Schools and teachers: Key Stage 4
Our Key Stage 4 education service will continue during the Museum’s temporary closure as a targeted programme of outreach activities, along with bookable sessions at the Botanic Garden.
Secondary school teachers who would like to book an outreach or Botanic Garden session please contact education@oum.ox.ac.uk.
Our Place in Evolution
Why was Darwin such a famous and controversial figure? Museum specimens are used to tell Darwin’s story and explain the strength of his ideas. Students have an opportunity to handle replica skulls of early human ancestors and figure out how we use different types of scientific evidence to fill in the gaps of our own evolution story.
In this session students have the opportunity to handle Museum specimens and take part in a range of object-based activities. Sessions are designed for groups of up to 30 students and typically last one hour.
Online resources: learning more
- The Oxford dodo
The dodo is one of the most famous examples of extinction; discover its story and its contribution to science. Designed to complement SC2: Section 4. Living things in their environment. - Rocks from space
Designed to complement SC4: Section 3. The Earth and beyond . - Rocks in the Museum
Students can study the rocks on display in the Museum, the three different rock types, and plate tectonics. Designed to complement SC4 (double): Section 3. Waves. - Browse learning more
Learning more provides a series of articles for older students on the history and science relating to the Museum.
Learning more articles are PDF format and are usually 500kB or less in size.
To read these files you will need to download Adobe Reader
Online resources: in the learning zone
- Classifying animals
'Animal I.D.' provides an introduction to animal classification with a series of sorting games. Designed to complement SC2: Section 4. Variation, classification and inheritance. - Extinct and endangered animals
Students can use these resources for their own research and explore how animals become extinct and endangered. Designed to complement SC2: Section 5. Living things in their environment. - Browse the learning zone
The learning zone provides a range of different articles for younger students on science topics linked to the national curriculum.
Online resources: image banks
- Grouping animals
Challenges students to classify animals; can they identify birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish and invertebrates? - The human skeleton
Can students identify the bones of the human body? This series of photographs provides a useful resource in the classroom. - Rock types
A photographic introduction to igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks; sort them and discuss the processes that form each type of rock.
The image banks 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
