Educational Visits

Cost £3.75 - ratio of adults free 1:8

SCHOOL VISITS

• We tailor both internal and external visits to the specific needs of individual groups.
  
• Key stages 1 through to 4 are catered for.
  
• All visits are science-based, focusing on habitat, adaptations and conservation, with opportunities for cross-curricular links.
  
• Special needs can be catered for by prior arrangement.

Internal visits

• A guided tour of the Centre and Conservation Trail.
• Explanation and viewing of our domestic breeding programme for rare and endangered raptors.
  
• A personalised flying demonstration.
  
• An activity of your choice designed to fit in with the curriculum for the particular key stage of the children involved.
  

External visits

These visits take place at your school. We will bring several birds, including Owls, Hawks, Falcons or Eagles. The theme of the talk is the same as with internal visits (details above). We like to do the talks inside to avoid any inclement weather; the school hall is usually the best place as it is large enough for us to fly some of the birds, therefore keeping the attention of the children no matter what their age. No minimum or maximum number.
Cost £140 + travelling at 40p/mile

Tropical Paradise

Offers a wondrous learning experience for all ages. Whether it's the life cycle of a butterfly or the exotic world of snapping turtles or maybe the creepy crawly world of spiders and snakes. With its free flying butterflies and birds our tropical paradise has it. Built in summer 2004 this state of the art 650 square metres tropical house is a fantastic addition for our educational trips.

Woodside Activities with curriculum links

Bird of Prey demonstration. This forms the core of all visits and excites pupils of every age. Our experienced handlers will demonstrate how different birds behave, swoop and soar in their natural environment as well as explain about habitat, diet and adaptations. All will be thrilled and enriched by close contact with these majestic birds.
Key stage suitability: KS1 Sc2 2e 4b 5a,b and c. KS2 Sc2 4b 5a,b,c,d and e. KS3 Sc2 4b 5a,b,c,d and KS4 Sc2 4 a and b. Main themes: habitats, adaptations and influence of man.

Tree-mendous! During this session, pupils will learn about the different parts of a tree and their functions. Through fun activities they will find out how a tree works and what lives on and in them. There will be an opportunity to learn about methods of tree identification as well as to participate in practical exercises using estimation and measurement.
Key stage suitability: KS1 Sc2 4b. KS2 Sc2 1b and c 4a,b and c 5a,b,c and d. Main themes: habitats and classification. Cross-curricular opportunities: numeracy.

Sensory Walk. Take a walk on our conservation trail and get your pupils to use their senses. During this walk, the children will take part in a selection of sensory activities, such as colour palettes, meet a tree, mirror walk and smelly cocktails to heighten their awareness of the area. Walks will be in small groups, generally ten children or less to a leader.
Key stage suitability: KS1 Sc2 4b. KS2 Sc2 1c 4 c 5a,b,c and e. Main themes: observation and habitats. Cross-curricular opportunities: numeracy.

Minibeast safari. Pupils will first find their minibeasts through exploration of one habitat (logs), or comparison of different ones (such as grassland or trees). Children will then learn to use identification keys and how to handle living creatures sensitively. They will use sweep nets and collection jars for collecting and magnifiers for close-up viewing. There may also be the opportunity to go pond dipping!
Key stage suitability: KS1 Sc2 1c 2a d and e 4b 5a,b and c. KS2 Sc2 1b and c4a b and c 5a,b,c and d KS3 Sc2 4b 5a,b,d and e. Main themes: habitats, classification, adaptations and food chains.

One man went to mow. In this session, pupils will investigate the effect of human influence on the environment. Pupils will measure out a transect from a mowed to an unmowed area of grass land and, using sampling techniques, explore the change in diversity of species. This involves generating and testing a hypothesis as well as analysing results.
Key stage suitability: KS3 Sc2 4b 5a,b,d and KS4 Sc2 4 a and b. Main themes: habitats, adaptations and influence of man.

Rapid raptors (highly recommended). Bring out your fastest pupil for this race against the clock. This session combines measuring speed with adaptations to answer the question: which is faster – falcon, ferret or hawk? Pupils will make a prediction and test it by encouraging each bird to fly across an open field. Ferret racing will be used to highlight predator prey adaptations. This is a really fun session with good cross discipline links.
Key stage suitability: KS3 Sc2 5d Sc4 2a KS4 Sc2 4a Sc4 2a. Main themes: adaptations and speed equations.

You can download a copy of our Risk Assessment (Word Document) here: Download (42KB)

Call 01522 754280 for further information and a booking form.