BRIDGING AGES AT ROCKDALE wear straw hats ( known as biffs ), but we no longer wear them . Finding out about how our experiences differ so much from his own was fascinating !
Throughout our conversations , we took notes , which we then compiled into a book about our partner ’ s life . The book that we worked on was separated into chapters for each part of his life , including childhood , relationships and later years . As we had to write these life stories from what we had heard during our conversations , I found it interesting bringing our perspective to the book and writing it from our point of view .
Bringing older and younger people together to hear – and write – their life stories .
As a part of the service programme on Thursday afternoons , a group of students visited residents of Rockdale in Sevenoaks and took part in the Bridging Ages community project , which aims to bring teenagers and older people together , to turn their stories into professionally published books .
Each week , in pairs , we visited a resident of Rockdale , with whom we spent the afternoon speaking about their various experiences and significant moments over the years . Through these conversations , we gained a unique insight into their lives , which was a truly special opportunity – hearing about everything that they have been through and their reflections on all these times .
After writing and printing our books , we had a ‘ book ceremony ’, which took place in a reading room of Rockdale , where we handed the finished books over to our partners and spoke to them about how they found the process . This was very rewarding , as we got to hold a physical copy of what we had been working on since the start of the year and hand it over to our partner .
It was sad to say goodbye to our partners , but it was enjoyable getting to know them and working on their books throughout our service sessions , which I found myself looking forward to each week , while learning many things along the way .
Thank you to Mr Harvey for supporting us throughout the process and making this possible !
Claudia Shaffie , Year 10
As we got to know our Bridging Ages partner , we also discussed our opinions on various matters . Our partner was particularly interested in talking about pressure in schools , as nowadays there tends to be a lot of pressure on pupils to pursue a certain career , whereas he says they didn ’ t have much of that . He also recalls how our school has changed over the years . For example , Sevenoaks School pupils used to
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