The children were introduced to the day and divided into three groups ready for a round robin of three different activities.

1) A Roman banquet.

2) Archaeology.

3) The Roman Army and weapons.

When we entered the room for the Roman banquet, we were confronted with a mock Roman villa, set up ready for a meal for a rich family. On the floor were cushions and tables set in a three-sided arrangement for nine people (lucky number for the Romans). At the opposite end of the room was the kitchen area with an array of different foods on display. Flamingo, venison, shellfish and stuffed dormice were just some of the delights on offer. The children were given a variety of roles to play and costumes to wear: Some were the guests in their finery, some were dressed as slaves to cater for the guests, others were preparing and delivering the food and finally a few were chosen to entertain the party. The children loved the experience and really got into character.

The next session was a talk about archaeology where the children found out how we know about Roman life. The children were shown a variety of Roman objects that had been discovered during the excavation of Bancroft Villa. The children had to be detectives and guess what some of the objects would’ve been used for. One of the memorable items was the cleaning kit which included a pair of tweezers, an earwax spoon, a skin scraper and a sponge on a stick which provided a lot of amusement once they discovered what it was used for. The children asked some interesting questions and were fascinated to learn about life two thousand years ago.

The final session was a study of the Roman army presented by someone dressed as the Roman goddess Minerva. She told them the story before showing the children a selection of Roman weapons and armour. The children were amazed at how much a Roman soldier had to carry with them. Large shield, sword, spear, helmet whilst wearing chainmail and armour. A small piece of chainmail was passed around showing how heavy it was. The children also saw how the army was organised into cohorts and legions. They laughed when they found out that there were eight soldiers per tent all having to share the sponge on a stick!

The staff at the centre really brought the Romans to life and the children were a credit to Loughton with their enthusiasm, interest and participation. A super trip with lots of learning and everyone back safe and sound before the end of the school day.