New Maya Primary School Workshop launched

A new Key Stage 2 Maya workshop was launched as part of the primary school programme earlier this year.  It was developed in response to the growing number of teachers approaching the Pitt Rivers Museum for help in delivering the Non-European Study of Mayan civilization c.AD900 in KS2 History. Luckily our new Director, Dr Laura van Broekhoven, happens to be a Maya specialist and helped to craft the new session.  Not only did she help to acquire contemporary Maya artefacts for the permanent collections but she also asked her husband, Dr Alexander Geurds, to do some shopping on a work trip to Mexico.  This means we have a fabulous handling collection to support this session which ranges from cactus fibre bags to cocoa beans to jade earrings.

Trying out jade ear plugs © Pitt Rivers Museum

During the session pupils get the opportunity to handle real artefacts as they build up a picture of what life was like for the Maya people around AD900. The session  also touches on how the modern Maya carry on many of the traditions established in the Classic period AD300-900.

Modelling a Huipil © Pitt Rivers Museum

Maize and cocoa are still staple foods of the Maya
© Pitt Rivers Museum

What to expect in a workshop? 

The 75 minute workshop starts with a mystery object game where pupils use their senses to work out what objects have been used for.  Pupils are then taken on a guided tour round the Museum looking at Maya objects in small groups. This helps them to develop a good understanding of the materials, designs, foods and animals which have been important to the Maya people.

The final activity sees the pupils design a headdress for a Maya person drawing on the inspiration they have gained from handling and looking at Maya artefacts in the Museum.

Looking at Maya artefacts in the Museum
 © Pitt Rivers Museum

Rave Feedback

The session has received very positive feedback with 100% of participants giving it full marks with a rating of ‘excellent’. Here are a few comments about the session:

‘Fascinating – children got so much from touching and talking about the objects. We could not offer this at school.’

‘Clear delivery, excellent information and questioning. Really enjoyable and valuable session. We’ve all learnt a lot about Ancient Maya and absolutely loved it! Thank you!'

 'Excellent session. Children were really enthused and enlightened by handling and 'decoding' artefacts. Highly recommended'.

How to book

To book a session contact Education@prm.ox.ac.uk or call 01865 613 031.

To find out more about the Maya session take a look at our Teacher Information Sheet.

To find out more about our wider offer take a look at the Primary School Brochure 2018-19.

Becca McVean
Primary School Education Officer
Pitt Rivers Museum