Vikings Session Information

This session can be taught: 

• at the Museum of Archaeology at Palace Green Library*
• as outreach in your school
• as an online session

*Please note, due to extensive building works, we cannot offer this workshop at the Museum of Archaeology at this time. We apologise for any inconvenience. 

The content of these sessions does vary as we have the galleries to use at the museum, but we try to keep them as similar as possible.  

This session can be combined with our Anglo-Saxons session. Please email us if you would like more details. 

Visit to the Museum:

• Object Handling and Investigation – we show the children how to be mini archaeologists, while they are looking at and holding the objects in our Vikings collection. We ask them to use their observation and historical enquiry skills, as well as any prior knowledge to form a theory about the objects. We will hear them share some of their theories before telling them what archaeologists think they are. 
• Gallery Trail – this is like a great big quiz where the children find out lots of information about the Vikings using the Museum of Archaeology gallery. 
• Kennings – we teach the children about kennings (Viking poetry), and they then try writing their own. 
• Rune Stones – we look at examples of rune stones with the children and discover what they are and make one of their own using scratch cards.

Need to know:

• The day at the museum runs from 10am – 2.15pm approximately and is entirely taught by members of our Learning and Engagement Team.  
• The maximum number of children we can take on one day is approximately 60 children.  
• The cost of the visit is £6 per pupil, and free for all accompanying adults.
• Lunch can be eaten in our Learning Centre, or if the weather is good and you would like to, you can sit outside on Palace Green and have a picnic.

Directions to the Museum

Outreach Day at School:

• Object Handling and Investigation – we show the children how to be mini archaeologists, while they are looking at and holding the objects in our Vikings collection. We ask them to use their observation and historical enquiry skills, as well as any prior knowledge to form a theory about the objects. We will hear them share some of their theories before telling them what archaeologists think they are.   
• Kennings – we teach the children about kennings (Viking poetry), and they then try writing their own. 
• Rune Stones – we look at examples of rune stones with the children and discover what they are and make one of their own using scratch cards.
• Viking Games – discover Nine Men’s Morris and Hnefatafl (‘naffa-taffle’) and have a go at playing it. 

Need to know:

• For an outreach day, we aim to arrive at school to begin teaching at 9.30am, fitting in around the established school breaks of your school, until approximately 20 minutes before the end of your school day.   
• We can teach up to two classes on the same day on outreach.
• The cost for outreach is £5 per pupil, with an additional flat rate charge of £20 towards transport costs. 

Online Session:

• Object Investigation – you will be sent an email with resources to print out before your session. This will have a set of sheets with high-quality photographs of a selection of our objects on them. We will model with the children how we would like them to investigate the object on their sheet using a different one and encourage them to use their historical enquiry skills as well as any prior knowledge to form a theory about what they think the object is and what it was used for. Having independently worked on the object on their sheet, we will hear some of their theories before revealing to them what archaeologists believe them to be. 
• Viking Word Quiz – the Vikings made a big impact on the English language. Your class will find out for themselves as they tackle our Viking word quiz. Can they work out what ancient Norse words mean? 

Need to know:

• An online session is two hours in length.  
• Session times are 9.30am – 11.30am and 1pm – 3pm, but we can accommodate slightly different timings. Please ask at the point of booking if this is something that would be helpful for you.
• You will need to book a short test call with us to check that you can see and hear us on the whiteboard in your classroom. These are available at 3.30pm, 3.45pm and 4pm.
• We ask that you book separate sessions for each of your classes so we can keep them as interactive as possible. 
• You will be sent an email with resources to print out before your session. 
• The cost of the sessions is £45 per class. 

National Curriculum Link:

History - Key Stage 2: the Viking and Anglo-Saxon struggle for the Kingdom of England to the time of Edward the Confessor. 

Develop a chronologically secure knowledge. 

Use of historical terms. 

Understand how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources. 

Address and devise historically valid questions.

Session costs