A group of London school children got to practice their artistic talents on the country's most famous portrait subject, Queen Elizabeth II.

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Rolf Harris, an Australian artist who did the queen's official 80th birthday portrait, conducted a master class for nine youngsters from the Manor Primary School, The Telegraph reported. They sketched the queen while she officially opened the business school Friday at the University of East London.

The queen was presented with a framed copy of the sketches. She admired the children's artistic endeavors in spite of her usual rule against commenting on her portraits.

Earlier in the day, the queen and the Duke of Edinburgh visited a fire station in East London where teenagers in the Life Project, a program aimed at easing tensions between firefighters and city youngsters, demonstrated the use of firefighting equipment. The queen narrowly escaped a dousing by the enthusiastic teens.