Private School News

Our Day at the Tank Museum-Bovington, Dorset.

On Thursday 6th March my class mates, Mr. Lawson, Mrs. Hodgson and myself went to the Tank Museum in Bovington. We left Cleve house School at 8:30am and was picked up by a mini bus and we arrived at Bovington at 10:35am.

We were all excited and we got some fresh air as we walked towards the entrance, and while Mr. Lawson was at the reception we got our cameras ready and waited for the Educational Officer to give us a tour around the Museum.

First we went into a room which look exactly like arailway station in the First World War, as we looked around it was dark and as we looked on the floor there was a sign saying “Poisonous Water” and there were hundreds of bricks on the floor and then we came to a nurse who was looking after a wounded soldier and a man on stetcher, then we came to lots of storage boxes which were labelled, Corned Beef which was food supplies.

Then our guidetook us to the First World Trench.There were rats that crawled up sandbags there was a man who was in shell shook and was talking to himself crying with his hands over his head because he couldn’t stand the noise of the mines and guns setting off anymore, he was muddy, grubby, he smelled and lice infested. As we walked around the corner we saw a dead person who had been making his way up the ladder when he was shot by a machine gun.
The best part of being in the trench was that we were able to put on some of the War clothes. Oliver was the first to try something on, He was first given a War coat that was that was itchy and was made out of a material which was called Serge, then he put on a War helmet which was not very protective so they made a harder one for protection. Then our guide brought out a British and a German grenades which were very different to each other because the German one was longer and easier to throw but the British one was tiny. Then we were given a bag which was 30Kg in weight. Then we tried on some gas masks and were asked about the War by our guide.

After we went across the hall and into a German trench which was well built and was made of wood and the rooms were very clean and some even had wallpaper!!!
After we went towards a unique tank that was crushing barbed wire and there were Germans scared in the corners of the room in shock because they had never seen one before.
Then the best of all is that we went in a Mark IV Tank!!
It was very cramped in the tank and quite dark, the engine was big and we saw the levers that changed the way round the tank went and we were told about what it was like to work in there.Then we went outside and had some lunch.

Mr. Lawson handed us some work sheets and we went to look at some more tanks but this time we had no guide!
We saw the Tiger 131 tank, the Panzer III and the Churchill.
The best part of all was going in a Modern Day Tank!!!
We had to wear helmets and we were told how the buttons worked and I was the gunner, I was scared to touch anything but I really enjoyed it Then we went to the gift shop, then we went home. I was sad to go home and I really enjoyed my time there, and I hope to go again.

by Tianna.