Schools and teachers: early years
The Museum is an inspiring setting for early years learning. It offers a range of fun and informative hands-on sessions and online resources that are free to all schools. Hands-on sessions last around thirty minutes and are delivered by a trained early years teacher; all activities are designed to introduce young children to the specimens in the Museum, linking these resources to the national curriculum.
Hands-on sessions: make a booking
- Marvellous Minibeasts
Using mime, storytelling, close observation of real museum specimens and live insect handling, children will be introduced to the world of bugs. Bugs are the most numerous living things on earth, and children will discover why the life of our planet depends on them. Sessions for a class of up to 40 last one and a half hours and include a trail around our insect displays.
Download the Minibeasts self-guided trail - Nursery rhyme animals
In this session we use nursery rhymes to find out about the animal world. Whose egg was Humpty Dumpty? And which other animals lay eggs? What type of animal was Incy Wincy? Mammals, birds, reptiles and bugs all sorted by nursery rhyme.
Download the Animals self-guided trail - Dinosaurs and story
How do scientists know what dinosaurs looked like? Children consider when dinosaurs lived and what extinction means; they have the opportunity to handle a range of fossils to try to work out what these animals might have looked like.
Download the Dinosaur hunt self-guided trail
Download the Dinosaur hunt trail adult notes - Skeletons and story
Looking at different types of animal skeletons, children have the opportunity to handle a range of 'mystery bones' (including those of a replica human skeleton), and then to try to work out where in a body they belong.
Online resources: image banks and colouring sheets
- Birds and mammals
An image bank containing photographs of a number of Museum specimens, introducing children to some of the more common birds and mammals of Britain. - Is it real?
Children often get confused about whether the Museum specimens they see are actually real; this image bank attempts to clear up any confusion. - Park life
A series of photographs of the plants and animals that children may see on a visit to their local park. - Colouring sheets
A fun introduction to a range of specimens in the Museum; perfect for a rainy afternoon.
The image banks and trails are PDF format and are all 800kB or less in size.
To read these files you will need to download Adobe Reader
Enquiries regarding education services should be sent to: education@oum.ox.ac.uk