Back to Inspiring Minds

Robert Orme

A Latymer legend, Robert Orme encapsulates the Latymer spirit, instilling in pupils an inquiring mind and an intellectual approach to his two specialist subjects - history and cricket.

Latymerians remember Robert’s Socratic style of teaching in which young history pupils would be asked to debate the big questions of the historical period under discussion. Others will remember Robert’s slide projector – and latterly, his iPad - used in the then unusual method of teaching through visual art, bringing history to life for his students through a different lens to that offered by the traditional text book.

As Robert says;

"I was always interested in a history of ideas -  I thought that paintings were the best way of communicating the ideas or beliefs of people in the past. So as soon as I was teaching history, I automatically did it from images from art, from slides in those days, and used the slides as the thing that would mean that you would instantly get a reaction from a group of kids who would want to interpret the image, would want to ask questions about it, then -  in a place like Latymer with intelligent kids to teach - a debate could begin.”

Robert’s inspirational teaching was not confined to the classroom. Out on the Wood Lane cricket fields his patience and encouragement enthused both those who went on to play the game at a higher level, and those recreational players for whom the sport has remained a life-long passion. Whatever their level, all pupils coached by Robert will have been well tutored in his favourite shot - the forward defensive!