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Box Hill

Educational Field Trips In our quest to achieve excellence, we are continuously adapting and evolving what we do and how we do it. Therefore we are really happy, where possible, to tailor what we offer to suit you the best; so it’s always worth getting in touch to discuss your field trip in more detail.

Contents page

Foundation Stage & Key Stage 1 2 Key Stage 2 3 Key Stage 3 5 Key Stage 4 7 Key Stage 5 7 Special Education Needs (SEN) 8 Organising Your Field Trip 9

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Foundation Stage & Key Stage 1 Life Cycles – ½ day “NOT The Hungry Caterpillar” Does the caterpillar eat a chocolate cake? No! Does he eat a lollipop? No! Learners discover the stages of a butterfly’s life cycle from finding blown up images in amongst the trees all to a funny engaging song. They then enjoy a sorting game of other animal’s life cycles. Habitats “Town Mouse/Country Mouse” We start the day with a story that highlights how different homes can supply living things with their three main requirements; food, water and shelter. Learners then go on a walk observing the habitats surrounding them big and small, and play games which broaden their

understanding of what makes a good habitat for different living things, including making their own den. “A massive thank you for 3 wonderful days” Davidson Primary School Wild Art Learners watch a presentation introducing Andy Goldsworthy’s work and some art that nature has produced all by herself. Focusing their attention on patterns, textures and shape they then go on a walk exploring natural sculpture in the woods around Box Hill. After lunch they then split into groups and create their own natural art installations, using whatever has fallen around them. Learners are asked to work in groups, and evaluate their work. Photographing their work and images along the way adds another element which can be recorded in their art books or form a great display once back at school. “Being able to explore sculptures in nature, both shape and texture first hand in such a rich natural environment, was a wonderful experience for the children.” Beatrix Potter School

Key Stage 2

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Key Stage 2

Wild Art As before or alternative days can be arranged like this landscape art day… Habitats – Y3&4 This course really embeds the concept of what makes a good habitat for different organisms, taking in food chains and adaptations along the way and introducing detritivores. We have two starkly contrasting environments: ancient woodland

and chalk grasslands. Both hold delightful and wondrous opportunities for learning through exploration and play. “The best trip EVER!” YR4 pupil, St. Teresa’s, Effingham. Geography Day A well-crafted, fun introduction to Geography topics Rock Stars – a proper geology

experiment exploring chalk and flint and chemical reactions, which make up the special soil conditions underneath the chalk grasslands that make Box Hill’s habitats so rare

Field Sketching – a simple introduction to a complicated field skill, utilising the stunning view over the Weald

Map & Compass Skills – a fun trail introducing map and compass skills. Learners answer questions which lead to a code cracking exercise

“I just wanted to thank you again for the amazing trip last Wednesday - it was a great day out and the children learnt stuff!” St. John’s, Dorking

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Adaptations, Interdependence & Microbes – Y5&6. “Forensic Investigators” Using Box Hill’s flora and fauna as our inspiration, learners will take the role of expert witnesses whilst investigating the National Trust’s methods for conservation. They will explore the adaptations of a variety of organisms, some incredible stories of symbiosis and the intricacies of ecosystems. Using soil sampling experiments and learning about the detrital food chain using real animal carcasses, students will enjoy a truly experiential field trip.

Scene Setting – ½ day. “Kidnap!” A highly charged and sensory experience. The setup is that the students have been kidnapped from their village and have been walking blindfold for 3 days already – their captors don’t really talk to them, but eventually they are forced down on a woodland floor… I have spoken to Mrs M and she thought the Scene Setting workshop was brilliant!! In fact she thought that all she saw and heard was brilliant. Head teacher, Horsell Primary School Poetry Workshop – ½ day Learners immerse themselves in a selection of poetry before awakening their senses through nature walk. On their return we extend our vocabulary and language play through writing poems in different styles, stimulated by their experiences outdoors that day. Warning – can produce the most amazing work!

PE – ½ day “Woodland Parcours” Urban free running is all the rage with the kids… so how about woodland free running?! We have a fabulous Natural Play Trail over a 2 mile circuit, which can be explored slowly and with care, or quickly and with flair! Mapping & Co-ordinates Course – Y5/6 Ideally this course will compliment taught modules from school. The morning is a carousel recapping contours, symbols, 6 fig. grid refs, compass work and scale (opt.) The afternoon is to embark upon a trail, together with NT guides, which utilises those skills in a practical setting. It’s a really contextual way of embedding the learning and is highly enjoyable – they’re outside, they’re following a trail, they’re shattered and often muddy – oh, and they’ve learned new skills to boot!

