12 Apr 2019
Client: Britain’s Energy Coast STEAM Trail project at Westlakes Science Park
Brief: To create content for an outdoor interactive educational experience trail that promotes STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Maths) subjects to schools and families visiting Westlakes Science Park.
Description: Supported by Sellafield Ltd. the team at BEC wanted to create an aspirational educational resource that could open up the Westlakes Science Park to schoolchildren and families and promote the links between art and creativity and the STEM subjects. Working with Design Code (on the design and fabrication) and DesignWorks (on the creation of an accompanying app) I was asked to create content for an outdoor interactive educational experience trail for school children and families. The trail was made up of a series of engaging and eye-catching boards that contained facts and figures about various STEAM subjects and highlighted the importance of art and creativity within the science and technology field. We linked the content to the KS2 curriculum and worked with the businesses on the park to show how STEAM subjects impact on our daily life. The boards are accompanied by a digital app that can be downloaded, offering a rotating choice of questions on each board, thus providing the opportunity for multiple visits. In order to cater for all abilities, we included additional activities such as brass rubbing and an anagram game, as well as additional thought-provoking questions for discussion, both on the trail and for follow up classroom learning. I also created a Teachers’ Pack which included instructions, a map, discussion questions, health & safety information and additional resources to enhance the visit.
The trail was launched by the team at BEC in January and road tested by the pupils of Valley Primary School in Whitehaven.
Client Testimonial:
“Rachel developed really engaging, curriculum-led content for both the young people visiting our STEAM trail – and the grown-ups who need to know some finer details ahead of visiting. She delivered a final product that was above and beyond our expectations.”
~ Michael Pemberton, CEO, BEC