The Golden Hinde School Tours and Workshops London

Step aboard a full-size reconstruction of the famous Golden Hinde – the first English ship to circumnavigate the globe.

Under the command of Sir Francis Drake, the crew faced considerable challenges along the way including skirmishes, storms and scurvy. Our costumed educators bring this incredible journey to life and describe the sailors’ gruelling experience on a 16th century galleon.

From Early Years through to KS4, we offer a range of exciting educational programmes all designed to complement the National Curriculum.

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Workshops London
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From Early Years to KS4, The Golden Hinde offers exciting and engaging educational programmes for all ages which are designed to complement the National Curriculum.

Our offer includes 1 hour sessions on pirates, Drake’s circumnavigation and the Spanish Armada, a 3 hour Daytime Living History experience and our ever-popular immersive Overnight Living History.

We believe that hands-on activities like firing the cannon and raising the anchor help pupils get the most of their visit and make it a trip to remember.

Early Years Foundation Stage:  Eye-patches on, peg legs in, parrots at the ready – let our 1 hour pirate boot camp commence! As the children explore each deck, they’ll need to do important pirate work like finding the treasure map and loading the cannon.

Learning objectives

• To find out more about life on a pirate ship
• To develop communication skills

KS1: The ship offers two 1 hour programmes – the history of pirates and the story of Drake’s circumnavigation. Both involve exciting hands-on activities guided by our costumed educators.

Learning objectives

• To find out more about pirates from different places and points in history or find out about the history of Francis Drake and his 1577-80 circumnavigation of the world.

• To understand day-to-day life on an Elizabethan ship and how it differs from their own experiences.

• To develop skills of comparison, enquiry and communication.

• To develop creative writing and drawing skills.

Curriculum links

• KS1 History, KS1 English, KS1 Art and Design

KS2: Our 1 hour programme explores the amazing story of Drake’s circumnavigation through exciting hands-on activities guided by our costumed educators.

We also offer a 3 hour Daytime Living History programme in which your group becomes the crew of the Golden Hinde and experiences life as a 16th century mariner through hands-on activities and immersive role-play. Dressed in Elizabethan costume, three colourful characters from the ship’s history will guide you and recount lurid tales of bloodletting and limb removal from the grisly Barber Surgeon, lightning-quick gun drills with the excitable Gunner and mastery of the navigational arts with the ship’s Master.

Learning Objectives

• To find out about the history of Francis Drake and his 1577-80 circumnavigation of the world.

• To understand day-to-day life on an Elizabethan ship and how it differs from their
  own experiences.

• To develop skills of comparison, enquiry and communication.

• To develop creative writing and drawing skills.

Curriculum links

• KS2 History, KS2 English, KS2 Art and Design

Take over the Golden Hinde for a whole night on our Overnight Living History programme, and sleep on the ship as you and your group become the crew of the Golden Hinde and experience life as a 16th century mariner through hands-on activities and immersive role-play!

Three colourful characters from the ship’s history will guide you about the ship and teach you the skills required to sail on a galleon. With lurid tales of letting and limb removal from the grisly Barber Surgeon, lightning-quick gun drills with the excitable Gunner and mastery of the navigational arts with the ship’s Master, Overnight Living Histories are full of excitement and rich with learning opportunities.

Students and teachers will then bunker down for the night in authentic quarters on the ship’s gundeck! Pupils will also be provided with our pre- and post-visit resources, designed to encourage them to respond critically and creatively and get the most out of their visit. Dinner and breakfast are provided.

Learning Objectives

• To find out about the history of Francis Drake and his 1577-80 circumnavigation of the world.

• To gain a deep understanding of the day-to-day life on an Elizabethan ship and how it differs from their own experiences.

• To understand how primary source evidence informs our knowledge of the past.

• To develop skills of comparison, enquiry and communication.
• To develop creative writing and drawing skills.

Curriculum links

• KS2 History, KS2 English, KS2 Art and Design

KS3 & 4: Two 1 hour programmes are on offer – Drake’s Circumnavigation and The Spanish Armada.

