The deputy head of Airy Hill School has said “phalanx a lot” to the parents of year five and six pupils after their costume-making efforts made the school’s Greek day a huge success.
On November 25 the school celebrated completing their studies on Ancient Greece by hosting a banquet of Greek food, taking part in Ancient Olympic events, and even practiced ancient battle formations.
Deputy head Conrad Fox organised the day of “living history” with year five teacher Samantha Wilson, and he said: “At Airy Hill we want to make history real.
“By doing this it gives the children opportunities to experience things first hand.
“They can’t get these experiences from books and the internet.”
Some children wore general Greek dress, such as togas and sandals, while others dressed as Spartan warriors, like those made famous in the film 300.
The Airy Hill legion formed into a phalanx, an Ancient Greek battle formation, and were pelted with bean bags and sponge balls to see if the tactic worked.
Mr Fox said “it actually worked really well” and the formation also allowed the children to learn the virtues of working together as a team.
For this to work the children needed accurate replicas of Bronze Age Greek swords and shields and Mr Fox thanked parents for the effort they put into making the costumes.
He said: “We really want to thank our parents for supporting us, they all went to a lot of trouble.
“The costumes that the children came in wearing were incredible, and without their support it wouldn’t have been the success that it was.”
After working up their appetite by practising the battle formations, and then taking part in indoor versions of Olympic events, the children settled down to a Greek banquet of moussaka, olive dishes and cous-cous.
(Source: Whitby Gazette)
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