I learned] how to make our song come to life using emotions and feelings.

I learnt that you can get disease in the trenches and they would have to get injections in their arms.

The best thing about the activity was the weapons they used and we got to hold the actual weapons in our hands. There were a rifle, a sword to put on your rifle there were grenades.

[We learned that] every soldier had the same outfit, nearly every [BWIR] soldier had brown eyes, how to make a puppet, how to be more creative and learned new skills. Its’ not that easy to make a detailed puppet, it takes a lot of time to make a puppet. We learned from any mistakes we made, learned to persevere and the fun sides of subjects.

You have to practise a lot to make a show as good as you want it to be. It’s really hard for actors to act. You have to concentrate on what you’re doing and not what the crowd is doing.

The best thing about this activity was that we got to hold a deactivated shell and we got to see what the Army wore and what their backpacks contained.

[This activity] allowed children to understand the plight of the soldiers during the war, particularly those who travelled from other countries.

[The best thing about it was] having the freedom to make music link with our lyrics. Seeing our written work turned into a song. Working as a class to compose music.

We learnt how to develop our puppet-making skills and how Indian soldiers would have dressed.

The best thing about this activity is that we were able to hold all of the items and the volunteers explained what each of the items were.

The best thing about this activity was being able to hold and learn about the weapons and uniforms and what they did. I loved looking at pictures and really understanding what it was like.

[The project] helped develop their confidence and self esteem. It has also improved their knowledge of involvement from ethnic minority groups during world war and encouraged the children to consider the importance of the contribution of other ethnic groups during war…The project was very well organised, the leaders were enthusiastic and professional and the whole experience has been thoroughly rewarding for the children, staff and parents of the school.

I enjoyed the fact that we didn’t stay sat down all the time and was able to experience the life of a solider.Also i really liked the fact that it wasn’t boring but yet we still learned something new.

I really liked it when we had to pretend to march from france to the trenches because it was like we were really there because every one was cheering and saying Vive La France!

I learned that I’m very creative and good at making beats to a song.

The children were engaged throughout. They learnt valuable crafting skills and techniques. They became increasingly familiar with the uniform/look of the Indian soldiers. It was great fun.

The best thing about the day was that I could perform to the whole school about something that I have worked very hard on.

The best thing about this activity is that at the beginning of the activity the Indian soldier came in marching to our class and gave us commands like we were actual soldiers.

The best thing about this activity was that we were able to make our own music and we were using our inner singing ability.

The best thing was that was when we had to make the body. I liked this because it was fun to make the hands.

Doing the performance was the best day of my life!

I learned so much about World War One that I never knew happened. Normally finding information about the past would be boring but I was definitely wrong. I loved all the new facts I learnt and I was hungry for more. I love learning from the past now.

When the Indian soldier was coming in and when he was singing because when he came in I felt scared and when he was singing it was funny.

I learned that there is no right or wrong way to sing in singing!

Children focused all day, worked together helping each other, which helps improve listening skills as they had to carefully follow and listen to each step of the puppet making.

It was important to learn about the real trench brothers!

The best thing about this activity was touching the artefacts!

We got to march like a real soldier!

We learned] How you create a uniform of a soldier on the puppet. How to use all scraps and not waste materials. How to make our puppets individual but still be historically correct.

Children are more engaged in theatre performances and understand how to be a good audience member. Many are reading with more expression and intonation.

[The most valuable thing has been] the understanding of what life was truly like, children were able to imagine what life was like in the trenches.

[The best thing about the day was] seeing the professional actors perform, having children act in the play both speaking and non speaking parts, and performing for our parents.

I learnt lots of things about WW1 I felt like I know how the soldiers fell. I found it very interesting to see what a solider carried around.

Children understood more about Khudadad Khan when he became a real person. It made their personal research come to life even though they knew it wasn’t actually Khudadad Khan!

The best thing was how the composer just played everything so beautifully.

I believe that I learned that making puppets will take a long time even if it’s small. I also learned that being creative is good for later life.

Learning all the moves and looking at the set up, I loved to see at the end that some mums and dads were crying, I was really touched!

I learnt about the different things that the soldiers had. I really enjoyed all of the things and I found out a shell bomb could blow up a whole town!

Be creative, don’t be shy, your voice will be heard!

I learned that art can be anything, and you can always have fun with anyone or anything.

For me the best part was holding the weapons!

An autistic child in class really enjoyed ‘the letter song’. He has been most enthusiastic when singing this song and he remembered all of it from the composition session.

I learned that if you want to do something don’t give up and carry on until you have finished what you are doing.

I learnt what the four noble truths are.

A child who feels they are not very artistic or creative, felt a sense of achievement at making their own puppet.

The best thing for me was the acting by my friends and doing the performance.