Junior Geologists Welcome Dr Liam Herringshaw
On Monday 17 January, Junior School girls welcomed special guest Dr Liam Herringshaw to The Mount School. Dr Liam Herringshaw is a Palaeontologist who works with Hidden Horizons and is the Director of the Yorkshire Fossil Festival.
Dr Liam led the girls in an incredibly special Rock and Fossil Workshop as part of their Creative Curriculum topic. This term Junior School girls are taking on the roles of Geologists and Palaeontologists, learning all about the rock cycle and fossils.
During the workshop Dr Liam explained the various aspects of his job and what Geologist’s study. He then gave the girls a quick quiz . . . Hippo, lions, walrus, which animal used to live in Yorkshire? The Junior School girls were incredibly surprised at the answers as they heard more about the ice age in York including meeting the Ice Man of Holgate!
Next, Dr Liam tasked the girls to help him open ‘The Museum of Liam’ to display all his many geological findings, but he needed some help labelling his finds. The girls were lucky enough to look through Dr Liam’s extensive rock collection. Whilst they explored the diverse rock examples, Dr Liam asked them to really use their senses to discover the rocks . . . how would they describe the rocks, what colours were they seeing, could they see crystals or layers, were they cold or smooth…. By the end of the workshop the girls were able to groups the rocks into Metamorphic, Igneous and or Sedimentary rocks.
Dr Herringshaw also shared lots of different examples of fossils mostly found on the Yorkshire coast. “Wow, look how many fossils are on this one rock!” exclaimed Catherine. The girls were extremely impressed by the collection and thoroughly enjoyed the workshop. A huge thank you to Dr Liam Herringshaw for taking the time to visit us.
Other activities the Junior School girls have undertaken this January have included analysing and categorising buckets of dirt and sketching fossils. They have also been challenged with the unusual task of using a packet of sweets to explain the rock cycle. From melting them in the microwave to crumbling them up, the girls found many ways to replicate the rock cycle. They documented their activity using the class ipads to create short videos, illustrations, and voice annotated images. Who knew a packet of Starburst could be so educational?!
The Junior School Creative Curriculum, known as Explore, Discover, Create is designed to spark young girls’ natural curiosity. It is all about creative thinking, encouraging girls to think outside the box, giving. Through this creative approach we equip girls with the knowledge, 21st Century Skills and capabilities to be creative and engaged thinkers.
Read an interview with Miss Wilson to find out more about the Creative Curriculum.
