A WEYMOUTH school turned back the clock to learn what life was like in wartime Britain.

History came to life for year 8 pupils at Budmouth Technology College with a 1940s themed day.

They experienced everything from school activities and military drills, to rationing and bomb disposal.

Students had a go at making crystal radio sets by winding copper wire around a tube, they learned traditional playground games, and took maths lessons in pounds, shillings and pence.

Creative writing sessions had the students imagining the time spent in an air raid shelter, they discovered what it took to be a spy, and learned how to manage on clothes rations.

John Donald, leader of the school’s Combined Cadet Force, led the youngsters in exercise drills, training with wooden replica rifles, and aeroplane spotting.

In the science labs they watched how to make and dispose of a fake bomb, and technology enthusiasts spent time re-making wartime television adverts.

A small group of students also created an exhibition with artefacts loaned by Nothe Fort, Dorset County Museum, and Bovington Tank Museum.

Volunteers from Wimborne Priest’s House Museum, who lived through the war, talked about evacuation and showed objects from the decade.

Rachel Bath, subject leader for history, said the pupils responded enthusiastically to learning outside the classroom. She said: “These types of days are absolutely invaluable.

“It’s a different kind of learning and it’s seeing their learning put into practice in a way you can’t always do in a lesson. In an hour you can only get so far, then they stop and move on to learn something else.

“They were immersed in the culture and got a really rounded understanding of how it fits together.

“Their faces have been absolutely glowing. We have had comments from the visitors saying how interested all the students were.

“They have been learning with one aim – to discover what was it like to live in the 1940s.”