Science for Schools

Winchester Science Centre & Planetarium School Trips

Why book 'Science for Schools' with Winchester Science Centre & Planetarium for School Trips and Educational Visits?

Bring science to life with an action-packed educational visit. Get hands-on with the expert science Inspirers in one of six 45-minute curriculum-linked workshops. Blast off on a space adventure, get hands-on in a sticky sensory matter workshop or meet some of the residents of the South Downs National Park in marvellous minibeasts.

And that’s not all! Be wowed by a bespoke Planetarium show. Take a seat and zoom through the Solar System for an experience you’ll never forget. There’s also lots of time to explore the two floors of interactive exhibits. Climb into a massive guitar, experience the acoustics of a sonic rocket and blast off on an out-of-this-world journey through Explorer:Space.

And if you don’t want the fun to stop, have a sleepover! Snooze in the crash-landed spaceship of Explorer:Space or set up camp inside the giant guitar. A typical sleepover includes time to explore the exhibits, hot chocolate and a cookie before bed, a yummy breakfast and a morning Planetarium show. It’s a completely unique camping experience and you’ll never forget it.

Did you know, if you book an educational visit to the Science Centre, you can save 10% on a second school activity? Finish the school year with a summer celebration, bring science wow to your school with an in-school workshop or zoom into the stars with a Mobile Planetarium visit.

End the summer with a bang with the Science Centre’s summer celebration (available on selected dates in July). Join us for an explosive live science show filled with huge demos and wow moments. Enjoy a spectacular Planetarium experience and spend time exploring the two floors of interactive hands-on exhibits.

Can’t make it to the Science Centre? Let us bring science wow to your classroom. Inspire and engage your students with expert-led in-school workshops. Pick one of three interactive curriculum-linked hour-long workshops; coding, life or materials. We’ll bring real science equipment for your students to get hands-on with and our expert science communicator will answer all their questions. Available as a full or part day bespoke itinerary we can also bring a demo-filled school assembly along for everyone to enjoy. In-school experiences are perfect for students in KS1 (Reception, Year 1 and Year 2) and KS2 (Year 3, 4, 5 and 6).

Or for something totally unique, why not turn your school into a space portal with the Mobile Planetarium. The state-of-the-art digital dome comes with an astronomy expert. They’ll present live Planetarium shows, play 360 degree full dome films and answers all your students questions.

Where will their curiosity take them? Find out with Winchester Science Centre!

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What activities are available during group visits?

Our educational visits centre around an exciting 45-minute hands-on curriculum-linked Discovery Workshop. All you have to do is choose which one of the six you want to do - Marvellous Minibeasts, Destination Space, Matter, Rocketships, Sound and Heart Heroes. Our expert science communicators will then lead the workshop and get your students hands on with some fun and engaging science. Also on our educational visit, you can expect to be wowed by a bespoke live Planetarium show that we will tailor with you ahead of time to suit your learning group's level. During an educational visit your school will also have lots of time to explore the two floors of interactive exhibits. We've got handy Teacher Guides available to download on our website and ready to collect on the day that will provide tips on how to engage your students during your visit.

During a summer celebration visit, your school can expect to get more of the same exciting science fun. Your students will get a space adventure in the Planetarium and time to explore the exhibits but we'll be swapping out the workshop for a thrilling science show. We'll do a 20 minute deep dive into a science topic and use explosive demos to bring it all to life.

If you're looking for an in-school experience, we can bring our interactive curriculum-linked one-hour long workshops to your school. Simply choose from Coding, Life or Materials and we'll do the rest. We'll bring real science equipment for your students to use and our expert science communicator will be on hand to answer all their questions. You can choose a full or half day itinerary and you can even add on a 30 minute demo-filled assembly for the whole school!

Which Curriculum Subjects do you cater for?

Physics

Sound Earth and space

Let's discover starlight secrets on this epic astronomical adventure. Young astro-engineers will experiment to see how to direct and deflect light in space. Wow! Have you heard all about the James Webb Telescope? In Destination Space you'll get an introduction to this amazing piece of space technology. Let's also explore the properties of light. We'll start with the visible spectrum before moving to infrared and heat exchange. And what happens if we use diffraction to break light into its constituent parts? Let's find out!

