Spark curiosity and learning for your students at Mayo's National Museum

THE National Museum of Ireland at Turlough Park, Castlebar, has launched a new programme of free guided tours, workshops and resources for primary and post-primary schools this autumn.

The programme offers a broad range of activities exploring topics and themes such as rural traditions, the natural environment, nature, science, storytelling, Halloween and Christmas crafts.

All of the activities are designed to complement the primary and post-primary curricula and are offered free of charge to schools. Booking is required as places are limited.

Teachers looking for activities to celebrate Maths Week later this month and Science Week in November will be interested in the ‘Maths in our Everyday Lives’ workshop and the ‘Tour of the Solar System’ session, both delivered by science, math and coding instructor Declan Holmes.

The Seasonal Nature Tour offered on Tuesdays, Wednesday and Thursdays explores nature and biodiversity in the spectacular grounds of Turlough Park. There is also a guided tour of the National Folklife Collection available. This looks at how people lived in times gone by through 10 key objects in the museum galleries.

Storytelling also features with Fiona Dowling delivering intriguing tales connected to the National Folklife Collection.

Schools are encouraged to visit The Murmur of Bees exhibition this autumn to learn more about the importance of bees in our culture and environment.

A selection of Natural History material provides students with a rare glimpse into the fascinating and unusual world of Irish bees. Examples of every bee species in Ireland are displayed, as well as bees and other insect species from around the world, and a selection of well-preserved nests of solitary bees, bumblebees and other social insect species.

Schools can avail of the café and gift shop on-site and the museum grounds also have an adventure playground and a greenway route connecting to Castlebar.

Contact the bookings office to plan your school visit - phone (094) 9031751 or email BookingsCountryLife@museum.ie.

For further details, visit https://www.museum.ie/en-IE/Museums/Country-Life and go to the Engage & Learn section to browse the current programme.