Well, Year 8 really have been busy. They have learned to be real historians, analysing sources, linking factors and consolidating all this awesome learning in to an awesome historical essay! They first learned how to open an essay with a strong introduction. Following this, they learned how to structure the main body of the essay using MBA paragraphs. Finally, they ended off with a powerful conclusion. This is a difficult concept to grasp, but the Year 8 class stepped up to the mark and wrote some fantastic historical essays. Their questions were Why the Spanish Armada failed and was Nelson the main reason why Napoleon’s invasion failed. This gave them a unique insight for when they stepped on board of the HMS Victory in the historic dockyard in Portsmouth. They also visited the Mary Rose, which was a history mystery they investigated as a prelude to the essay writing. We then jump forward a few years and enter the world of the British Empire, how it was made, why it was made and how it affected the history of India (and was 100% involved in the Slave trade!).
In geography, Year 8 have been busy again. Lots of presentations were worked on and their confidence in speaking in public now is great! First up came Global Warming. The greenhouse effect is back and causing havoc around the world…or is it? The class were tasked to present what had been taught to them on global warming to the class, which all did very well. Their second task was to have a debate. Some were put ‘for’ the motion and some were put ‘against’ the motion. The motion being ‘Climate change is happening right now and it is our (humans) entire fault.’ The students ‘against’ the motion had to do a lot of research to back up their argument, especially the ones who did not believe in what they were arguing over! Well it made for a healthy debate and both sides argued brilliantly….I’d say a draw!