Ever since the both of you were little, I would take you into London to explore the city during our weekends and holidays. I loved taking you to the different museums and attractions, which you would always find fascinating. Although I was sure at times you found the journey of getting there by train and then hopping on the London Underground was more fun than spending the day in some museum. We would play “I spy” to keep you entertained on the long journeys, but thankfully you have discovered the joy of reading and like to bring a book nowadays with you too.

London Walking Tour

During the first half of autumn term, you were learning about the Great Fire of London in school. Your class teachers had organised a history day for all the infants and you had a school visitor come in to re-enact the event. One of you went into school dressed up as a person from the medieval era for the day too. All of which really caught your imagination and I could tell you enjoyed learning about the history of this big event, as you shared many of the facts and dates with us at home.

I am always interested and delighted to hear about your days at school and the lessons you have done that day, even the school friends you were playing with. As your parent, it is reassuring to know that you don’t have many struggles and you are both enthusiastic about learning and making friendships within school.

Learning is more than just about sitting at a desk and poring yourself into books or making sure you completed your homework. I also wanted to be able to foster your sense of curiosity and learning in some way outside of the school environment. I know that structured lessons are invaluable for your learning, but real-life experiences and observations has great benefits too. Even something as learning the facts about the past history of a place or time can be brought to life or build a sense of connection through seeing and comparing it to present-day changes. 

As half-term approached, I wanted to take you to visit some of the famous landmarks and wander around London where the Great Fire had taken place. I used a book about the Great Fire that we had borrowed from our local library as a guide. I also found this brilliant map online and came up with a route that took in the key sites of Monument (located near Pudding Lane where the Great Fire started) to St Paul’s Cathedral and the Museum of London. 

You said at the end of our walking tour that your favourite part of the day was when you climbed to the top of Monument and could look down onto the streets of London. I enjoyed that part too. Although, if you had asked, I would say I enjoyed the most the special time we spent together that day and being able to discover this part of the city through your eyes. 

We ended the walk by looking at the artefacts inside the Museum of London which documented this time in history and London itself.

This is part of ARTEFACT MOTHERHOOD - a project shared with other female artists who are documenting our journeys as mothers and creating memories for our children through our photographs and words.

Go to my friend Hollie Stokes to see the next blog post in this series.