Castlehill’s ‘incredible’ WWI exhibition
A hundred years after the end of the First World War, many thought they had heard it all but an exhibition by Castlehill’s P6s and P7s taught various people a thing or two. A huge turnout of family, friends and guests was astounded by the ‘incredible’ display, which filled the hall from wall to wall, last Thursday afternoon. Posters, paintings, letters, poems, diary extracts and fact sheets gave a vast insight into the war, but the most talked about feature was the show of model trenches. Each child’s creation was unique, some featuring tiny, hand-made sandbags, ladders and barbed wire, and others using real foliage as grass. Lord Lieutenant Patrick Stewart, who addressed the children after they performed several songs from the war era, said: ‘I don’t think anywhere will have seen so many different kinds of trenches. Every possible variation was there. ‘Well done – give yourselves three cheers!’ Another stand-out feature was model war memorials and medals, hand-crafted and painted by pupils. The whole school was involved, with every child creating a single red poppy, used as part of a draping stage decoration. Class teachers Mrs Watson, Mrs Ronald and Mrs Mackay started the project at the end of October. Mrs Watson said: ‘The whole school has been very supportive and helpful. Pupils, parents and adults have put in such a lot of work. ‘We held an exhibition to mark the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War and it was a success, so we decided to hold one to mark the end of the war as well. ‘We are overwhelmed by the response from everybody here today.’