“Going to the ss Great Britain was like travelling back in time and that was WICKED!!”
Jamie, age 11
“The stewardess throwing up in the bowl was our favourite. In the museum I liked the dead cormorant.”
Petra,age 14
Wow your students with the sheer size of the ship, the smells and sounds on board and huge mechanical interactives in the object-rich museum.
A truly cross curricular day out of the classroom could focus on a theme or skill development, perhaps combine engineering and art? The glass ‘sea’ and innovative conservation of the ship are great areas to explore design and technology.
Brunel's ss Great Britain’s Education Pack can inspire topical citizenship debates such as child labour in a unique and appropriate setting.
There are lots of opportunities to stretch your gifted and talented pupils’ knowledge, understanding and experiences at the ss Great Britain.
New! School Group Tours with Mr. Brunel
School group tours with one hour on board the ship with Mr. Brunel.
Workshops for Key Stage 3
Fun, fascinating, active workshops suit learners at all levels, including those with special needs. The Education Team is happy to discuss your learning objectives to help you get the most from your visit.
All workshops support the National Curriculum and QCA schemes of work. They also promote a wide range of skills across the National Curriculum.
These include Key skills: communication, application of number, working with others, problem solving. We also plan for opportunities for children to practice, combine, develop and refine their thinking skills: information processing, reasoning, enquiry and creative thinking.
For self-directed tours, we recommend the Education Pack to help you prepare.
1. Passenger Investigation.
2. Salvaged!
Free! Audio Companions*
Audio companions for school groups are based on original diaries of passengers and crew and bring to life events that really happened on board. Choose to become one of the poorest passengers in ‘steerage’ or travel first class!
How do they work?
You can collect individual audio guides from the top deck where the member of staff will explain and demonstrate how they work. Audio companions are hands-free, come with headphones and a cord to be worn around the neck.
The tour is automatically triggered by sensors around the ship – no need to press buttons (some children will need reminding not to press buttons). We recommend teachers take advantage of our free planning visit to try the guide. Please call the ship on 0117 926 0680.
Groups with Special Educational Needs
The ship and site are fully accessible for children and adults with special educational needs. The Education Team are trained in supporting groups of children with special educational needs.
We are happy to adapt workshops in advance to best meet the specific needs of your group members. The Medlock Education Centre is accessible by wheelchair and there is an accessible toilet nearby.
More information about access for all.
Information about the Brunel Institute.
Tell us what you think of your visit with this Evaluation form
Workshops for Secondary School students
1. Passenger Investigation KS3 (as shown on teachers TV!)
- History
- English
- Geography
- Citizenship
Get a fascinating insight into the life of real passengers and crew on board the ss Great Britain. Explore artefacts, examine diary extracts and work in groups to share observations and ideas through role play in costume.
This workshop has been extremely popular with teachers focusing on English and History covering KS3 Britain '1750 – 1900 How industrialisation affected the UK' and the local area could be connected to transport or local production industry.
“They enjoyed the mystery element of who the passenger was.”
Cerys Davies, South Wales
“I like the idea of creating a presentation at the end. Good having two people working with the class who really knew their stuff.”
Emma Taylor, Teacher in Bristol
2. NEW! Salvaged! KS3
Experiment with the fundamental scientific principles of floating and sinking that brought the ss Great Britain back to Bristol in 1970. Compete to build and test your own boat to carry as much cargo as possible!
"Brunel’s ss Great Britain is great for inspiring young engineers of the future."
TV’s Johnny Ball
*Subject to availability.
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