By Mr Petrie
“Although not part of their current History curriculum, the importance of the Spanish Civil War to all subsequent twentieth century history and the fact that we are fortunate enough to have the evidence of such a relatively recent conflict right on our doorstep made this a fascinating and important trip. Our first stop was the Refugi 307, one of over a thousand bunkers built to shelter the city´s civilians from Nationalist bombs. The pupils followed the 250 metres of tunnels deep under Montjuïc, learning about the events which led people to hide there and getting a vivid sense of the terror they must have felt.
From here we walked into the heart of the city, stopping to look at the church of Santa Maria del Pi, gutted by anarchists in the early days of the conflict and then moving on the remarkable plaça de Felip Neri, whose walls are still scarred by the bomb dropped on it by Mussolini´s planes in 1937. The wealth of historical sites in this part of the city meant that we also managed to take in Roman remains and the Medieval Jewish quarter before returning to the Ramblas and the plaque commemorating the final sighting of POUM leader Andreu Nin and the hotel where George Orwell stayed on signing up for the International Brigades.
The pupils got a great deal out of the day and returned with a real enthusiasm to find out more about this crucial period of History.”
Year 7, 8 and 9 Sociales Trip to MUHBA and MAC
By Ms Martínez, Ms Reyes and Mr Rius
“In order to further develop the curriculum in Sociales, our group of students had the opportunity to visit two of the most emblematic museums of the history of Barcelona. The Sociales students of Year 7 and Year 8 went to the Archaeological Museum in Montjuïc, which houses evidence of our ancient past. Year 7 could demonstrate their extensive knowledge of Prehistory during the guided tour, and put several decorative techniques into practice while making some ceramic and pottery utensils afterwards. Year 8, in turn, explored the universe of Greek mythology illustrated through the pieces the museum guides were presenting and then participated in the pilot trial of role-playing game based on the Olympus and the ancient Greek traditions.
Year 9 students visited the Museu d’Història de Barcelona and then took a tour round the medieval Barcelona, stopping by some of the most significant highlights of our Gothic architecture, such as Palau del Rei (including Saló del Tinell and Capella Reial), Basílica de Santa Maria del Mar and the Born area. The aim was to help them understand the importance of this historical period in the European context and become aware that historical remains reveal details of ourselves in the mirror of diversity.”