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2026 Opening dates and times:

Spring Season

Saturday 14th March – Thursday 23rd July (Closed Fridays except for Derbyshire school holidays).

10am -5.30pm (last admissions 4pm)

10am – 4.30pm (last admissions 3pm)

Friday 24th July – Monday 31st August (Open daily)

10am -5.30pm (last admissions 4pm)

10am – 4.30pm (last admissions 3pm)

Tuesday 1st September – Sunday 1st November (Closed Fridays except for 30th October)

10am -5.30pm (last admissions 4pm)

10am – 4.30pm (last admissions 3pm)

Contact the Education Team

To contact the Learning Department for more details or to book activities use.

Winners of the Sanford Award for Heritage

Education 2021-2026

Minibeasts

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Stag beetle

Minibeasts Session Information

  • Suitable For EYFS / KS1
  • Session Length 45-60 minutes
  • Cost £2.00 per child

Using our fantastic woodland area, children will become explorers, set to discover what life on Earth has to offer. Equipped with magnifying glasses and insect identification sheets, children will be able to explore, discover, identify, record and talk about the magnificent minibeasts they find. With the help of our Educators, children will also begin to understand differences between bugs, why they are shaped or coloured the way they are, and why they choose to live where they do.

Objectives:

  • Use equipment accordingly to observe simple characteristics of minibeasts and other living things.
  • Communicate and share ideas, thoughts, observations and conclusions with peers and adults.
  • Learn to treat living creatures with care and sensitivity.

National Curriculum Links

EYFS Early Learning Goals

Listening, attention and understanding

  • Listen attentively and respond to what they hear with relevant questions, comments and actions
  • Make comments about what they have heard and ask questions to clarify their understanding

Speaking

  • Offer explanations for why things might happen
  • Express their ideas and feelings about their experiences

Managing self

  • Be confident to try new activities and show independence, resilience and perseverance in the face of challenge

Physical development: Gross Motor skills

  • Negotiate space and obstacles safely, with consideration for themselves and others

Understanding the world: The Natural World

  • Explore the natural world around them, making observations and drawing pictures of animals and plants
  • Know some similarities and differences between the natural world around them and contrasting environments, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class
  • Understand some important processes and changes in the natural world around them
Key Stage 1

Working scientifically

  • observing closely, using simple equipment
  • identifying and classifying
  • using their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions

Year 2: Living things and their habitats

  • identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other
  • identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including microhabitats

Arrange an Educational Visit