Virtual School Workshops

It is a real pleasure for Dr Diane to share with you her expert knowledge on the Maya. She is extremely passionate about her specialism and so has created interactive videos for schools to use as well as offering live question and answer sessions. It is just as if she is with the children themselves!

Dr Diane just finding an ancient Maya burial!

Whilst a visit by Dr Diane to your primary school is a wonderful experience, a virtual visit is a great alternative and has many advantages:

1. The teacher will receive Maya content and activities that is equal to a full school day (5hr 30 mins of class time), instead of between 2-3 hr class time.  Much much more detail on Maya maths, the calendar and artefacts enquiry is given;
2. Live Q&A sessions give a great opportunity for all children to be able to ask questions, particularly after accumulating knowledge from working with the videos, rather than for a restricted time during the day of her visit;
3. Videos can be used throughout the Maya topic at appropriate times, rather than given all on the day of her visit;
4. If teachers or children are isolating they can still continue to work uninterrupted, as these videos can also be watched at home on a laptop, tablet or mobile phone;
5. The virtual visit suits all school budgets.  In addition, you will be able to use the workshop package with multiple classes in the year.

Thank you so much for the virtual sessions. My pupils were absolutely enthralled and loved it all. I can honestly say your sessions are by far the best of any educational visitor I have known in my 8 years of teaching. Your passion and knowledge are second to none and provide such as rich experience for pupils.
Julia Anderson, Great and Little Shelford Primary, Cambridge

Maya Workshop

The KS2 workshop consists of the following videos that can be streamed for 6 weeks and can be used with any number of classes within your school. They are for Key Stage 2 (UK), Grades 2-7 (US) and Grades 3-5 (Australia):

1. Presentation (1 hr 30 mins of class time required)

Dr Diane presents with images, audio and video clips of 1) how archaeologists gain an understanding about the past from only the material remains, 2) the magnificent achievements of the Maya in architecture, art, calendar, astronomy, writing and chocolate, 3) what it is like to work as an archaeologist in the Maya jungle and 4) some of the artefacts Dr Davies has discovered and how she uses them to understand more about the Maya. Throughout the presentation, Dr Diane asks children questions and gets them thinking about history.

.
.

An example of the many videos Dr Diane shows during her presentation.

.

We thoroughly enjoyed the ‘live’ workshop last year, but Dr Diane has done a great job of transferring all that information to a virtual experience. So far we have watched the presentation which was excellent and really whetted everyone’s appetite. She is a really engaging presenter!

Claire Edgar, Hollymount Primary School, London

.

2. Historical Enquiry with Artefacts (1hr 30 mins of class time required)

Dr Diane displays over 20 artefacts from her collection. Children are quizzed on each one and answer what the object is made of, how it was used and who it may have belonged to. Dr Diane gives the answers for each object explaining how it was used in Maya life. The winner of the quiz will receive something very special from Dr Diane!

.

The workshops are amazing! The children are loving the work that they’re doing (and are loving listening to someone other than the teacher for a while!).

Sara Parker, Grange Primary School

3. Maya Maths Activity (1 hr of class time required)

Dr Diane explains in detail how the Maya number system works for numbers under 20 and also for numbers up to and over 800. She will give exercises for the children to complete with answers. Children will then look at Maya addition and subtraction with examples and quizzes. Finally, children will look at an ancient Maya codex (paper book) and try their hand at working out the calculations.

.
.

Thank you for creating such fun videos. I loved them and they were so interesting. You have taught us so much about the Maya!

Year 4, Witham Hall Prep School, Lincolnshire

4. Maya Calendar Activity (1 hr of class time required)

Dr Diane explains in detail how the calendar works and also provides her own Maya calendar resource, so that children can make their own to keep.  Using her resources children will be able to work out what the Maya date is for today and future dates. Finally, children using their birthdate will learn about their Maya spirit companion. 

.

Thank you so much for all your hard work in putting the online workshop together, I know Oak Class got so much out of the day and the Live Q and A –  it was amazing!   

Joseph Ockelford, Fordcombe C of E Primary, Tunbridge Wells

 5. Live Question and Answers (30 mins)

Dr Diane will be available in real-time using the platform of your choice to answer any questions children and teachers may have about the presentation, artefacts, activities, the Maya, archaeology or rainforest in general. If you have more than 1 class, for an additional fee, you can have several Live Q&A sessions.

I just wanted to let you know how much the class enjoyed the Q&A session today. Your answers were very well received and the children themselves commented on how fully you answered each question. They felt really ‘pleased’ that they each got their own ‘moment in time’ to speak to you and funnily the ones who might have felt shy to ask a question, ended up being some of the ones to show you their masks. Thank you for allowing them that moment.    

Liz Masters, Nancy Reuben Primary School, London

.
BOOK A VIRTUAL WORKSHOP
.
One of the many thank you letters received from children

Alternative Option

These are stand-alone videos so schools may choose just one or more of the videos to stream at a lower cost.

© 2024 Maya Archaeologist Ltd | All Rights Reserved | Manage consent