Mere Green Primary Pirates: Shiver me timbers – it was fun ahoy for pupils at Mere Green Primary School, who enjoyed a Treasure Island-themed literary event complete with a showstopping theatre performance of the classic novel.
After a successful World Book Day, Assistant Headteacher and English Lead Aimee Bursnell at the school – which is part of the respected Arthur Terry Learning Partnership – was keen to keep the children engaged with the world of literature.
And what better way to get the kids reading than a fantastic immersive event, centred around Robert Louis Stevenson’s beloved novel.
Miss Bursnell said: “I was inspired to bring the theatre into Mere Green Primary after we learnt that so many pupils, including most of our Pupil Premium children, had never visited the theatre before.
“Watching a theatre performance brings literature to life, giving the children a deeper appreciation for stories. We decided on Treasure Island to widen the pupils’ knowledge of classic texts and also to engage our boys.
In preparation for the performance, staff and pupils spent the 20th March decked out in their best buccaneer fancy dress.
Children in all classes read different versions of Treasure Island, to familiarise themselves with Stevenson’s iconic characters.
Miss Bursnell said: “I knew some children would struggle to follow the play without strong background knowledge, so Pirate Day gave them strong foundational knowledge of pirates and the basic story before watching the performance.
“They had an amazing time learning about the courageous Jim Hawkins and Sneaky Long John Silver!”
Classroom activities saw the children embracing the ‘pirate life’ with themed activities, including making their own pirate hats, dramatizing the story of Treasure Island and writing diary entries from the different characters’ perspectives.
They even got to have a swashbuckling adventure of their own with a whole-school digital treasure hunt, in which children had to navigate their own treasure map of the school to find the “X marks the spot” – which led to text and Treasure Island-themed questions for them to answer.
Mere Green Primary Pirates show followed special Pirate Day
With Pirate Day delighting the children with the world of Treasure Island, they were all ready for the spectacular performance on the 25th March, delivered by M & M Theatrical Productions.
All children from nursery to Year 6 gathered to watch an exciting performance of the classic story.
Miss Bursnell said: “The children sat beautifully as an audience throughout the play, it was full of laughs and excitement.
“After the show, the buzz around school was electric – the feedback was so positive from children and staff. Children spoke about their favourite characters and their favourite parts of the story all day!”
The staff at Mere Green were immensely proud of how the pupils engaged with classic literature.
Miss Bursnell said: “Enthusing our pupils in reading is a continuous journey here at Mere Green. I’ve implemented ongoing initiatives to develop a love of reading: our therapy reading dog who comes in weekly, Family Story Fridays for nursery and reception and our ‘book and a biscuit’ after school club.
“Pirate Day and the children’s response to the play proved that our efforts have been successful – to see the whole school united around literature was wonderful.”