in-school workshop
Explosive Reactions and Slimy Surprises | Our Year 4 Science Workshop Experience
This term, our Year 4 class was treated to a brilliant science workshop that came to our school, and it's safe to say it's been the highlight of our topic so far. As a teacher, there's nothing better than seeing your class completely captivated by a topic and this workshop absolutely delivered on that front.
We are currently learning about states of matter as part of our KS2 science curriculum and I wanted to find something that would bring the topic to life in a way that felt exciting but still had a strong learning message behind it. I came across the workshop through PlanMySchoolTrip, and the whole thing was really easy to organise. An email and a quick phone call later, we had a date booked and all the risk assessments sorted.
A Real Buzz in the Classroom
On the day of the workshop, from the moment the children saw the workshop leader surrounded by mystery boxes and bags, the children were buzzing. We ran the session in our school hall, and with a bit of help from our wonderful teaching assistant. The workshop leader introduced herself enthusiastically and made sure to learn a few of the children's names early on, which I thought was a lovely touch. She set the tone straight away - this was going to be hands on and messy, but still very much about learning. Exactly what I was hoping for!
Learning by Doing
The workshop started with a quick chat about solids, liquids and gases, reinforcing what we had been learning in class. The children werre asked what they already knew before the workshop began building on the theme. It didn't feel like a lecture, more like a conversation. There were loads of opportunities for the children to join in, shout out their own ideas, and get involved right from the start. Then came what the children have since told me was obviously the best part - the practical experiments. In small groups they got to explore different materials and see real examples of changes in state. We looked at melting chocolate (sorry to the cleaning staff!), freezing water, and there were many wide eyes as the workshop leader used dry ice to show how solids can turn into gases. There were squeals of delight and a few gasps when she poured warm water over the dry ice and it started to bubble and fog all over the table like a magic trick.
Completely Tied to the KS2 Curriculum
What I appreciated most as a teacher was how well the whole workshop linked back to our science objectives. We talked about evaporation, condensation, and even touched on the water cycle without it feeling like a science lesson in disguise. The children used the correct terminology. Not because they were told to, but because they wanted to. It was also lovely to see some of my quieter children keen to get involved and have their say during the activities. Working in groups gave everyone a role and a chance to participate in a meaningful way. Even the ones who usually sit back were measuring, pouring, and explaining what they thought was happening. Our workshop leader was fantastic with the children, the activities were safe, exciting, and well structured, and best of all everything was well linked to the KS2 science curriculum. It was the kind of experience that the children will remember long after they have forgotten what they wrote down in their books.
Back in the classroom we used the workshop as a springboard for the rest of the topic and it definitely helped more than a few of them link what they were being told on paper with what they had seen in action. They got it. We like to get a science workshop in each year because they make tricky topics much easier to understand. The children wrote recounts of their favourite experiment in English and created bar charts in maths to show which state changes they had observed. It turned into a brilliant cross-curricular project which gave the topic even more depth.
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If you are a teacher looking for an engaging, affordable alternative to a school trip, we recommend researching some of the science workshops above. They can save you all the stress of coaches, packed lunches, and permission slips, and bring the same level of excitement into your classroom.
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