A Walk Back in Time

6 EAL Students showed their amazing resilience on Wednesday by putting the language they had learnt about Victorian England, as part of the English Curriculum, into practice during a trip round some of Leeds’ most iconic Victorian Buildings. During the day they completed various language tasks, from creating their own quiz questions about the history of the Corn Exchange to using fantastic adjectives to describe the sights, smells and atmosphere of Kirkgate Market. This supported the students to enrich their vocabulary and bringing abstract concepts to life.

The students made some fantastic links to the Victorian vocabulary they had already learnt, spotting ‘cobble stones’, discussing buildings blackened from ‘smog and pollution’ and the ‘hawkers’ in the market. The additional context the students gained from the trip will support their learning and understanding in the classroom. Their respectful and responsible behaviour throughout the trip was a credit to Mount St Mary’s and their engagement with these tricky tasks showed their determination to improve their English and engage with the curriculum. When we returned to the classroom the benefit of the trip was evident as they animatedly discussed why they had chosen their favourite buildings and whether they would like to live in Victorian England (which was a resounding no!).