Visiting a Museum – The Downland Gridshell

Art & Design ,KS1 & 2,Unit 9 general

This unit provides a structure for a visit to a museum, in this instance The Downland Gridshell.

Where the unit fits in 

The visit can be incorporated into any unit in key stages 1 and 2 schemes of work. It may be that the Museum can contribute in the longer term to the scheme of work and a partnership can be established. Children could go on to use the resources of the Museum in other areas of learning, especially those involving some sort of enquiry. These resources could include those delivered over the Internet.

Vocabulary  

In this unit children will have an opportunity to use words and phrases related to:

• The physical form of the Museum.

• The use of the Museum.

Resources  

What children will need for their visit:

• Material for recording the visit, e.g. sketchbooks, notebooks, cameras, pens & pencils.

• A plan/guide of the Museum (enclosed).

• An outline of the structure of the visit (enclosed).

• Briefing sheets or worksheets.

• Access to Museum website.

What teachers will need:

• A preliminary visit to the Museum to plan the work on the visit, including, a training/briefing session with relevant Museum staff to clarify basic facts, e.g. there will be an opportunity to touch/handle objects, Museum staff will carry out direct teaching sessions etc. (complimentary tickets are enclosed, please telephone Schools Services to make an appointment for a briefing session).

• Teachers briefing sheet and timetable (enclosed).

• Access to the Museum website.

Museum Risk Assessment

Learning Objectives 

Discuss the Museum to be visited. Compare it with other places the children may have visited.

Show some examples of objects or pictures from the museum. Discuss why some things are collected and displayed by museums. Are the objects unique or fragile?

Review the unit of work the children are doing. Discuss the role of the visit to the Museum. Why is it important to see real objects? How will that experience contribute to the work? What will be the outcome expected from the visit?

To identify visual and other information they need to help them to develop their ideas.

To identify how they will collect the information they need.

About what is expected of visitors to the Museum.

To show respect for other people’s needs in public places.

To identify how to select from first-hand observations and how to explore ideas for different purposes.

Go through maps and plans of the Museum. Explain how the children will deal with coats and bags, when and where they will have their lunch, whether they will go to the shop, what they will need to bring with them and where they will meet.

Discuss the children’s expectations of the atmosphere at the Museum. What do people do when they visit a museum? How do they behave? What sort of behaviour is expected?

Identify how the children will respond to the Museum and the objects within it e.g. What is it? How is it made? What do you think about it? How will they record their responses?

Talk about how they will record what they see and do on the visit. Ask the children to be clear about:

• which part of the object will they be recording, e.g. detail, pattern colour

• what media they will use, e.g. drawing, camera, words

• the purpose of the recording, e.g. to describe appearance, analyse structures/patterns or interpret the objects

To select and record from first-hand observation.

To collect visual and other information to help them develop their ideas.

Use a range of activities on the visit, including independent work and work with small groups.

Set the children a number of tasks. They could:

• record and observe the design of the Museum, its patterns and structures

• record and observe the collections held in the Museum

As the visit progresses, check the children have gathered all the information they need and if not, provide more direction. Carry out a final check just before the end for any final recording

To compare ideas and methods.

How might they develop their ideas further?

Review the visit with the children. Encourage them to:

• design their own Gridshell building using the information they gathered on patterns/structures of the Museum.

• respond to the objects they recorded from the Museum’s collections. Did they recognise some of the objects.

• Explore the collections in greater detail for example, ages, how were objects used. Do this via information gathered from the drawing session and talk given by Museum staff.

Where an issue arises that cannot be dealt with from non-museum resources, encourage the children to pose specific questions to the Museum via letter or e-mail.

Suggested Activities

Activity 1

A guided tour of The Jerwood Gridshell Space including, a history of the building and design techniques involved, with time to record the appearance and analyse structures and patterns.

Activity 2

A guided tour of the basement store housing the Museum’s collection with a member of our curatorial team, which can include time to discuss and record items of particular interest.

Bookings

Please give a copy of this page to each group leader, and make them aware of the need for observing the safety issues outlined on the Information for Group Leaders.

Please note, times to be arranged depending on age and focus of work.

Teachers Notes - The Downland Gridshell

What is a Gridshell?

A gridshell is a structure with the shape and strength of a double-curvature shell, but made of a grid instead of a solid surface. 

When was it built?

• Start of contract June 2000 - Start Gridshell 2001 - Completion May 2002 - Open 24 June 2002 - Completed in 2002.

• First true Gridshell in UK – 1st one in Mannheim in Germany about 27 years ago.

Why was it built?

• Enables visitors to see the Museum’s collections & conservation work.

• All Museum staff can now be based on one site.

• Provides an excellent resource for the Museum’s learning programme, courses and seminars, workshop space and the collections. 

mathematics facts

• 50m long.

• 16m wide at widest.

• 12.5m high at highest.

• Area 800m sq.

• Total cost £1.65 million.

Design

• The Downland Gridshell is a lightweight structure made of oak laths and it is insulated, so it can be used throughout the year.

• Computer designed.

• Roof - 600 50x35mm Green Oak laths up to 37m long total length 7.5 miles. Approx 45 trees.

• Roof cover - Douglas fir framing.

• Arches - Laminated Siberian larch.

• Floor - Laminated beams, Spruce tongue and groove flooring, topped with ash boarding in short lengths for easy repair.

Sustainability

• Using the natural features and slope of the landscape.

• Curves similar to the curves of the downs.

• The Downland Gridshell celebrates the use of wood as a construction material in a modern and highly innovative way.