Our rocketships workshop is for budding engineers to learn about forces. Build, test and make your rockets amazing. Let's power them with fuel and fire and launch them too! Three, two, one! Let's launch our very own rockets. Let's learn about forces and combustion. We'll do an awesome whoosh bottle experiment. Then you'll design your very own rockets using foam pieces and K'nex. Maximise their flying potential. Consider what will make them aerodynamic. Then let the countdown begin!

We love sound at Winchester Science Centre! Will you explore sound and frequency with us? This is a loud, interactive workshop to explore how we hear sound and process it. Experiment with weird and wonderful gadgets. Reinvent yourself with differently positioned ears! Discover how sound travels. Explore what volume and pitch are. We'll even test our own hearing and compare our ears to creatures in the animal world.

Chemistry

States of Matter Properties and changes of materials Chemical Reactions

Let's investigate matter – especially a weird 'matter in the middle'. It's a sticky sensory workshop. We'll make slime and make it stretch, twist and bounce.

What's the difference between solids, liquids and gases? Let's find out together. Explore why they behave the way they do. Then let's make some slime! As a non-Newtonian fluid, slime brings the properties of matter to life. See and feel them in action while having a lot of fun.

Biology

Animals including humans Everyday materials Living things and habitats Ecology and environment Life Cycles Minibeasts Habitats

Come and explore the weird and wonderful world of British bugs. Get up close to live minibeasts. Examine lifecycles, diets, habitats and behaviour. And discover the hidden secrets of the flora and fauna of the South Downs National Park.

Did you know that Winchester Science Centre is located in the stunning South Downs National Park? There’s so much wildlife around us – let’s explore some of it together in the Marvellous Minibeasts workshop.

In our Bio:Space zone we’ve got real British bugs for your pupils to come and meet. We’ll examine their lifecycles, diets and behaviours and even step into the roles of different insects to explore how they see the world. Then grab a magnifying glass and microscope to investigate the hidden structures of the South Downs flora and fauna. What will we discover?

What size groups do you cater for?

We have a minimum group size of 15 students for our educational visit and summer celebration. For our in-school workshops we can accommodate up to 40 children per workshop and our mobile Planetarium can fit in up to 40 children at a time.

Do you offer on-site classroom facilities?

Yes, all of our workshops are conducted in our classrooms. You will be assigned a room for your workshop upon arrival.

Is there first aid on site?

Yes, we have on-site trained First Aiders.

Do you offer access for visitors with disabilities?

Yes. Our Centre is fully open plan and our exhibits are at a low level to be accessible to everyone. We have a lift to take wheelchair users from one floor to the next and our classroom doors are wide enough to fit wheelchairs through. We have a hearing loop in the Planetarium mas well as tactile items for use if needed. We also have a Recombobulation Room, a quite space where visitors can go to reset if they need to.

Do you cater for visitors with Special Educational Needs (SEN)?

Yes. We welcome students with Special Educational Needs on any school trip. We also have set dates throughout the year where we provide a specific SEND school trip, a slightly quieter version of our educational visit.

Anything else?

As a charity we've worked really hard to break down any barriers to engagement. As a result of this we're pleased to offer subsidies to the following state-funded schools, selected priority schools and all schools who have 17% or more students who receive free school meals.

We also have a number of Science for Schools packages. When you book an educational visit to Winchester Science Centre you can save 10% on a second school activity. Savings can be made on a summer celebration visit, an in-school workshop experience or a Mobile Planetarium visit to your school.

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Who are Winchester Science Centre & Planetarium?

Winchester Science Centre, the south of England's leading science and discovery centre, is part of the independent educational charity, Wonderseekers. We are on a mission to inspire and engage all children in science.

Our experienced team provides an extensive learning and participation programme to over 40,000 school children each year, both at the Science Centre and in schools. We want to work together with you to fire up your student’s passion for science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).