Information for Schools

There is a lot to see and do on your visit to the City Museum. Please see further down the page for information on the exhibitions. However to make the most of your visit you may wish to book one of our specialist led workshops on the 'Victorians Uncovered', and 'Toys, Games and Pastimes', details below.

Toys, Games and Pastimes Workshop

Our expert museum staff will lead this fun ‘hands on’ session. The whole aim is to allow the children to play and investigate. They will find out more about historic toys, card games and board games, games of skill, moving toys, dolls, figures and puppets. They will also find out how favourite pastimes have changed throughout history.
This session will provide the chance to compare old and new, identify
different materials, group similar toys such as vehicles or puppets and
find out how simple mechanical toys developed right up to our own
time. The ‘Study in Sherlock’ gallery, ‘Portsmouth at Play’ gallery and
historic room settings perfectly complement this session.

Victorians Uncovered Workshop

Pupils are asked to investigate the type of objects that might
have been used in the household of a wealthy Southsea Doctor and author in the later Victorian period. We give pupils the chance to handle and discuss objects belonging to the husband and wife, as well as the servants and offer some clues about the identity of the person who wrote stories about a famous fictional detective. The session takes place within a fictitious house and pupils have the opportunity to handle objects, smell foodstuffs and try out a variety of household tasks from making pastry to crimping Victorian ruffled costume.

Potential stable boys might be asked to polish the master’s boots,
whilst eager domestic maids try on a replica corset in the lady’s
dressing room. The session covers how a variety of household tasks were done, what clothes they wore and the impact of new household appliances.
They discover for themselves the differences between middle class and working class life and consider life as a Victorian child.
The ‘Study in Sherlock’ gallery, the ‘Portsmouth at Play’ gallery and our Victorian room settings complement this interactive session, so your pupils will have plenty to see and do.

Booking a Group Visit

For all enquiries, sessions and group visits please telephone (023)92827261 and ask for the admin team or e-mail mvs@portsmouthcc.gov.uk stating clearly your name, school contact details, number/age of children, which museum/exhibition/workshop you are interested in and your preferred dates/times.

Length of Stay and Group Sizes

Unless you have booked a led session the typical visit time by a group is 1 - 1½ hours. The recommended maximum number arriving at any one time should not exceed 60 pupils. A teacher/pupil ratio of at least 1:15 is essential. (When school groups are in the museum, the behaviour of the children or students is the responsibility of the teacher in charge). When visiting 'Story of Portsmouth', 'Portsmouth at Play' or temporary exhibitions, it is advisable to split into smaller groups of 15/20 within the galleries to avoid overcrowding.

Payment

Free admission for self-led visits, groups must book in advance. Please see above for workshop charges. Cheques payable to 'Portsmouth City Council', Credit cards: MasterCard or Visa.

Exhibitions

The main feature of the museum is 'The Story of Portsmouth', shown in four galleries. The first gallery provides the visitor with an introduction to the history of Portsmouth, including an audio-visual show.

On the first floor the galleries are thematic. The 'Portsmouth Picture Gallery' displays the current exhibition of Portsmouth pictures, paintings and postcards showing scenes of bygone Portsmouth. The 'Living in Portsmouth' gallery tells the story of life in the home from the 16th century to the 1950s. This includes a 17th century bedchamber, an 1871 dockyard worker's kitchen, a splendid Victorian parlour, a 1930's kitchen and a 1950's living room. Most of the rooms incorporate sound effects and/or figures. 'No place like Pompey' is a fascinating new exhibition that looks at the question, ‘What makes Portsmouth unique? Is it one particular place, the city’s geography, its past or its people? It includes the fact that most of Portsmouth lies on an island, the city’s links with the dockyard and the Royal Navy, and the fortifications that made Portsmouth one of the most heavily defended areas in the country.

The 'Portsmouth at Play' gallery covers the development of Southsea as a seaside resort, theatres, cinemas, public houses, coffee bars (including 'Verrechias') and sport. Many of these themes are also shown on archive film.

In addition to these galleries there is a 'Fine and Decorative Art Gallery' with displays on furniture, decorative art, ceramics, glass and textiles and a 'Temporary Exhibition Gallery' with regularly changing displays.

National Curriculum Links – A Broad and Balanced Approach

The City Museum is suitable for a wide range of National Curriculum work. Here are some suggestions of ways in which you can link your visit to National Curriculum areas.

History
KS 2 - Victorian Britain
KS 2 - Britain since 1930
KS 2 - Local History
KS 3 - Britain 1750-1900
KS 3 - The 20th-century World

The History of Portsmouth. Chronology - a line through time from Anglo-Saxon settlers to the present day. 1500 - 1800 Defended City - the growth of the military presence in Portsmouth. Contrasts in Victorian times. Naval town and seaside resort. Changes in the 20th Century. "Home" through the ages - furniture, food, washing etc. Differences and similarities to modern day living. Amusements and pastimes.


Geography
KS 1 & KS 2 - Places
KS 2 - Settlements
Maps of the development of Portsmouth. Physical geography - the formation of chalk and Portsdown Hill. Effect on Portsmouth of changes in sea level. An Island City.


English
Texts about the exhibits, using a variety of genres: information, explanations, lists, recipes, fiction and playscripts. The History of Portsmouth.

Art
KS1 & KS2 - Introduction to works by local artists past and present. Appreciation of the work of Artists and Craftspeople 2-D and 3-D. Developing the use of appropriate vocabulary. Landscape - Portrait. Various media and 'canvas'. Foreground - midground - background. Content - form - process - mood. Fine Art - materials, techniques.

Mathematics
Collecting Data.

I C T
Early electrical goods.


Science and Technology Materials.
Forces - Levers and the use of pulleys to lift weights (cooking pots). Cooking through the ages - appliances and utensils. Recipes from different times. Local wildlife.

Please book now

We look forward to welcoming you soon!
Call (023)92827261 to make a booking.