Year 7 Trip to Verulamium

Thursday 22nd September 2011

Year 7 Latin, History and Religious Studies Trip to Verulamium and St Albans Abbey

Year 7 had a day out in St Albans to retrace some the history of the town from pre-Roman times, through the Roman occupation and development to the medieval monastic settlement and the splendid Norman abbey.

There was a huge amount for the boys to see and do and reflect on. We re-enacted some Roman infantry tactics using shields and swords which had been crafted in DT and decorated in art. We performed some stories from Greek mythology in the Roman theatre.

In the Roman museum we sketched some mosaics and marvelled at their beauty and craftsmanship. We attempted to decipher the Latin inscription which would have been on a giant slab of marble on the façade of the basilica. There was a lot to find out about all aspects of Roman life and we considered how archaeologists work and use evidence to come to their conclusions.

The awesome scale and beauty of the Abbey always creates a sense of wonder and the boys had freedom to wander about the building in small groups with tips and snippets of information from volunteer guides and the teachers. We saw how the building was shaped by historical events and looked at different depictions of St Alban and other holy figures. There were some Latin inscriptions to challenge us, and some boys joined other pilgrims at the shrine which has a very holy aura.