Moving Song Inspires Year 6 Suffragette Writing

Year 6 used the song ‘Derby Day’ by Maz O’Conner to inspire them to write a narrative from the point of view of the character used to narrate the story.

The song is about a young boy who attends the 1913 Derby with his father but then witnesses the terrible death of the Suffragette Emily Davison, who ran out in front of the King’s horse to protest at women not being allowed to vote.

We found the music incredibly beautiful and evocative – allowing us to think about the lyrics and what the characters were going through.

We also focused on lyrics that highlighted the suffragette such as ‘Flashed purple green and white’ (the colours of the movement), ‘Nine medals on her chest’ (Emily Davison went to prison and got Suffragette medals) and ‘I shall be free on Derby Day’ (allegedly the last word she said).

We thought it was frightening to think that just over 100 years ago that women were not allowed to vote and stopped from choosing what to do with their lives.

Watch the beautiful video to accompany the song at www.youtube.com/watch?v=64R-JuyqrX4