HISTORY came to life at Ruskin Junior School on Wednesday as kids and grown-ups sprinkled a dash of Ancient Egypt into the classroom.

Year 3 pupils at the Stratton school enjoyed a day of practical learning by dressing up a pharaohs and mummies and delving into all things Egyptian.

Head teacher Andrew Beadnell thought it was a brilliant way of getting the pupils interested in the subject.

He said: “Each term we have a central idea around which we pin our curriculum. For our Year 3 children in this particular term it was Ancient Egypt.

“We invited an expert in the subject to come to give a talk in order to give the children an idea of what it was like in Ancient Egypt.

“Demonstrations of mummification and Ancient Egyptian dances were given and the children learned how they used specific units of measurement and how they built the pyramids.”

Even the teaching staff got in on the act and took part in the dressing up.

“It was a great atmosphere,” said Andrew. “The parents did a wonderful job and it was great to see the staff enjoying themselves.”

Explaining the importance of such active learning days, Andrew said: “What it does is it gives the children something to focus on and something to enjoy.

“It’s good to start a new topic with them experiencing something like this and it helps their memories and allows certain aspects of history to come alive.

“With Ancient Egypt being so distant in history, it can sometimes be difficult for children to grasp.

“Plus, they always love the opportunity to dress up – as do the teachers.”