Science lessons at the Roman Baths- January 2009
Science lessons at the Roman Baths
January 2009
School science is sometimes seen as a subject that only happens
in classrooms and school laboratories, but staff at the Bath &
North East Somerset Council-run Roman Baths, are bringing science
out of the classroom and into one of Britain’s best known ancient
sites.
The Learning and Programmes team at the Roman Baths has been
working with teachers and pupils from John Cabot Academy in Bristol
to create a new science resource for schools to use at the site.
James Hall, Assistant Principal for Science said “We have had the
opportunity to show how Science is relevant, engaging and uses
modern technology.”
The new resource focuses on scientific measurement in which
children use data loggers to gather information from around the
site to test for three environmental factors: temperature, sound
and light. This data is then downloaded and sent back to school so
that it can be investigated and analysed
further.
Year 8 students visited the Council-run Roman Baths recently.
They worked in small groups and collected data from several points
around the site.
Stephen Clews, Manager at the Roman Baths commented: “The
environment at the Roman Baths yields some fascinating and unusual
data because the hot spring rises in the middle of the site and hot
steaming water runs through it. The use of data logging technology
enables pupils to collect a wide variety of data and helps them
interpret it. It also gives them practice in using science in a
realistic setting. Bath & North East Somerset Council staff
monitor the environment 24 hours a day as part of the conservation
programme at the Roman Baths designed to protect the ancient
remains from decay”.
“Students visiting the Roman Baths can see how something that is
taught as part of a science lesson at school has relevance in a
local museum and helps to conserve the ancient remains that lie at
the heart of the world heritage site”.
The project is funded by the Museums, Libraries and Archives
Council South West through the Strategic Commissioning
strand. The Roman Baths is managed by Bath & North East
Somerset Council and has developed a range of curriculum related
applications in which students following a wide range of subjects
can use the site as a learning tool.
For more information visit the website
www.romanbaths.co.uk or contact the Learning &
Programmes department at the Roman Baths on 01225 477757.
ENDS
Attached image: Year 8 students from John Cabot Academy collect
data at the Roman Baths
For more information contact: Lindsey Braidley, Learning &
Programmes Co-ordinator, Bath & North East Somerset Council, on
01225 477757 or email lindsey_braidley@bathnes.gov.uk
For images contact: Maggie Bone, Museums Publicity Officer, Bath
& North East Somerset Council on 01225 477736, or email
maggie_bone@bathnes.gov.uk