Just before the Easter holidays, students from Year 7 and Year 8 visited Belgium to learn more about World War 1.
The annual trip gave students the opportunity to visit some of the sites of war events they have been learning about in their history classes.
Trip organiser and history teacher Miss Binns found some of the students were taken aback at their experiences.
She said, “This trip is always hard-hitting for students because it helps them understand that what they learn about in textbooks really happened to people.
"Many students were shocked by the sheer scale of the cemeteries and many found names they recognised - there are 54,896 names on the Menin Gate alone.
"A relative of one of our students is commemorated on the Tyne Cot memorial wall, although we were unable to locate the name.
"Pupils were particularly affected by the ages of some of the soldiers who were listed - one in particular, Private V Strudwick, was just 15 years old when he died, only a couple of years older than them.
“It’s a wonderful, if sobering, way to bring history alive for them.”
Amongst other attractions, students visited Tyne Cot, the largest Commonwealth Cemetery in the area, Langemark, the German cemetery for contrast, and laid a wreath on behalf of all the soldiers lost with no known grave at the Menin Gate ceremony, from all students at Malet Lambert.
The Somme battlefield gave pupils a hands-on experience of what it was like to be actually in the trenches, and some of the conditions experienced by the soldiers.
They were also afforded an opportunity to place a wreath to commemorate a Hull hero, and an ex-pupil of Craven Street School, which is where Malet Lambert now stands.
John 'Jack' Harrison MC VC was an ex-Hull rugby player who fought in World War 1. He was awarded the Military Cross for ‘gallantry and devotion to duty’ while leading a platoon into No Man’s Land in March 1917.
Two months later, he was killed during an attack at Oppy, Pas-de-Calais, where he was awarded a post-humous Victoria Cross for bravery after launching himself at a machine gun to protect the rest of his troop.
His body was never found but he is commemorated on the Arras Memorial.
A plaque in his memory also rests in the main hall of Malet Lambert School.
Alongside their educational activities, students and staff also got the chance to visit a factory that creates something else that Belgium is famous for - chocolate!
The P&J factory in Belgium took students on a tour of the machinery and taught them how to mould their own Belgian chocolates.
Year 7 student Harry thoroughly enjoyed his time in Belgium and is itching to go again next year.
He said, “I loved our trip over to Belgium. History is one of my favourite subjects and this is why I wanted to take part.
“My favourite parts were visiting Tyne Cot and also being able to get in the trenches at the Somme Battlefield.
“Tyne Cot was quite important to me because I found out I had a great-great uncle who died in the war. He was only 17 years old at the time. We tried to find his name on the memorial but we couldn’t see it there.
“World War 1 is a sad subject to study, especially when so many people died during it, but I really enjoyed being able to see some of the things we have talked about in lessons in real life.
“I’m hoping my mum and dad will let me go again next year - especially when we finished off with making chocolate in the P&J factory!”
You can view photos from the trip here.