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Workshop Programme
We offer workshops for Key Stage 1 (KS1) or Key Stage 2 (KS2) groups and materials for Foundation Stage (FS) groups.
To browse through, skip to one of the following headings: Early Years, Vikings, Romans, The Classical World, Tudor, Science or Art.
Or you can download our new brochure covering all of York Museums Trust's sites - York Museums Trust Learning Workshops for Primary Schools 2012/13.
We can also offer bespoke projects for secondary schools - for examples visit our Precious Cargo page.
You will need to book a group visit when you book a workshop, please note that admission charges also apply for schools from outside the York area. See Making a Visit for information on how to book.
Each workshop is for a maximum of 30 pupils, unless otherwise stated. Each has its own risk assesment which can be downloaded in PDF form.
Prices
1 hour workshop - £60
1 hour 30 minutes workshop - £70
2 hour workshop - £80
We require a minimum of 48 hours notice for cancellation of sessions for payment to be refunded.
Two themed Discover Hampers are available for use with early years groups in the museum galleries. These can be booked for only £10 per day.
Hampers contain books, puppets, soft or plastic props, magnifying glasses, song sheets and activity ideas. Options are Animals or Dinosaurs&Fossils.
Viking Voyages, KS1, KS2
1 hour
Pupils are prompted to imagine that they have travelled back 1,000 years in time to experience Viking life first hand. Costumes and Viking names help to set the scene of a Viking village in Denmark whose inhabitants have to vote on whether or not to set sail in a longboat for a new life, and have to decide what to take.
The class act out a saga of a perilous voyage to Jorvik and on arrival make some leather belts to sell.
Jorvik Life, KS2
1 hour, 30 minutes
Who were the Vikings? When did they come to York and how did they live?
In this workshop, this class are introduced to a family of six characters and explore everyday life in Jorvik, from food and clothes to playing and working.
Hands-on activities include grinding grain on a quern, playing trip trap troll, weaving and writing; the session also allows children to handle genuine objects from the museum's collection.
The Real Romans, KS1
1 hour
Pupils meet a well-to-do Roman citizen, find out about his or her possessions and about life in Eboracum (Roman York). They handle real artefacts from the collection, dress as Romans and take on the work of slaves; including using a quern stone, designing a mosaic and writing Roman numerals.
Exploring Eboracum, KS2
1 hour 30 minutes, Risk Assessment
Pupils meet the Censor for Eboracum, who has muddled up his records and needs their help to correctly identify the citizens from the slaves. Pupils dress as Romans and then through handling real artefacts and taking part in hands-on activities, the pupils investigate the lives of six characters who lived in Roman York.
The activities include using a quern stone, creating Roman hairstyles, building a Roman arch and trying on replica Roman armour.
A Legionaire's Life, KS2
1 hour, 30 minutes
Pupils discover what it was like being a soldier in the Roman army and living in the Fortress of Eboracum (Roman York). Pupils learn about soldiers' equipment, armour, battle formations and weapon, before being put through their paces in a drill session.
Groups of pupils then design and build their own model catapult to discover who has the most fire power!
Egyptians: The Egyptian way of death, KS2
1 hour 30 minutes, Risk Assessment
Pupils meet a Victorian Egyptologist who is investigating the mysterious tomb of Kemmet. To discover the lost statue of Anubis, pupils must work through a series of challenges including the mummification and embalming process, using our specially constructed mummy, wrapping a mummy and making their own amulet.
Pupils also handle Egyptian artefacts to explore Egyptian beliefs about death and the afterlife. If they can decipher the final hieroglyphic message of Kemmet and apply their knowledge of the Egyptian Way of Death they may discover where the statue is hidden.
The Ancient Greeks, KS2
1 hour, 30 minutes
Puipls have to decide which god they want to represent their new city-state and start to plan a festival of celebration. They are assisted in this by a proud, retired Greek athlete who helps the children discover more about everydaylife in the Greek city-states and tells them the story of the Trojan horse.
Hands-on activities include rehearsing a play, practising for the games, making a peplos and dressing for the festival. Chidlren can also enjoy an opportunity to handle genuine artefacts.
Prince and Paupers, KS2
1 hour 30 minutes
Explore the life of Brother Thomas, former soldier and monk during the time of Henry VIII. He is now struggling to survive in Tudor York and needs the help of your group of beggars to help him find three objects which he can take to the new Queen Elizabeth and help him gain back his lost wealth.
Handle objects from merchants, traders, knights and monks to find out more about the life of people in Tudor York. Learn about illuminated manuscripts and dining etiquette.
Science
Cosmodome, KS1,KS2
30 mins, available during Space Month - November 2012, £40 per session
Pupils take a trip through space inside our inflatable Cosmodome and learn more about the planets and their moons that make up our solar system.
Afterwards the class can see what to look for in the November night sky and also how to find it!
Telescopes, KS1,KS2
1 hour, 15 mins, £80 per session
This session complements a tour of the Observatory and explores what stars are and how they have been used throughout history; as navigation and as a source of superstition and stories.
Pupils look at Victorian telescopes and star maps from the collection. Then they find out about how a telescope works and have the chance to make their own to take home.
Observatory Tour, KS1,KS2
20 minutes, Groups of 15 - £20 per session
Children get a close-up view of the 1850 working telescope in York Observatory in the Museum Gardens, and find out how it works and moves.
This session is for small groups, which allows better access to the telescope and also includes a fun and informative video.
The remainder of the class can complete a Star Trail inside the museum - this will be sent out with the booking information.
Dinosaur Designs, KS1
1 hour
Pupils wear white coats and become scientists to discover what fossils are and what they can tell us about dinosaurs.
They handle fossils and dinosaur bones - and there is a chance to see and hold fossilised dinosaur poo! Pupils make their own fossil casts and design their own camouflaged dinosaur to take home.
Dinosaur Detectives, KS2
1 hour, 30 minutes
Pupils become assistant curators in this interactive investigation, with the workshop leader acting as our Head Curator of Geology. They handle and examine fossils to classify them, working out the differences between land roaming dinosaurs, marine ichthyosaurs and skydiving pterosaurs, and learning about their extinction.
They then design a museum display, by choosing specimens, creating a backdrop and writing a museum label - before their display is inspected by the Head Curator.
Forensic Science: Who Were You? KS2
1 hour 30 minutes
Pupils become forensic scientists to find out whether a skeleton found in the Museum Gardens was a Roman child, a Viking warrior or a Medieval monk. They use scientific and archaeological investigations to determine the gender, age and means of death. Look out for red herrings too!
Pupils have the chance to handle real artefacts and examine real human remains.
These workshops are available from January 2013
Portraits in your pocket, KS1, KS2
1 hour, 30 minutes
Looking at miniature portraits from York Art Gallery's collection and coins from the Yorkshire Museum collection, pupils consider why we carry portraits and what they can tell us about the people they portray.
Pupils search for faces in the Museum displays and design their own portrait coin on shrinkable plastic.
Sensing the Gardens, KS1,KS2
1 hour, 30 minutes
Take a tour of the Museum Gardens using all your senses and discover the sounds, smells and texutres all around. Pupils record their tour on a sensory map, and then paint a watercolour of their favourite flower or part of the garden. Please come prepared for wet weather.
Photographs of the gardens during different seasons allow pupils to consider how the gardens change. KS2 groups also use historic photographs to consider how the gardens have changed over time.
