Olga shares World War II stories with Year 5

Year 5 were treated to a wonderful range of historical stories on Thursday 13th November when Olga Hopkins, a St Albans resident who served with the WAAF in World War II, came in to share her experiences. Year 5 have written some thought-provoking war poems and, along with the rest of the school, enjoyed our Remembrance Day assembly earlier in the week, where Mrs Loukes played The Last Post and our school community observed the two-minute silence.

Olga brough her stories to life as a radio mechanic during the war, supporting the RAF and working on iconic planes, such as the Spitfire. Olga also shared her experiences of VE Day and the sense of hope and freedom when she heard that the war was over, and the great party that she and her colleagues enjoyed on hearing the news. Olga was one of the veterans invited to Buckingham Palace back in May for the 80th Anniversary of VE Day, and she was also a guest at last Saturday's Remembrance Day concert at the Royal Albert Hall, being one of the veterans asked to stand for applause in thanks of her contributions to the war effort.

The children were captured by Olga's stories and listened attentively to every detail, asking thoughtful questions and building upon their prior knowledge. A big thank you to Olga, and to her daughter Sian, who accompanied her for her visit to Skyswood.