Primary pupils rise to the Humanities Challenge
QE’s long-running outreach programme to local primary schools this year included a special Humanities Challenge where activities included, planning a party, designing a castle for William the Conqueror, and devising a sustainable business.
Year 6 girls and boys came to QE for the event run by the History, Economics and Geography departments.
The 2026 primary outreach work has also involved a morning of literacy and numeracy challenges for Year 5 pupils, as well as Art and forensic science sessions.
Separately, QE’s partnership with technology specialists Atom Learning offers children aged 7–11 from disadvantaged backgrounds – those eligible for Pupil Premium – free access to online learning resources, including preparation for grammar-school entrance tests.
Headmaster Neil Enright said: “QE is proud to be part of our local community, so it is always a joy to see children from Barnet primary schools participate in our outreach programme.
“My thanks go to the teachers and QE pupils who welcomed our young visitors here with successful and exciting activities that gave them the chance to sample life at secondary school. As the new academic year begins, I am sure my colleagues will already be thinking ahead to activities for 2027!”
Led by Head of Economics Kanak Shah, the Economics activity gave the Year 6 children just 30 minutes to plan the perfect party. Teams from Whitings Hill, Underhill and Foulds primary schools worked together to create a plan before presenting their ideas to the audience from the stage using colourful posters.
Following the presentations, pupils reflected on the economic decisions they had made, considering the concept of scarcity and looking at what they could have done differently. They quickly identified that their greatest scarce resources were time and budget, prompting thoughtful discussions about prioritising spending and exploring alternative options.
The competition was judged by three Sixth Form Economics students – Aahan Shah, Vyom Srivastava, and Hygreev Vangari – who afterwards declared themselves impressed by the creativity, teamwork and reasoning demonstrated by all of the groups.
After a closely contested competition, Team A from Underhill School was crowned the winner by the narrowest of margins.
History teachers Helen Edmunds and John Haswell told the Year 6s that they had 1,000 gold pieces to design and build a castle on behalf of William I.
They had to decide whether to build the castle for noblemen Richard of Durham or Roger de Montgomery, carefully managing their budget while researching which features to include. Using a ‘castle catalogue’ as a guide, pupils selected different buildings and defences, earning points for each item.
In a second activity, the children explored the succession crisis following William’s death. They considered the claims of his two sons, debated the evidence, and decided which side they would support. Both activities were won by teams from Foulds School.
For the Geography activity, led by Geography teacher Nathan Lawson, the focus was on sustainability. The session began with a recycling quiz, where the girls and boys identified the purpose of different coloured bins, before discussing the social and environmental impacts of landfill in their teams. They impressed QE teachers with their knowledge of issues such as: the effects of waste on marine life; toxic emissions from burning rubbish; the impact of bioaccumulation within the food chain; greenhouse gas emissions contributing to climate change; visual pollution affecting wellbeing; and the dangers faced by children in some countries who search through landfill for recyclable materials to sell.
The primary pupils then worked together to develop their own definition of sustainability. Their ideas included repurposing materials, designing products for longevity, and using renewable energy sources. such as solar panels and wind turbines. They also learned about the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, discussing how sustainability is closely linked to fairness, equality, and protecting our planet for future generations.
To conclude the session, pupils worked in teams to design their own sustainable business and create an innovative product – an activity designed to encourage creativity, teamwork, and entrepreneurial thinking, while reinforcing the importance of sustainable design. They pitched their ideas to their teachers in a Dragons’ Den-style presentation, considering key factors such as reducing carbon emissions, minimising environmental impact, affordability, the intended target audience, and ensuring their product could be reused.