Year 7 - Roman and Medieval Style

Do you know how to write a Roman Mystery? JAGS can provide the solution, in the shape of the entire Year 7 group, who got top tips from writer Caroline Laurence, author of the Roman Mysteries, when she visited the school on Friday 12 June.
Rita, Year 7 had read The Thieves of Ostia, a whodunnit of distinction, before meeting Caroline. If she had aspirations to become a writer herself, she now knows it’s not that easy, even if you follow Caroline’s 7 steps. ‘It’s much harder than I thought it would be!’ However, Rita, Year 7, was inspired by Caroline’s discipline. She has a special place to work, a study with lots of rich source material, especially books on Greek Mythology. Caroline works for 6 months on each book; considering there are 17 books in her series, that’s a lot of years! The Year 7 groups had fun playing the Roman Mystery games online. Anouf had pursued a fascinating trail of clues over the weekend for herself; she and Isobel recommend others to try the different levels. You can see Caroline’s Roman Mysteries on CBBC. She has generously donated a DVD of her second series to JAGS Library. There’ll need to be a patient queue for them!

When Year 7 weren’t discovering for themselves the real life of a writer, they were uncovering some Medieval truths. John, Karen and Wellington from Discovering Medieval, saturated the entire year group in medieval experiences. Year 7 dressed themselves in period costume and rose beautifully to become the characters of peasants, priests, craftsmen, lords and ladies. Eleanor and Martha loved dressing up and becoming the different characters. ‘Father’ Euphemia clearly swelled with pride as the priest officiating at the wedding of Margaret Beaufort and Lord Tudor. Katie as Lord Tudor didn’t flinch in her duty to unite the Tudor and Beaufort Houses, but was mildly surprised to have to marry the bride sight-unseen.

Year 7 proved to be excellent craftsmen with carpentry, leather and other skills they didn’t know they had. Asking them to sell their products to the Master Craftsman underpinned learning they had received earlier in the session about the conditions of the time. They were typically terrific at thinking on their feet! Martha and Charlotte had a great time using a big mortar and pestle to mix a potion of pepper, thyme, rosemary and honey. Charlotte said it made her skin soft  and they recommended applying the poultice as a general pick-me-up. (Perhaps best not to try this at home!)

Both Martha and Charlotte now know a few trade secrets about medieval weaponry, such as targeting the chinks in the armour; they were amazed at the weight of it and how uncomfortable it is to wear.

Thank you to both the Classics and History departments for arranging such an imaginative day. What a great way to engage in living history.