History and English Masterclasses for Local Primary School Pupils

Established in September 2006, our History and English Masterclasses comprise six one-hour sessions held on Saturday mornings over the course of a term. Children from local primary schools spend the first half-hour looking at our Castle during a specific period of its history and then complete a different piece of creative work each week: a poem, a ghost story, a short playlet and so on.

Aims

The project aims to bring together like-minded children from local primary schools to explore History and English in an exciting and innovative way.  Based around the theme of the history of Kimbolton Castle, the activity-based sessions aim to foster imagination plus drama and writing skills against the backdrop of the School’s unique historical setting. 

By working with pupils from many other schools, each child's self-confidence is improved. This serves as ideal preparation for their moves onto secondary education settings.

Background

When our sister Mathematics Masterclasses started in September 2005, demand outstripped supply almost immediately. The introduction of this course a year later allowed us to expand the breadth of our offering as well as the number of children involved. Gradually, the Masterclasses programme has expanded from an initial dozen partner schools to the current 76.

Resources

The classes take place at Kimbolton School and are taught by subject specialists. A course comprises six one-hour sessions; four History and English courses are held each year.

The excellent teaching, commitment and enthusiasm of our staff in our History and English Departments is key to the success of these classes.

There is no charge for our Masterclasses.

Impact

We ask for, and receive, feedback from parents at the end of each course.  A typical response is:

"C has really enjoyed the History and English Masterclass. Already we are seeing a difference in her ability and motivation. Her teachers at her school are astonished at the rate of improvement in her work, she has been given the 'Golden Child' award and an Outstanding Comprehension Award, and she talks about her time at Kimbolton School with great affection.  The style of teaching and delivery at Kimbolton School definitely seem to suit her."

Pupil Involvement

The pupils are drawn from Year 5 or 6 depending on which term the classes fall in.

Almost 950 local state primary pupils have attended our History and English Masterclasses.

Frequency

Four History and English courses are held each year.