On Wednesday, Year 4 ventured off to the British Museum to enhance their knowledge and understanding in our History and Geography topics. We took the underground to Goodge Street, where we found our way to the museum to explore the exhibitions.
First, we explored the fascinating history of our current topic; The Ancient Egyptians. We saw statues, paintings, murals and artefacts which gave us an insight into Ancient Egyptian life. The children were very excited to see the real Rosetta stone, the tablet that unlocked the secret of Egyptian hieroglyphs.
Then, we found the exhibition on death and the afterlife in Ancient Egyptian times. The children completed worksheets to compare a sand and coffin burial, discussing whether the features of each body had been preserved successfully. There was also a range of materials and objects on display which helped us to understand the process of mummification which the Egyptians carried out after a death, such as canopic jars and metal rods to remove organs. The children spotted and recorded evidence from the tombs which showed us the various beliefs the Ancient Egyptians had about the afterlife.
Next, we went to the Roman exhibition to build upon our learning in our previous history topic; Roman Britain. The children loved seeing the various items, ranging from stone and metal sculptures of emperors and gods to jewellery, silverware, pottery and glass.
Finally, we explored the Americas exhibition in preparation for our final Geography topic in the coming term. The wide range of historical and archaeological objects helped the children to begin to think about the vast culture they might learn about.
Year 4 thoroughly enjoyed their trip to the British Museum and have spent the remainder of the week using their newfound knowledge to further bring their learning to life. On Thursday, they engaged in a demonstration of the mummification process. They were able to recall the facts they had learnt to explain each stage of the process.
