Key Stage 2 Teaching Session Menu
Rainforest Fun (duration: 75 minutes with live animal presentation / 45 minutes without live animals. Please specify which on booking form.)
Discover our rainforest seeds, tribal artefacts and preserved creepy crawlies to better understand this fascinating environment. Learn about where tropical rainforests are situated, the animals that inhabit them and why they are so endangered. Find out how rainforest plants grow and adapt to their unique environment. Also, discover which rainforest plants we eat and which we wear, as well as a whole host of others that are part of our everyday lives, in this fun and interactive, fact-based session! Indoor session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, Geography, History, Art & Design, Music, P.E. (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment and Health & Wellbeing.
(Please see the Animal Handling description below for the selection of animals that will be chosen from – if there are any animals you would prefer to see or not see, then please state on your booking form (we cannot guarantee the availability of any animal). Animal Risk Assessment. Please note that, if chosen, the live animal presentation is an addition to this session and so does not form the basis of it. Therefore, only a selection of animals will be shown and some children may not have the opportunity to handle them.)
Animal Handling (duration: 1 hour)
Take a look at our exciting and unique animal collection! You will have the opportunity to `get up close` with a range of exotic animals chosen from the following selection: Corn Snake, Yemen Chameleon, Bearded Dragon, Lesser Madagascan Tenrec, Peter’s Banded Skink, Giant African Olive Millipede, Fire Salamander, Giant African Land Snail, Madagascan Hissing Cockroach and Sunny Stick Insect! Learn about the special adaptations that these creatures have evolved, how they are classified, and what habitat they live in, through close observation, together with the chance to handle them too! Risk Assessment. (We cannot guarantee the availability of any animal.) Indoor session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, Geography, History (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment.
Growth (duration: 1 hour)
In this session, we will ask your pupils to identify plant parts (root, stigma, stamen etc.) and find out about the roles they play, before learning about the purpose of flowers in plants and the role that insects play in pollination and seed production. We then act this out as a class role-play, where everyone has a `job` to do, and one of your pupils will dress up as the all-important `buzzy bee` in our special costume! Finally, we investigate seed dispersal and why it is so important for plant survival. Indoor session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, Geography, History (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment.
Rainforest Challenge (duration: 75 minutes)
In small teams (maximum 6 groups per class), your pupils will have fun acting as rainforest detectives to follow the cryptic clues to discover our secret rainforest plants. Using the clues hidden in their backpacks to help them, your pupils will find out the names and information about some of our key rainforest plants. Can your pupils work out the secret codeword? A plenary then ends the session where your pupils will have the opportunity to investigate various rainforest seeds and products from the plants that they have discovered. (We recommend bringing plenty of drinking water for this session, particularly in the summer months. We also recommend not spending too much self-guided time in the Tropical and Subtropical Glasshouses before this session, as this may spoil the activity.) Indoor & Glasshouse session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, Geography, History, Art & Design, P.E. (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment and Health & Wellbeing.
Sensational Science (duration: 1 hour)
Have your students ever seen plant DNA? Have they ever used a potato to tell the time? What’s special about cabbage? Are leaves really green? Here at the Gardens, we obviously think plants are amazing. So, have your students don their lab coat and safety glasses (provided), and investigate for themselves just how amazing in our practical, laboratory-style teaching session – Risk Assessment. Indoor session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, P.E. (see link at bottom of page for further details)
(Our thanks go to the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Millennium Point Trust for their support with this session.)
Gardens Tour (duration: 1 hour)
Explore all four corners of the Earth, without leaving Birmingham. Experience tranquillity in our Japanese Garden, admire the tallest tree species in the world in our Pinetum and wonder at the otherworldly plants found on the tundra. You can also marvel at our birds of the world collection in the beautiful Lawn Aviary and maybe bump into our free-roaming peacocks. The history and heritage of the Gardens will be prominent themes of the tour, though we can tailor your tour to any topic/theme. This tour will cover the outside Gardens but will not include our Glasshouses. Outdoor session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, Geography, History, Art & Design (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment and Health & Wellbeing.
Glasshouse Tour (duration: 1 hour)
Take a trip through our four stunning Glasshouses, from the arid extreme to the vibrant tropical rainforest. Explore ways that our plants have adapted to survive and thrive in different climates and learn exciting facts from our expert guides! (We can tailor your tour to any topic/theme.) (Glasshouse Tours are conducted for 15 to 20 pupils at a time because of restricted space.) Glasshouse session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, Geography, History, Art & Design (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment and Health & Wellbeing.
Natural Art (duration: 1 hour)
We will encourage your pupils to create natural pieces of artwork in the style of Andy Goldsworthy. We will give you plenty of ideas before venturing out to create your own natural masterpieces in our outdoor ‘gallery’, so don’t forget your camera! Finish the session by making a natural postcard to take home as a memento of your visit to the beautiful Gardens. Outdoor session.
This session links to: English, Science, Art & Design, P.E. (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment and Health & Wellbeing.
Food Chains (duration: 1 hour)
Understand that all organisms within a habitat interact with each other and have relevance in food chains. Can your pupils organise a food chain? What is a food web and can we make a group web? We utilise relevant terminology and discover how energy is lost between trophic levels in a fun outdoor watery game (pupils playing this game may get wet)! Indoor & Outdoor session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, Geography, P.E. (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment.
Pond and Land Minibeast Explorers (available spring to autumn) (duration: 1 hour)
Give your pupils the opportunity to compare two different habitats. Half of your class will have a go at pond-dipping to discover what monsters live in the watery depths whilst the other half will explore the Gardens for land minibeasts, before swapping over half-way through the session. Classification keys will be used to help identify and group their findings. Outdoor session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, Geography, P.E. (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment.
Japanese Challenge (duration: 45 minutes)
Learn all about the tradition and history behind the Japanese garden culture in this fun and practical session. Have your pupils hunt for challenge answers whilst exploring our ornate and tranquil Japanese Garden and National Bonsai Collection. 知識は力である！ Outdoor session.
This session links to: English, Maths, Science, Geography, History, Art & Design, P.E. (see link at bottom of page for further details). This session also links to the Environment and Health & Wellbeing.