Learning

Whatever your educational interest, a visit to any of the member museums within the London Museums of Health and Medicine will provide you with plenty of learning experiences. Listed below are details of some of our member museums that offer specific learning opportunities - sessions and resources for schools, universities, adult groups and individuals. Please contact a particular museum to find out more or to discuss how that museum might meet your needs. Member museums not specifically listed on this page may also be able to help with your requirements - just get in touch.

Alexander Fleming Laboratory Museum
St Mary's Hospital
Praed Street
London
W2 1NY

Contact: Kevin Brown, Trust Archivist and Curator
Tel: 0207 886 6528
Email:
Website: www.imperial.nhs.uk/aboutus/museumsandarchives/index.htm

Visits to the Alexander Fleming Laboratory Museum are tailored to the age, ability and interests of educational groups.

Staff will visit a school, college, university to talk on such themes within the history of medicine as Fleming and penicillin, hospitals and nursing, the history of bacteriology, antibiotics and the fight against infection, the origins of the National Health Service, bringing along slides and objects to illustrate the talks.

Educational resource packs are available on Fleming and penicillin and on Hospitals and Nursing 1845-1948.

Bethlem Archives and Museum Service
Bethlem Royal Hospital
Monks Orchard Road
Beckenham
Kent
BR3 3BX

Contact: Caroline Smith
Tel: 020 3228 4537
Email:
Website: www.bethlemheritage.org.uk/education

We hold the archive of the hospital including documents and photographs, artifacts and an extensive art collection which all relates to mental health. We offer school and community visits which can include archive handling sessions, workshops based on our paintings and short talks by current staff. We also make outreach visits.

BDA Dental Museum Year 3 pupils at the BDA Dental Museum

64 Wimpole Street
London
W1G 8YS

Contact: Melanie Parker
Tel: 020 7535 5860
Email:
Website: www.bda.org/museum/

The BDA Dental Museum provides a range of services for formal and informal education groups of all ages...

Early years: our loans boxes support the topic 'People Who Help Us' and include jigsaws, games, dental outfits and books.

Primary schools: linked to the year 3 'Teeth and eating' curriculum we offer full day sessions at the museum, an outreach service to schools, loans boxes and teachers’ packs. Our aim is reinforce messages provided by teachers by placing the topic in a broader, historical context and through fun methods to encourage pupils to take better care of their teeth through an appreciation of the lack of opportunities had by most people in the past.

Secondary schools: We have downloadable resources on 20th century medicine for secondary school teachers, particularly those teaching Year 9. These resources have been developed in conjunction with the Museum of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. Visit our Health Histories website for further details.

Adult groups: (e.g. local history/archaeology societies, U3AS, walking tours). We provide guided tours of the museum which can last from 20 minutes to two hours - the latter includes a film show and the chance to handle some original artefacts. We also provide an outreach service giving talks about the history of dental care. These talks can also be arranged in conjunction with the Centre for Human Bioarchaeology at the Museum of London.

British Optical Association Museum
The College of Optometrists
42 Craven Street
London
WC2N 5NG
Contact: Neil Handley, Curator
Tel: 020 7766 4353
Email:
Website: The MusEYEum Education and Outreach

A wide range of specialist and non-specialist adult groups have already visited the museum for customised tours of varying length and subject. Please contact us to discuss your individual needs.

We welcome school visits to the museum in small groups. These are primarily suitable for the 11-18 age range especially students of A/AS Level Physics. All tours are different and will be tailored to your particular needs to embrace optical science, personal eye health or an ophthalmic-centred approach to the general history of medicine. A pre-visit by teaching staff considering arranging a group visit is strongly recommended. Joint tours with the nearby Benjamin Franklin House can also be arranged. In addition the museum offers off-site talks and lectures and careers information, or we can contribute an optically-themed feature to your own heritage events.

For an eyefull of interpretational content visit the online exhibitions of the MusEYEum.

Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons
35-43 Lincoln's Inn Fields
London
WC2A 3PE

Contact: Hayley Kruger, Learning and Events Officer
Tel: 020 7869 6566
Email: Bookings: 020 7869 6566
Website: http://www.rcseng.ac.uk/museums/learning-and-access

GCSE History, Medicine through Time - A visit to the Hunterian Museum will bring the Medicine through time syllabus to life for students. It will help them to learn about and enhance their understanding of the history of surgery and medicine from the medieval period to the present day. Working in groups the students explore four main themes including blood, patient experiences, cleanliness and inside the body to create their own tour of the collections. Students work with material from the museum, library and archive collections and have an opportunity to handle original objects from the museum and archive. Led by experienced educators the students are encouraged to work as part of a team, to use their knowledge and understanding of the subject to inform their choices and to explore the collections to develop their investigation and interpretative skills.

'Cutting Edge' Careers Workshops - Aimed at years 11-13 these sessions combine practical surgical skills and the opportunity for pupils to meet medical students, doctors and surgeons. Recommended for students thinking of or in the process of applying for medical school. Half day sessions or full-day AimHigher workshops are available on selected dates throughout the academic year.

Museum of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPSGB Museum)
1, Lambeth High Street
London,
SE1 7JN
Contact: Briony Hudson
Tel: 020 7572 2211
Email:
Website: www.rpsgb.org.uk/informationresources/museum/

Informal tours of our vast, weird and wonderful collection
Object handling sessions to develop a greater understanding of how people lived in the past
Schools loans boxes for KS1 and KS2 - The Medicine Chest
Citizenship- Pharmacy Debate Packs
Science talks and workshops- "Making and Taking Medicines: Past, Present and Future"
Downloadable resources on 20th century medicine for secondary school teachers, particularly those teaching Year 9. These resources have been developed in conjunction with the BDA Dental Museum. Visit our Health Histories webpage for further details.

Science Museum

Exhibition Road
London
SW72DD
The Science Museum Learning team offers a wide range of resources and events, both in the Museum and in School and Community venues.

For details of our wide offer for learners of all ages, visit our website: www.sciencemuseum.org.uk

The Science Museum provides many resources for teaching - including GCSE History - Medicine Through Time. If you are a teacher, visit www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/educators

The Educators' web area provides advice about using the museum, information about planning and booking a visit and a range of free downloadable resources to bring ideas to life in your classroom. There is also information about special events, from shows and drama in the museum, to our popular Outreach programme where We visit you bringing a range of shows and activities for students of all ages.

Visit the Science Museum's galleries to support Medicine Through Time: In Glimpses of Medical History find out how it felt to be a doctor or patient at different times in history. In The Science and Art of Medicine See more than 5000 objects from around the world illustrating the history of medicine in western and non-western cultures, or visit Health Matters , a provocative exhibition about developments in twentieth century medicine.
You could arrange a meeting with one of our Drama characters . Meet Mary Seacole, pioneering nurse in the Crimean War; or question Marie Curie about her struggle to become one of the great names in science. You could even meet the world's first Pregnant Man - have your say: fantastic achievement or crime against nature?

Visit Brought to Life online to see 4,000 objects from the history of medicine, 16 themes of authored content on topics such as disease and epidemics, practising medicine and with interactives featuring the Black Death, how an iron lung works and diagnosing 17th century patients.

Wellcome Collection
183 Euston Road
London
NW1 2BE
Tel: +44 (0)20 7611 2222
Email:
Website: http://www.wellcomecollection.org/visitus

Wellcome Collection does not offer a specific education service at present, but teachers are welcome to arrange visits for student groups.

Group visits and tours
Groups are welcome and we offer free, guided tours of the galleries for groups of 8 to 20. Please note that we consider our gallery content to be most suitable for visitors aged 14 plus.

To organise a group visit, please email groups@wellcomecollection.org telling us a little more about your group, the proposed date(s) and time(s) of your visit, number of people, and which galleries you would like to visit.

Information for parents
Coming with the family? Read information for parents first.