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Geowalks Education

On this page: Walks for School & University Groups - Classroom Visits - Workshops for Teachers

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Walks for School & University Groups

Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh is an ideal outdoor classroom! Guided tours are available for school & university parties, with a range of themes, tailored for your group. Groups from Primary to University level have enjoyed tours of Arthur's Seat with me - and explored subjects such as volcanoes, plate tectonics, and the forces that have shaped the landscape.

Recent school and university tours have included:

  • A short walk, lasting 75 minutes, looking at Arthur's Seat and visiting Salisbury Crags for Primary 7 pupils. Showing how ancient volcanoes shaped the landscape of Edinburgh, and including a visit to Hutton's Section to find out about James Hutton, discover the different rocks and make a sketch of the key features.
  • A two-hour walk across the park, following a low-level path below Arthur's Seat. An introduction to the different parts of the volcano and why the landscape is shaped the way it is. Included a visit to the old sandstone quarry to discover the differences between sandstone and volcanic rocks, and see how rocks are used by people. "Both P7 classes benefited greatly from their work up Arthur's Seat and did excellent followon activities as a result. I would like to thank you most sincerely for making this such a successful trip." P7 Teacher.
  • A 75-minute walk through the park for second-year Secondary pupils, exploring the volcano and the links to the present landscape. Tour combined with a visit to Dynamic Earth, enabling two classes to visit each morning, and using a coach to drop off and pick up at different places.
  • A four-hour tour for a class of Lifelong Learning students, an in-depth exploration of the volcano. Including a visit to the sandstone quarry, and a circular tour around Arthur's Seat to see all the key features.

There are many options for short and long tours, and different themes. Please get in touch if you'd like further information. I think it's important that local school groups get out there and explore important sites such as Arthur's Seat, so I keep costs low - guide price £40 for up to two hours.

Safety is important, and needs to be considered as part of planning any trip. I can help with risk assessments, and I'm a qualified Moutain Leader with a current Emergency Aid certificate.

 

 

Classroom Visits - exploring local rocks, Planet Earth hands-on activities, and a firsthand account of monitoring an exploding volcano.

Geology is enjoyed at its best out of doors, and I encourage everyone to get out there and see rocks in their natural habitat! However, this is not always possible and I'm occasionally to be found indoors. I'm happy to visit local schools and bring some rocks. There's often much of interest in the local area, the rocks of the school building and the view from the playground.

I can offer lots of flexibility and ideas for classroom visits, included tried-and-tested activities exploring plate tectonics, tsunamis and volcanoes. For several years I've offered 45-minute workshops for upper Primary classes at Techfest in Aberdeen.

I can also include personal experience with exploding volcanoes. I worked in the Montserrat Volcano Observatory at the start of the current eruption of the volcano there, and I've got lots of stories to tell about this and other eruptions. And to experience a volcanic eruption in class, ask about Irn Bru volcanoes!

Costs are dependant on the amount of preparation required and travel costs, but I aim to keep costs low - guide price £40 for a local workshop of 1-2 hours.

Workshops for Teachers

I'm involved with two organisations that work together to promote Earth Sciences education in schools - recognising the importance of Earth Sciences in the curriculum, and also that it is a hard subject to teach and teachers need support. For further information, please follow the links below or get in touch - in particular note that free workshops for Primary School teachers in Scotland are available!

Sesef logo
The Scottish Earth Science Education Forum (SESEF) is an association of educators and scientists established to promote understanding of planet Earth in Scottish schools and colleges.

An understanding of how planet Earth works should be an essential part of every young person's education and is necessary for the sustainability of Earth environments and resources.

Through development officers and forum members throughout Scotland we work with teachers, schools, colleges, public institutions, science centres, museums, industry and universities to address the challenges facing Earth Science education. Membership of SESEF is free.
The Earth Science Education Unit (ESEU), based in the Education Department of Keele University, is a provider of INSET (in-service education and training) in Earth science to UK teachers. Short (up to two hour) modular workshops, built around the Earth science content of the English, Welsh and Scottish National Curricula, are delivered within schools by a nationwide team of 49 centrally-trained facilitators.
These workshops are activity-based, stress the importance of enquiry in science and address pedagogical issues as well as subject content.

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