THE SWEYN SPECIAL: A new outreach offerfor York schools!2013 marks 1000 years since England’s first Viking king, Sweyn Forkbeard, came to the throne. To celebrate this amazing anniversary, JORVIK has created the ‘Sweyn Special’, an outreach taster visit to your school. As well as giving an insight into Viking home life, travel and traditions, our fully equipped Viking will introduce the story of Sweyn, a raider, pirate and king! We will also provide ideas for follow-up activities. At an all-inclusive price of just £90 for York schools (within the boundary of York city and its wards), this offer can’t last forever!

Our Viking will attend for either a morning or an afternoon session. Call our reservations department on 01904 615505 to find out more about how we can meet your school’s needs.

Viking Outreach Outreach is a great, hassle-free way to bring Vikings to your classroom. Our outreach service is now in its ninth year, and JORVIK’s first-ever Outreach Co-ordinator is still part of the team! Our expertise in meeting the needs of your class will add an extra dimension to your teaching, as our Vikings introduce aspects of Viking life, travel, trade and more to your pupils. Every school making a booking for a full day of outreach in 2013 qualifies for a free 45-minute Virtual Viking outreach session after their visit. More details can be found on the education pages of the JORVIK website (www.jorvik-viking-centre.co.uk/education).

JORVIK VIKING FESTIVAL 2013: Learning OpportunitiesThe JORVIK Viking Festival creates learning and access opportunities for all ages. The ‘Meet the Experts’ sessions at Barley Hall on Festival weekdays (18th – 22nd February) will see different archaeologists

attend on each day to chat about their work with the public. In 2013, visitors will have the chance to meet experts in the digital reconstruction of Stonehenge and in forensic crime scene investigation through archaeology. The Festival will also welcome the return of the ever-popular Andrew ‘Bone’ Jones, who will investigate the amazing properties of Viking-era poo! For more on these and other amazing events, including lectures, guided walks and author events, see the full Festival programme here: http://www.jorvik-viking-centre.co.uk/event-calendar/

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2013 - A Horrible New YearLook out for the return of the Plague, Poverty and Prayer exhibition at Barley Hall (Easter 2013), this time featuring costumes from the ‘Horrible Histories’ TV show, with special input from Terry Deary himself! Visit the JORVIK website to keep up-to-date with the latest developments in this exciting project, plus news of a series of one-man shows by Terry across Yorkshire to tie in with the second annual Yorkshire Medieval Festival in August. The Plague, Poverty and Prayer exhibition links to Key Stage 2 History: Britain and the wider world in Tudor times - medicine and health.

JORVIK Group Learning BlogYou can now keep up to date with the work of the JORVIK Group education team by following the new JORVIK Group Learning Blog (http://jorvikgrouplearning.wordpress.com/). It’s where we’ll post news of our latest learning initiatives and projects, and should be of interest to anyone working in heritage education.

New Learning Resources for your visit to DIGWe have recently added some new resources to the ‘Information and Resources page’ on the DIG website (www.digyork.com). These include three information sheets to enhance your visit to the ‘Looking Back at Hungate’ exhibition and to prepare for our linked workshops for Key Stages 3, 4 and 5. Each is packed with fascinating images, and together they tell the story of Hungate as a part of York’s urban landscape since Roman times, up to and including the Industrial Revolution and the social history of Hungate’s Victorian slums. Also new for DIG are two trails designed to enhance DIG visits, and suitable for Key Stage 1 and 2 learners. These can be downloaded ahead of your visit to complement your class’s DIG experience!

SOTSIn October we were joined by two student teachers from the University of York St John as part of our ongoing involvement in their Settings Other Than Schools scheme. The students visited us for the week, touring the exhibitions and joining in with our school visitors’ workshops. It was an enjoyable experience for all involved, and both will return to us in May to work on the second part of their placement, which will involve creating new resources for primary learners. We are always pleased to hear from trainee teachers who wish to find out about using our attractions for meeting the new standards for QTS.

Staff visits to Orkney and ShetlandAs part of CPD for our team of education workshop providers, two of our staff attended Viking Summer Schools in Orkney and Shetland arranged by the University of the Highlands and Islands. Finnian Brigham went to Orkney, where he was able to make comparisons with Viking-era York, presenting his findings to the team on his return. Particularly important during this visit were the capitals of Birsay and Kirkwall, St Magnus Cathedral, runes at Maes Howe and the Stones of Stennis, the Earl’s Bu at Orphir, and archaeology in practice at Westness. Continuous training of this kind means that our staff are informed on the latest developments in Viking studies, all of which benefits the sessions that they provide for schools.

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Birsay, by Finnian Brigham