Year 5 Visit to Burghley House

As part of our Victorians topic, Year 5 visited the magnificent Burghley House. They started with a tour inside the house and looked at some of the many rooms - the kitchens, various drawing rooms, the servants’ quarters and numerous bedrooms. This included several rooms where Victoria actually stayed in when on visits. Pupils then had a go at different jobs that children may have been expected to do as servants around the house (parents may be interested to note that clean laundry was folded, shoes were buffed and brass polished!!). In addition, there were a few hobby time activities that were available to do: cup and ball games, yo-yos, tiddlywinks, snap, and scrapbook making.

After lunch, there were some parlour games and it was refreshing to see the children play in small groups without the need for electronic devices. They worked together well, guessing the famous faces, hiding counters in hands, and the one they enjoyed most of all was playing ‘Lord Bean’ which involved passing a small, round counter between themselves using only their thumbs to hold it. Finally, there was enough time to examine some Victorian artefacts and try to guess their uses, such as carpet beaters and a footman’s hat. It was a fun and enlightening day with a lot of fascinating information garnered from our knowledgeable ‘Victorian’ guides; and plenty of entertainment too.