Alongside displays of games of Frustration and Winner Spinner, Mary Quant stockings and typewriters and to the sounds of a 1960s record player, pupils at Plat Douet School heard about what life had been like for their counterparts five decades earlier.
Former students Tim Herbert – son of the school’s first head teacher, Nick Herbert – and Martyn Maguire, who now works for the Jersey Fire and Rescue Service, shared their experiences during an assembly. Other past pupils visited classrooms and were shown around the modern school, which had been turned into a 1960s museum using artefacts collected and borrowed, including from Jersey Museum.
The school has only had four head teachers in 50 years – Mr Herbert, Keith Jarvis, Sheila Charles and current head Suzanne Conoops.
Stuart Pallant, history subject leader at the school, said the anniversary had presented a unique opportunity for the students to learn about a period in history that otherwise could be difficult to relate to.
‘It has been really good because it is something that is quite meaningful to them,’ he said. ‘They can talk about the lunar landing or JFK being shot or England winning the World Cup but this is about their school.
‘It was also really nice for the visitors to see what a modern primary school looks like with interactive white boards, iPads, data projectors and so on – we don’t even do a paper register now.’
