Key Stage 2

Mini Meets are a new education option and can be an alternative to our classroom-based education sessions or also as an addition to our classroom based education sessions. Mini meets allow you to meet one of our zoo educators at an animal habitat where they will give an exciting and engaging talk about the animal using biofacts such as skulls. We offer mini meets at our Lion, Tiger, Penguin and Sun Bear habitats. Mini Meets are priced at £15 for a 10-15 minute talk and have a limit of 30 students.

How do you spot a snow leopard in the Himalayas? How do you track a pride of lions in the savannah? Can your students identify animals from their footprints? Animal trackers also shines a light on how animal crime is being tackled across the planet!

Animal Trackers meets the following areas of the National Curriculum:

• identify and name a variety of common animals that are carnivores, herbivores and omnivores
• identify and name a variety of common animals including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals
• recognise that environments can change and that this can sometimes pose dangers to living things

How much do our camels weigh? Which is our smallest animal at Hertfordshire Zoo? How do we weigh our prickly porcupines. Students get the opportunity to use the right measurements to work out our biggest, longest, smallest and lightest animals.

Measuring Mammals meets the following areas of the National Curriculum:

• choose and use appropriate standard units to estimate and measure length/height in any direction (m/cm); mass (kg/g); temperature (°C); capacity (litres/ml) to the nearest appropriate unit, using rulers, scales, thermometers and measuring vessels
• compare and order lengths, mass, volume/capacity and record the results using >, < and =.

Why are Arctic, Red and Fennec foxes so different?  We take students on a journey to different habitats in order to find out why they are perfectly suited to survive there.  Students will also shine a light on the forest floor of the Amazon Rainforest to discover amazing adaptations from some of its most renowned animals.

Amazing Adaptations meets the following areas of the National Curriculum:

• identify and name a variety of common animals including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals

• identify and name a variety of common animals that are carnivores, herbivores and omnivores

• recognise that environments can change and that this can sometimes pose dangers to living things

What does it take to look after amazing and incredible animal species?  In this session students will find out how we work at Hertfordshire Zoo to give some of our resident species the best homes possible. Students will generate their own ideas to create extraordinary exhibits!

Extraordinary Exhibits meets the following areas of the National Curriculum:

• find out about and describe the basic needs of animals, including humans, for survival (water, food and air)

At Hertfordshire Zoo we have 4 different ‘Big Cat‘ species including Jaguars, Lions, Amur Tigers and Snow Leopards. How are they all different?  What makes them successful predators?  In this session students will take a whistle stop tour across the globe to explore cat species and their habitats.

Roars and Claws meets the following areas of the National Curriculum:

• identify and name a variety of living things in their local and wider environment

• recognise that environments can change and that this can sometimes pose dangers to living things

• identify and name a variety of common animals including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals

• identify and name a variety of common animals that are carnivores, herbivores and omnivores

What is the difference between a Lion’s diet and a Lion Tamarin’s diet? Why do some animals eat all vegetables and some animals only eat meat? These are some of the questions that students will be posed in our ‘All The Vores’ education session. Using resident animals from around Hertfordshire Zoo students will discover the dietary requirements of some of their favourite animals.

All the Vores meets the following areas of the National Curriculum:

· Identify and name common animals (birds, mammals, etc.).

· Describe how animals obtain their food.

· Construct and interpret a variety of food chains, identifying producers, predators and prey.

How do you track a Lion?  How can we save a Snow Leopard? With animals losing their habitats at an alarming rate and species on the verge of extinction, Hertfordshire Zoo is doing everything it can to support conservation across the globe.  Students will be given the opportunity to find out the threats to wildlife by getting up close to seized artefacts (courtesy of HM customs).  It’s now or never for wildlife conservation and your students could have the answers!

Conservation meets the following areas of the National Curriculum:

· Understand how organisms are affected by their environment and their ecosystems.

· Understand how changes in an environment can lead to extinction.

· Understand how human processes can change landscapes, environments and climate.

· Identify that Earth has limited resources, and the importance of recycling.

· Understand effective management of the conflict between human needs and conservation to maintain sustainability.

Discover the amazing animals that live in the richest habitats on Earth, what makes them so unique and how they have adapted to survive here. We will also learn about rainforest destruction and what we can do to help.

Rainforests meet the following National Curriculum:

·        Identify and name common animals (birds, mammals, etc.).

·        Understand habitats, animal/plant interaction etc.

·        Recognise that environments can change, and that this can pose a threat to living things.