Through interactive maps, replica handling sessions and a guided exploration of The Golden Hinde, students will be asked to think critically either about the motivations behind the voyage or why the Armada failed (depending on which programme they are on).

Learning Objectives

• To understand the motivations behind Drake’s circumnavigation and its impact on the early modern world or to recognise the factors that impacted the failure of the 1588 Armada and be able to argue their importance.

• To utilise the environment of the ship and its replica collection to gain a clear understanding of the difficulties and dangers faced by 16th century mariners.
• To develop historical skills of enquiry, comparison, and debate.

GCSE Exam Board Links

• AQA
  Paper 2 – Shaping the Nation:
  Unit BC Elizabethan England, c. 1568 – 1603

• Edexcel
  Paper 2 – Period Study and British Depth Study
  Unit B4: Early Elizabethan England, 1558–88
• OCR
  History B
  Component Group 1: The Elizabethans, 1580—1603

Tours: Minimum for a booking is 15 students and the maximum is 30 students per group. Groups larger than 30 students will be split into multiple sessions with at least 30 minutes between start times.

Daytime and Overnight Living History programmes: Minimum for a booking is 20 (including adults) and the maximum is 40 (including adults). Please note that we require a minimum of 3 adults irrespective of group size for our Living History programmes.

We offer a Golden Hinde Play Pack (EYS, KS1 & 2) with loads of ideas for young sailors to make & do, plus a Sailor’s Journal (KS1 & 2) encouraging children to imagine, draw and write about their own ocean voyage.  Both are downloadable from our website.

We also have a downloadable interactive map for KS2 learners which has been specially created to complement the national curriculum.

All groups are welcome to take photos and film for limited times during their visit on the ship.

We provide a risk assessment guide and recommend teachers to come for a site visit to carry out their own risk assessment as they are more aware of their students’ requirements.

For all enquiries, please contact our Education Team on edu@goldenhinde.co.uk or visit our website: https://www.goldenhinde.co.uk/learning

Our one hour programmes are £7 per student. One adult per eight students is free of charge but please note that any adults over that ratio will be charged the same price as a student.

Our three-hour workshop (Daytime Living History) is £30 per person.

Our sleepover experience (Overnight Living History) is £45 per person which includes dinner and breakfast.

The ship is not insulated and can therefore get very cold in the winter months so students visiting during winter will need to be dressed appropriately.

We do have first aid trained staff but any group will need to bring a qualified first aider.

We have a gazebo area in the shipyard which is available to book for 30 minute lunch slots. Toilets are also available during bookings.

The ship is not currently accessible for wheelchair users or visitors with mobility impairments. Please note there are steep stairs on the ship and low ceilings.

April – October 10:00 – 18:00

November – March 10:00 – 17:00

May 2024, Home Ed Group, Year 1 (Ship Ahoy!): We had ages 3 – 8 years old, and I had requested a combination of the EYFS and KS1 workshops, and I felt our facilitator was brilliant at keeping the kids attention without raising his voice, guiding them through the ship, giving really fascinating info and facts, whilst giving the kids a variety of ways to participate, move their bodies, and learn… it was very well managed, and you do a great job offering these experiences for school / educational groups.

April 2024, Bannockburn Primary, Year 2 (Voyage of The Golden Hinde): Brilliant! Very well led and the children found it engaging, interesting and funny!

April 2024, Watling Park Academy, Year 4 (Drake’s Circumnavigation): Outstanding. Would bring future groups of children to the experience, and would advise others to use the experience.

March 2024, Dwight School London, Year 2 (Voyage of The Golden Hinde): Very hands on and engaging… The workshop was an impactful session for learners and serves as an add on to the knowledge imparted in class. The interactive map on the website is very helpful too.

February 2024, St Peter’s School, Kettering, Year 4 (Voyage of The Golden Hinde): A fabulous experience for the children, they are still talking about it in the playground. Thank you.

We are very happy to try and accommodate any special requests for group visits.