Education/New primary sessions for September 2009

New primary sessions for September 2009

• Animal encounter (Suitable for Reception and year 1 only, ½ hour session.)
  
  This session gives children a chance to meet and interact with many of the educational animals. During the session children are encouraged to think about the animal, where it comes from and other special features.
   

The following ½ hour sessions are suitable for year 2 or older.

• Amazing animal adaptations
  
  This session explains what a habitat is, what an adaptation is and how animals are adapted to different habitats. How animals are suited to where they live? How do they cope with the weather? How do they find food? How do they escape their predators? We use live animals, artefacts and props to facilitate learning.
   
• A colourful world
  
  This session helps children discover a world of colour. How do animals use colour? What are display and warning colours and why animals need them? Why there is such a variety in animal skins and colouration? This session uses live animals and activities to bring colour to life.
   
• Variety of life
  
  How do we make sense of over 1 million animal species? Live animals and props explore the world of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish and invertebrates. We explore how they reproduce, grow and look after their young. This session describes how animals are classified into different groups and families and introduces a range of animals, artefacts and props to illustrate the differences between different groups.
   
• Who eats who and how?
  
  This session discusses how animals eat and what they eat. It defines what herbivores, carnivores, omnivores and insectivores are. Skulls are used to show dentition and live animals illustrate different ways of eating. A food chain activity engages children to assist learning and explains how animals fit into ecosystems
   
• Saving the worlds animals
  
  This session explains why animals are endangered and how we can save them. We discuss the reasons for animals becoming endangered’ including habitat destruction, hunting, the illegal pet trade and pollution. This session is illustrated with props, artefacts and live animals, and how zoos and you can help to conserve wildlife
   
• Rainforest explorer
  
  Twycross Zoo is home to many species that originally come from the tropical rainforests. This session allows children to explore rainforests and the animals that live there in detail. Using activities, props and live animals the rainforest comes to Leicestershire. We also talk about how we can conserve our disappearing rainforests
   
• Talk to the animals
  
  This session teaches how animals communicate. The variety of ways for animals to talk is huge, sight, smell, sound, colour and movements all help animals to understand each other. Can humans and animals every understand each other? During this session children will learn how to talk to animals
   
• Animal senses
  
  This session shows how animals sense the world around them. Animals have more advanced senses than humans, their sense of smell, sight and hearing can be almost super human. We can learn how animals understand the world by looking at their senses. Some animals are similar to us and others could not be more different. This session takes children into another animal’s world and explores what experiences would be like for them
   
• Creature comforts
  
  This session explains how we care for different animals. The care and welfare of animals is very important, particularly in zoos. It is our responsibility to give them the best life possible. How do we do this? This helps to teach children the importance of caring for all creatures
   
• Future is wild. Suitable for year 4 or older. (As a workshop only)
  
  This workshop combines resources at Twycross Zoo and the successful TV programme ‘The Future Is Wild’ (shown on BBC2, Discovery Channel and Channel 4). This session explains how animals adapt and evolve to live in different habitats, how the world changes over time and what could happen in the future. This workshop discusses what the world could be like in 5 million and 100 million years time