Preparing the Pupils
It is important to take the time to prepare your pupils for their trip to the museum. Take ten
minutes to give them an overview of the day with an outline plan of activity which will give them
some idea of what they might see, find out or learn and will make them feel more comfortable and
better able to focus.
Make sure that the pupils are clear about:
- the date and timings of the trip
- whether they are to wear their own clothes. Do they need to bring warm jackets or wear sensible shoes?
- your expectations about behaviour on the day
- what they are to bring on the day, e.g., packed lunches, pencils, something to lean on? If they are to bring cameras/ Walkman, it is at their own risk.
- what they might see and learn about on the trip.
NB, most museums would prefer pupils to bring pencils. Please check whether photography will be allowed in the museum.
- Suggest how much money might be needed.
- Explain the arrangements that will be made for those on free school lunches. Naturally, the names of those concerned remain confidential.
It might be useful to discuss with the pupils the purpose of museums.
- The 24 Hour Museum has a really useful downloadable teachers pack, The Museum in a Classroom,
which looks at the following questions.
- How can you start your own museum?
- Where does all the old stuff you see in museums come from?
- What can be done in the classroom to make museums and galleries come alive?
- The pack also details how to structure and manage a cross-curricular project, which can be linked into the National Curriculum through most subjects and at most levels.
Downloads
Creating a Museum of Your School (Pitt Rivers Museum and Oxford University Museum of Natural History. Word DOC, 69Kb).
Useful Websites
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Culture 24 for Museum in a Classroom. (PDF, 1.14MB, Acrobat Reader needed)
Milestones (Hampshire County Museums Service) website for Guidelines for Education Groups.
Milestones website for Ideas for Pre-visit Discussion which teachers could use with their pupils.