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School visits at the National Museum of Rural Life

Get a healthy dose of fresh country air!

Take in the sights, sounds and smells as your class explores our 1950s working farm. Discover what life was like for country people in the past and how this has shaped Scotland's countryside today. Experience how people lived through hardship and compare it with modern farming.

Pre-school and Primary school children can try milking 'Clover' by hand and meet the horses, sheep, cows and hens. Older student can examine rural issues such as dairy production and how our food gets from field to fork.

• Visit our new interactive exhibition, Garden Detectives (from Fri 9 Oct).  Aimed at 5-9yr olds, it will get your class thinking about the wildlife on their doorstep.
• Join our Little Darwins educational programmes which complement the exhibition.
• Explore what role the farm played during the Second World War.  Visit the bothy where German prisoner of war, Heinrich Luckel, lived.
• Take a free accompanied tour of our working 1950s farm which preserves many traditional and rare farming methods.

What do we offer schools at the National Museum of Rural Life?

• Free admission for all pre-booked school groups
• Museum building and historic Georgian farmhouse to visit
• Free accompanied tours of our working 1950s farm Excellent resources for ecological studies including woodland, farmland and wetland habitats
• Workshops and live interpretation sessions led by experienced facilitators
• Free teacher-led object handling sessions - explore the past using real and replica objects
• Free teachers' packs to accompany your visit to the National Museum of Rural Life
• Explorer backpacks with binoculars, bug boxes, maps and activity sheets
• Farm Explorer tractor-trailer ride
• Outdoor play tractor, bats, balls and parachute games for younger pupils
• Bookable lunch area, cloakroom and toilets
• Sheltered picnic field with benches and room for outdoor games

How to book - it couldn't be easier!

Your school visit should be booked in advance. Telephone 0131 247 4377 or email schools@nms.ac.uk

Cost

Admission to all our museums is free for all pre-booked school groups. The cost for workshops and activities is £2 per pupil, unless otherwise stated.

Maximum group size

Sessions are for one class (33 pupils) unless otherwise stated.

Cancellations

If you need to cancel please give as much notice as possible. We may have to charge an administration fee if you cancel within three weeks of your planned visit.

What we need to know

• Name and address of school
• School telephone number
• Name of group leader
• Name and age of pupils
• Number of adults (ration 1 adult: 10 children)
• Preferred dates for your visit
• Packed lunch / cloakroom requirements