I took my children to London to experience the magnificence of the Poppy display Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red at the Tower of London. We were blessed with a stunning Autumn day which show cased the display perfectly. To say that it was both awe inspiring and humbling is an understatement! Before leaving home I spoke to the children about what we were going to see and why and pinned their poppy badges on their shirts. (We get these every year in November and attend our local remembrance day service.) We spoke about why we should take time to remember these soldiers that we did not know. A tricky concept for a 4,6 and 8 year old! But I think they understood in their own simple way.
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We joined the throngs of people crowding to get a glimpse of the beautiful ceramic and metal poppies that had been individually planted in the moat surrounding the tower.
It was very humbling to see such a huge number of flowers, each representing a soldier’s life lost in battle.
I don’t think the children had realised how huge a number 888,246 was. This was a very real and graphic way for them to grasp just how many soldiers have given up their lives fighting for their country.
Each poppy has been ‘planted’ by hand in the moat of the Tower of London by volunteers, forming part of the installation Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red which is made up of 888,246 individual poppies. Every one is a piece of art.
If you’d like to know more about this work of art, please visit http://poppies.hrp.org.uk/
I am a preschool and primary school teacher and mum to 3 children. I have been involved in education since 1997 and have trained in a variety of educational specialist areas. It is with this expertise that I write articles to help parents and educators provide quality learning experiences for the children in their care.
