Battlefields Trip

Year 9 pupils spent a moving and memorable trip exploring significant historical sites in Belgium and France.

Sonya and Elizabeth write about the highlights of their trip.

“During our three-day trip, tracing the main events and battles in WW1, Year 9 saw the topic we had been studying come to life and witnessed for ourselves the war’s impact on life today. This was especially so when walking through replica trenches and dugouts, and when visiting French, British, German, and Indian cemeteries where we read poetry and paid our respects to key fighters in the war, including some of our own family members. Verity and Eliza laid a wreath during the Menin Gate Ceremony, the first time that South Hampstead has participated in this event. We were inspired to learn that the ceremony occurs every day to honour those whose lives were lost in WW1. Despite the solemn mood of these aspects of the trip, we also enjoyed some lighter highlights, including a tour of the city of Ypres and, of course, the Belgian chocolate! Overall, the Battlefields trip was an amazing experience: interesting, informative, but also a lot of fun.”