As part of our Global Perspectives learning, Year 6 students from Norwich High School for Girls went to Kentwell Hall in Suffolk. Whilst there, we encountered a community living as if in Tudor times. We saw people going about their daily business dressed, talking and behaving as if they were actual figures from 1535, at the height of King Henry VIII’s reign. As soon as we entered through the iron gates of the manor, dressed in our Tudor garb, we also took on roles of the local yeomanry and used our Tudor phrasebook to ask and answer questions.
Year 6 at Norwich High Prep School visit Kentwell Hall in Suffolk.
We visited the different parts of the Manor including the walled kitchen gardens, where we tasted fruits and herbs. On the lawns, we danced with Tudor musicians and met craftsmen and women who taught us their trades. In the main hall, we saw food being prepared in the kitchens, dairy and bakery, as well as smelling the hops and barley fermenting at the brewery. The day was a real assault on our senses! It gave us all a great insight into what life was like during this era, from the perspective of both rich and poor Tudors.
Olive
“I really enjoyed visiting the Alchemist because he showed us lots of interesting experiments, such as chemicals changing colour, and then he created a few explosions too!”
Beth
“The bakery was impressive. Some of us kneaded the dough and I got to stoke the fire before they put the bread in the oven.”
Hattie
“I enjoyed going back in time and getting to see all the things that would happen on a day-to-day basis in Tudor times.”
