Life Education Newsletter - January - April 2014

January – April 2014

Noel Jackson, Head of Education

newsletterEducation

Skating@LifeUntil Sunday 23 February 2014

Reinforce the positive learning experience of your workshop and Science Centre visit by taking your class for a spin on the ice.Workshops linking the ice rink to the curriculum are available for all key stages.

For information and to book, call (0191) 243 8223.

Supported by:

Students can enjoy the winning entries from the 2013 competition, which aims to showcaseoutstanding creativity and photographic skills, inspiring wonder at the natural world andhighlighting the need for wildlife conservation.

Awe-inspiring images and fascinating biology makes for an inspirational visit. We areusing some of the images as a basis for a maths trail too (see page 3).

Included in your Science Centre ticket. To book call (0191) 243 8223.

Photograph: Snow moment (c)Jasper Doest (The Netherlands).Image taken from the 2013 competition.

Dear colleague,I am conscious that teachers

at every key stage have a lot

on their plate this year, so we

continue to develop activities

which support exciting and

engaging education at all

levels. These include our

ever-expanding Mathstastic

programme (see p.3),

additions to our extensive

choice of workshops

(see p.3), and our annual

National Science Week offer

(see p.3).

We are very excited about

hosting BODY WORLDS Vital,a journey through the human

body which makes its UK

debut here at Life in May 2014.

Controversial, awe-inspiring

and educational, you can

judge the exhibition for

yourself at our Teacher

Premiere (see p.2).

Yours faithfully

Wildlife Photographer of the Year is co-owned by theNatural History Museum andBBC Worldwide.

Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2013Open until Sunday 2 March 2014

Bookings: (0191) 243 8223 Information: (0191) 243 8211 [email protected] life.org.uk/education

BODY WORLDS VitalOpens Saturday 17 May 2014Teacher PremiereThursday 15 May 2014Suitability: KS2 and above

Join us after school for a guided tour of BODYWORLDS Vital and our teaching laboratories,led by our Education staff, with a chance to askquestions about the exhibition. If you can’tmake the Teacher Premiere, we’re happy toorganise a show-round for you on a date thatsuits - just let us know!

BODY WORLDS Vital, an awe-inspiringjourney through the human body, celebratingits complexity, beauty and potential, makes itsUK debut at Life. BODY WORLDS Vital bringstogether a collection of real human bodies,specimens, organs and body slices preservedthrough plastination, a ground-breakingpreservation method invented by Dr. Gunthervon Hagens.

Students will learn about anatomy, health,lifestyle choices and the body’s full potential byviewing real human bodies. BODY WORLDSVital is also of interest to art and design students,and as a starting point for ethical debate.

Extensive educational materials are available tosupport your class visit to BODY WORLDS Vital,and we are currently developing curriculum-linked workshops on bodies and health forevery age group which can be booked alone orin combination with an exhibition visit - get intouch for more information.

Included in your Science Centre ticket. To book call (0191) 243 8223.

An exhibition of internationalarchitecture built in LEGO© with over 60 scenes including the Colosseum in Rome, Berlin’s TV Tower and the London 2012 Olympic Park. Students can see how real engineeringchallenges are overcome in miniature and be inspired to create their own constructions using LEGOpieces and imagination!

Included in your Science Centre ticket. To book call (0191) 243 8223.

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Man or monkey? Girl or boy? Innocent or guilty? A little DNA can make a big difference! Our new permanent exhibition, Inside DNA, will explore developments in the fast-moving field of human genomics, and the ethical issues they raise.

Included in your Science Centre ticket. To book call (0191) 243 8223.

Inside DNAOpens Saturday 15 February 2014

V I T A LThe Original Exhibition of Real Human Bodies

MathsFestival of MathsDelivered in partnership withNewcastle University

Thursday 30 January 2014

Building on the success of last year’s pilot festival, our secondFestival of Maths will see traineemaths teachers and Life staffrunning a range of exciting activities to show that maths is both useful and fun.

This year’s Festival was bookedup in less than 24 hours. To hear about future mathsevents first, register your interest with our EducationDepartment by [email protected] or calling (0191) 243 8211.

WildlifePhotographer ofthe Year 2013Maths Trail Maths is everywhere, including inour exhibition!

