Victorian Day 2025
A successful Victorian Day. A day which helped them to understand how the styles of teaching in the Victorian times differed from today and just how fortunate they are to go to school in the modern times. I was really impressed with the effort, determination and the way the children got into character. It was great to see them embrace the day. See below some snapshots of what we got up to.
Session 1 - The morning
The children entered this morning into the school hall following a nail and sock inspection. Separated into girls and boys, they entertained themselves with playground games and prepared themselves for the day ahead. This was followed by our class portrait.
Session 2 - The 3 Rs
On entering the classroom, boys and girls were sat on opposite sides of the room. Boys entered first and were instructed to sit down when given permission. The girls had the same treatment. The children had slate tiles and chalk to use for the morning. On the blackboard was a cursive Victorian alphabet. The children were encouraged to write this onto their tiles as close to the original as possible. This was followed by writing their names before they transferred this to writing with paint and cocktail sticks.
On the return from break, the children completed arithmetic on their slate tiles and answered this in front of the class. Some good attitudes. This was followed by reciting the 10 and 5 times table.
Before splitting into two halves, the children finished their final ‘R’ by reading. They recited the poem “There was a little girl”, reading aloud and individuals reading aloud, too.
Some of the Victorian portraits below.
Session 3 - Woodwork, Baking and Washing
After our 3 Rs, the children were split into boys and girls. The boys went with “Sir” and completed woodwork, sanding down their material before adding varnish and their name. The girls worked together with “Ma’am” to bake a Victoria Sponge and clean some clothes, duties that were expected of women in the past.
Session 4 - The drill and Playground Games
After lunch, the children completed a quick drill and a playground game of tag. We discussed how this would have been similar and different to the Victorian times.
Session 5 - Toys and Cake
To finish our day, we explored toys from the local museum to explore how the children would have used their spare time. It’s amazing just how much fun you can have with an olden day toy!
Following the success of the girls’ baking, we also enjoyed some cake to finish our rather busy day!
