Rail Museum excursion

Last week we attended the Build It exhibit at The Workshops Rail Museum, with our homeschool co-op group. It was a long drive to Ipswich but well worth it.

There was much to enjoy.  It was a fun hands on all-day learning experience for both O and J. They first did a workshop in small groups on cranes. My boys love anything to do with construction so this was a great start.

  After the workshop, they had some time at the museum play area where everything has a construction theme to it. They had some creative play including role play with their friends. We stayed back and O spent some time observing and discussing the Model Train. He builds amazing things with his Lego at home and has decided he wants to be a designer.

On the way out we discovered the Apprentice Training Shops, a trades area we had missed on entrance, which my boys enjoyed the most- they didn't want to leave! Each trade had its own workstation, and with the completion of the designated activity at a workstation they got to stamp their "certificate" for that particular trade. The certificate in itself was a fun idea. There was smithing, wagon building, rope splicing and tying, painting and stencilling, welding, and fitting and wheeling. They had many favourites and we later had a great time discussing these trades. The day created opportunities for unit studies.

Plumbing 

 Welding:

Smithing:

Painting (with water):

Wagon Building:

Here J took a ready made wagon from the testing area and pulled it apart so that he could put it together again. Nearing the end, he got helpers, then together they had a test drive- and the wheels didn't turn!

We certainly would love to go again.

xoxo Sara