Uni sets up museum-themed educational platform

THOSE struggling with home schooling during the coronavirus lockdown can benefit from a suite of resources from a university.

Durham University’s Museum from Home package includes a wide range of activities to do at home and live-streamed group activities.

Resources requiring minimal equipment have been made available on the university’s website – and more will be added over the coming weeks.

They include various materials including a livestreamed version of the university’s weekly Little Dragons club for children aged under five, with stories, games and crafts.

There are online resources for primary and secondary school-aged children designed to support the school curriculum, including videos and downloads.

There is also support for post-16 learning, including free downloads to help develop research, essay-writing and revision skills, and online learning sessions delivered via Microsoft Teams.

People can access downloadable creative activities for community groups, and there is support for young people aged five to 25 who want to deepen their engagement with the arts.

Liz Waller, the university’s director of library and collections, said: “Although the Covid-19 restrictions mean we can’t welcome visitors to our museums and attractions right now, we’re determined to keep supporting learning and interaction with our collections during the lockdown.

“We’re excited to launch the Museum from Home suite of free online resources and looking forward to seeing how schools, community groups and people of all ages explore and enjoy the activities we’ve made available.

“The team has worked really hard to make a wide range of resources available online in a short time.”