Burns Night is an annual event celebrated in Scotland to honour the famous poet Robert Burns, held on his birthday, January 25th. On this special night, the pupils of S. Anselm’s gathered in Hargreaves Hall to celebrate the occasion and learn about the traditions.
George T introduced the pupils to the event by explaining the tradition of Burns Night and how participants gather together to celebrate Burns’ life and works, and pay homage to his legacy as one of Scotland’s greatest poets.
The audience was then treated to poems from Tristan and Olly. To add to the experience, Cal the piper gave a lesson on the bagpipes, discussing how they work, why they are played with straight fingers in cold weather, and how the drones help produce a richer sound, which was used to scare the enemy in war.
After the lesson, Cal piped the pupils down to the dining room where the Selkirk Grace was read by Georgie, and the Haggis was piped in. Nell performed the traditional ode to the haggis, and the pupils enjoyed the traditional food accompanied by neeps and tatties.
Tilly and Kitty then read poetry before pudding and the pupils were piped up to the Sports Hall for a Ceilidh. Mr. Percival played the fiddle, Mr. Mortimer was the caller, and Mrs. Whawell and Miss Flack led the dancing.
Before retiring for the night, the junior pupils were treated to a special Scottish bedtime story read by Mr. Thompson, “The Old Man of Lochnagar” by HM King Charles III – a fitting end to a memorable and educational Burns Night celebration!
Thank you to the teachers for their wonderful dancing skills and to the kitchen staff for putting on a great meal!