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Key Stage 3 Mapping & Co-ordinates Course – Y7 – Y12 “Box Hill Mountain Rescue!” This should come part way through or towards the end of the YR7 module, as it requires an understanding of contours, 6 figure grid references, symbols and compass points. It could be a refresher for other year groups, or a training for DofE. Students will have short recap sessions on the key points and to ensure they know how to navigate using a map and compass. They are then sent out on a trail, their mission being to rescue a lost walker. The trail embeds the knowledge of the various topics by requiring compass use and asking questions along the way. Once they find the casualty, they then have to find an appropriate place for the rescue helicopter to land and directions to the casualty, bringing contextual relevance to the skills they are learning. “Thank you for an enjoyable few days entertaining and filling our Year 7s brains with map skills. They were all very very impressed with the activities on offer and have been coming up to me saying thank you after each day.” St. Andrews, Leatherhead

Introduction to a Geographical Investigation - YR8 & 9 “The Impact of Tourism on a Honey Pot Site” Box Hill is, and has been, frequented by visitors throughout the years because it is such an iconic destination. In Victorian times with the advent of the first railways, the first holiday was often a day trip to Box Hill to enjoy the fresh air away from London’s smog. These days a wide variety of visitors still come to enjoy the views, partake in walks and now to cycle the famous ZigZag. The National Trust was entrusted this land in 1914 to keep it “forever, for everyone” as is our motto. We have a bigger task than just a philosophical one – Box Hill has been highly surveyed over the years and much is known about the rare and interesting flora and fauna that abounds here. Indeed with SSSI and SAC designations that are attached to the property, we are duty bound, to the point of being fined, to ensure the safeguarding of

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the environments in which some of these rare species survive. This creates a conflict in how we manage our survival in many areas. The course considers in more detail the difficulties of

managing the conflicts that come with high visitor pressure at this highly protected site.

The students walk around 5 different locations surveying each area for litter, graffiti, noise pollution, dog fouling etc.

There is an opportunity over lunch to survey some of our other visitors.

Finally they conduct a path transect study. For schools returning year on year, they can compare the findings from the previous year’s students which could lead to another strand of results.

“... [A] huge thank you for our two days at Box Hill. The students really enjoyed it, and came home with a great deal of first-hand knowledge about the impacts of tourism. Please pass on my thanks to all your volunteers for their time and enthusiasm, which clearly inspired many of our pupils.” Gordon’s School, Woking Wild Art As before

Poetry – ½ day Working through booklets, learners record photographic images of nature as they walk whilst complimenting those images with a stream of prosaic language, utilising all the extended writing tools expected of their age group. They create haikus as they walk, with the intention of perfecting their work subsequent to the day. Learners also sit and write postcards from the perspective of another being.

“The wildlife passes through the forest like a carnival snaking through a city of skyscraper trees.

Delicate wings flutter as bright patterns shine

in the moonlight. All is quiet. And as my wings

Beat so does the heart of the forest.”

Fraser Cox, Dulwich College

“Twisting braces black and rotted Bound together

In limbo slowly dying

A green stem The ground punctuated

A bud emerging”

Jesse Lanchester, Dulwich College

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Key Stage 4

GCSE Geography Field Work In discussion with each school we prepare a packed field trip practicing as many field skills as we can to prepare students for their exams. We prepare booklets for the students, provide equipment and on the ground expertise. We send ahead details of appropriate research topics for the students to study to help them prepare for the field trip and therefore get as much out of the time with us as possible. “Thank you so much for having us and providing us with such useful and relevant information […] I am sure we will have some good results with all the information we collected.” Epsom & Ewell High School

Key Stage 5

A2 Management of a Plagio Climax Community 2 hour walk and talk about management strategies of chalk grasslands. A level Field Studies A complete package for A level, meeting new curriculum requirements of 4 days in the field. Please contact catherine.mccusker@nationaltrust.org.uk

to discuss your GCSE & A level requirements in detail.

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Special Education Needs (SEN)

Living and Growing We tailor this to whatever your requirements are, using picture boards and basic Makaton to accompany our delivery. We take the learners, as far as possible, into the woods and play a sorting game ensuring they can recognise what is alive and what is dead. The learners will identify what eats what with an extension of knowing that all growth is stimulated by the sun and that once it is dead, creatures will come along and eat it and turn in back into soil again. We look at texture identifying rough from smooth. “Thank you so much for Monday, all the students really enjoyed it and got a lot out of it.” KS3 Woodlands School, Leatherhead

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Price per student £

Student whole day £7.00

Student ½ day £5.00

Student Mountain Rescue or KS4/SK5

field studies

£8.00

Student 1 to 2 hour talk

£2.50

Accompanying Adult

Free

Organising Your Field Trip o Please contact us to arrange a site visit in advance of your trip, for which

there is no charge o We have a Safety Controls Information sheet for school trips which we are

happy to forward on to you as part of the pre visit procedure o A full day booking usually entitles you to use of The Learning Space – our

indoor classroom facility

For further information or to make a booking please contact Catherine McCusker on: 01306 878554/07920726431 or

Email: catherine.mccusker@nationaltrust.org.uk

Box Hill & Headley Heath Learning and Events are committed to inspire children for the future of our special places

We do this by making learning an exciting kinaesthetic adventure We want educationalists to see us as an excellent resource

NB: There is a minimum charge of £100 per day and £50 per ½ day

Photography: © National Trust Images/Paul Harris/ John Millar/ Ben Selway/ Catherine McCusker