Our newest maths trail uses thestunning images in WildlifePhotographer of the Year 2013 to stimulate an interest in maths.

Visit life.org.uk/maths-trail toaccess the downloadablequestions before you visit.

FREE Science Centre entry this March!To celebrate National Science and Engineering Week, schools whobook a workshop or presenter-led planetarium session (£3 per pupil) to take place in March can enjoy a day in the Science Centre for FREE.

For more information and to book, please call (0191) 243 8223.

Festival of MicrobiologySupported by the Society for Applied MicrobiologyWednesday 5 – Tuesday 18 March

In our first ever Festival of Microbiology, 10 groups of secondaryschool students will explore algae, protozoa and bacteria usingresearch grade microscopes, learning to set up microscopes andmake slides using stains and oil immersion. Students will thencreate a design based on their microbial discoveries, ready to paintonto the walls of the Education Foyer to welcome future visitors.

This year’s Festival sold out very quickly. To be involved in futureevents, register your interest by calling (0191) 243 8211 oremailing [email protected]

If you’d like extra support to improve yourschool’s science provision, particularly in linewith the Creative Curriculum, we can help.

Just identify the year groups and themesyou’d like to focus on, and we’ll present avariety of hands-on activities andinvestigations so you can adopt the ones thatsuit your teaching style.

For more information and to discuss ways wecan help, contact our Education Departmentby emailing [email protected] or calling(0191) 243 8211.

New workshopsWe are pleased to announce three new workshops for KS4 and post-16 classes:

� Fluid Balance looks at the effect of water loss andgain on cells, with a chance to dissect kidneys andobserve the effects of hypotonic and hypertonicsolutions on red blood cells.

� Urine Analysis uses qualitative analyses to test ‘urinesamples’. Students identify the abnormalities andmatch the samples to patient cards.

� Food Tests allows students to analyse a ham andcheese salad sandwich to work out whether it is a balanced meal.

For more information visit life.org.uk/new-workshopsor call (0191) 243 8223 to book.

Primary CPD

Bookings: (0191) 243 8223 Information: (0191) 243 8211 [email protected] life.org.uk/education

Bookings: (0191) 243 8223Information: (0191) 243 8211 [email protected]/education

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To receive a copy of our Education newsletter, please email [email protected] your fullname, position and school (stating email or post as a preference). We like to save paper where possible, so if you would prefer to recieve this newsletter electronically, please email [email protected] or call (0191) 243 8208 and let us know. FSC Logo

OutreachIf you can’t come to us, we can send two of our graduateScience Explainers to run activities at your school. Current favourites are the inflatableplanetarium, the Animal AdaptationRoadshow and Dinomaths, which uses dinosaurs to promote facility in maths.

For a full list of options visit life.org.uk/outreachPrice: £300 for one day. To book call (0191) 243 8211.

Changes in the Centre in 2014From Monday 6 January – Friday 14 February, Monday 3 – Friday 7 March 2014, and from Tuesday 22 April – Friday 16 May 2014,some areas of the Science Centre will be closed as we prepare fornew exhibitions. There will still be plenty to do for school groupsincluding the planetarium, Science Theatre, Curiosity Zone, variousexhibitions, 4D Motion Ride and Young Explorers’ Zone for under 7s.

Call us for full details on (0191) 243 8223.

Maker Faire UKSaturday 26 - Sunday 27 AprilMaker Faire UK – ‘the greatest show (and tell) on Earth’ - returns to Life in April.

THE main Maker Faire in the UK, the event attracts Makers and attendees from across the world, bringing together adiverse group of individuals bound by a common desire tocreate.

A primary aim of Maker Faire is to inspire young people tolaunch projects, develop products and take up careers in STEM - please help us spread the word!

www.MakerFaireUk.com

PricesWorkshop + Science Centre visit + skate £9 per pupil

Science Centre visit + skate £6 per pupil

Playful Science (Early Years workshop) £5 per pupil

Workshop only £3 per pupil

Outreach £300 per day

CPD £120 per person per day

Teachers FREE

Your visit to LifeA school visit to Life typically includes time toexplore the Science Centre (including currentexhibitions) plus a workshop of your choice and, until 23 February 2014, a session on our open air ice rink. Special events andactivities are charged separately: visitlife.org.uk/education-prices for full details.