Learning

INSPIRATION FOR LEARNING
KELMSCOTT MANOR SCHOOL STUDY DAYS

A 16th century Cotswold farmhouse, famed for its association with artist and designer William Morris, Kelmscott Manor offers inspiration to primary and secondary school pupils on a variety of themes: William Morris; his family and associates; art, design and architecture; agriculture and commerce.

During the open season (April – Sept) Mondays are our designated ‘school visit’ days. A typical visit, for a class of 30 young people, includes a tour of the house and two activity sessions.

School visits are facilitated by the Manor’s Property Managers and/or Guides and supported by Kelmscott Manor’s volunteer stewards. Our room-by-room, guided tour of the house is about an hour in length. We welcome pupil interaction, so do encourage young people to ask questions. Activity sessions include: drawing or painting, weaving, embroidery or writing.

There are also opportunities to experience the Manor’s grounds - and the village and riverside too, if you have time. We aim to stimulate and engage – lots of learning and plenty of laughter too. This visit will provide young people with opportunities to meet new people and experience new things. We hope they will go away inspired: to write a poem, paint a picture, learn a language; research an historical person/event, engage in political debate!

We are happy to discuss the programme which best meets your group’s needs and study requirements. We are open to new ideas. Tell us what you want and we’ll do our best to accommodate.

Cost: We know that schools sometimes find it hard to raise funds for school trips. This is why we subsidise the cost of school visits from funds we raise from donations, charity events and grants. This enables us to offer 3 free teacher places per class of 30 children and maintain an admission charge of £4 per child (our normal guided tour student concession being £5). Please note, however, that our minimum charge for each school group is £100.

What you need to do now: Contact us to confirm an available visit date. We will then send you further information and booking form.

INSPIRATION FOR LEARNING
NEWS FROM NOWHERE

A grant of £3,000 from Renaissance South East (via Berks, Oxon & Bucks Museum Development Service) will fund a series of workshops and the development of learning resources at Kelmscott Manor in 2010. During an open-day family workshop and two school study days participants will explore book binding, storytelling and poetry and illustration. Inspired by Morris’s achievements in literature, publishing and design – particularly through the Kelmscott Press – the project offers another creative vehicle through which Kelmscott Manor promotes understanding of William Morris’s life and work and the collection at Kelmscott Manor. Integral to the project will be the development, design and production of teacher resources and information, which will support school study days on site and work in the classroom.