S2 and S3 pupils recently travelled to Normandy on an educational trip organised jointly by the History and Modern Languages Departments, combining history, culture and language.
The trip allowed pupils to explore some of the most significant sites connected to the D-Day landings of 1944, bringing their classroom learning to life through visits to historic locations across the region.
Among the sites visited were Pegasus Bridge and Arromanches, as well as several of the beaches that played a key role in the Allied invasion. Pupils also visited Sainte-Mère-Église, the first town in France to be liberated from Nazi occupation in 1944.
Alongside the historical visits, the trip provided pupils with the chance to experience aspects of traditional French life and culture. One of the highlights was a visit to a local boulangerie, where pupils learned about traditional French breadmaking and had the opportunity to try making bread themselves.
The group also explored the picturesque market town of Saint-Pierre-sur-Dives, experiencing the atmosphere of a traditional French town and putting their language skills into practice.
The trip concluded with a meal at a traditional French restaurant, giving pupils another opportunity to experience French cuisine and culture.
Pupils commented further on the trip, saying,
Cassie (S3)
“I enjoyed the trip to Normandy because I got to be part of history by seeing real artillery batteries and graveyards in person. I also got to find out in-depth information about the Normandy battles from the museums we went to.”
Emma (S3)
“I really enjoyed Normandy because it meant I got to go on a trip with all my friends and I also learnt loads. I especially loved the 360 cinema in one of the museums as it was really fun and interesting to walk through!”
Emilia (S3)
“This September break, the school history and modern languages departments offered us the amazing opportunity to go to Normandy to experience some of the most in-depth and interesting sights about the D-Day landings. We got to visit two war cemeteries, both of which were very poignant and fascinating. We explored many museums and interactive experiences, my favourite of which was the Memorial de Caen. We learnt about things that we had studied in school before, but seeing it with my own eyes brought it to life in a way that I had never imagined. This trip was an amazing opportunity that I was very grateful for, thanks to all of the teachers who made this possible for us all.“
Priya (S3)
“It was a fantastic experience. I never thought seeing the war museums would be so interesting. The best part was seeing the remains of Mulberry harbour at the beach. I had learned about it in class but wasn’t able to truly comprehend the scale of the horror until I saw it with my own eyes.”
Max (S2)
“Almost as soon as we docked in Cherbourg, we were going to all different museums, towns and Nazi bunkers, trying to make the most out of our time in France. I thought the best places we visited were on the first and last day: the 360o cinema and the Mulberry Harbour area on the first day, and on the last day the Merville Nazi bunkers, Pegasus Bridge, and the “le memorial de Caen”. I also liked going through the graveyards because it gave you the sense of not just the landings in general, but also the human toll involved, both Allied and German, and those were only two graveyards; I felt that I liked the Allied graveyard more because it wasn’t just one side or country in the war, because there were German soldiers buried there as well.”
Asad (S3)
“I enjoyed all aspects of the Normandy trip; however, what stood out to me was the visit to the cemeteries and the 360° cinema. I found the cemeteries interesting because they gave me a better understanding of the huge number of lives lost during the war. The 360° cinema was also really good as it gave us a different way of seeing what happened on D-Day. Overall, I really enjoyed the trip and thought it was a valuable experience.”
For pupils, the visit offered a valuable opportunity to learn beyond the classroom, combining important historical sites with first-hand experiences of French language, food and traditions. The trip provided a memorable insight into both the history of Normandy and life in modern France.
