A fruit and vegetable power station Can you make fruit into a battery? Do all fruit and vegetables work? Are certain combinations more or less efficient? Students will experiment with this surprising green alternative to the battery by constructing and measuring the output of electric circuits.

Back to Nature See the natural sciences in action! Explore Thwaite Island as a habitat for butterflies and micro-habitats for local wildlife. Pupils will gather evidence by using observational skills and record their findings on record sheets by using tables, graphs and pictures. KS1 will create their own beautiful butterfly to take home, whilst KS2 […]

Canals: Can water travel uphill? Why did we need canals in the past? How do locks work? Can you make water travel uphill? Explore water resistance, levers, gears and locks, experiment with our mini canal network, and record observations using tables and diagrams. In partnership with Canal Connections, we can offer a canal boat ride […]

Celebrate Christmas with the Horne Family Become a servant for the Horne family for the day and help them to celebrate a Victorian Christmas at Thwaite Watermill. Compare rich and poor Christmases, make salt dough decorations and homemade lemonade.

From Rock to Pot Discover how the mill process chalk and flint. What can be use rocks for? Students will study how processed minerals and rocks were used in the pottery industry by examining our collections of rocks, minerals and Burmantofts pottery. Pupils will examine particle size and crystallinity as quality tool controls.

Gravity What does it take to overcome the invisible force of gravity? The laws of motion! Design, build and test a number of different rockets and propulsion systems.

How to make coal tar soap How do you make soap out of something black? Students will explore the use of fractional distillation by using a micro-still to produce coal tar, before using the coal tar to make their own bar of soap.

Renewable Energy Can we make Thwaite Watermill energy sustainable? Explore water, wind and solar power and how they can generate electricity. Pupils will record their observations on experimental record sheets using tables, graphs and diagrams and discuss whether their findings can be used to support a sustainable environment on the island.

Sir George Cayley – a great Yorkshire inventor Discover Sir George Cayley’s claim to fame. Build and test flying machines and machines that could not possibly fly, exploring the science of aerodynamics.

Waterforce! A green energy source Explore the mill to discover how water wheels work and discuss forces, then build working working model waterwheels, evaluate them on a test rig and explore the use of dynamos to generate electricity.

Wartime at Thwaite Watermill What did the Horne family of Thwaite Watermill do to help the war effort? Become an evacuee from Leeds for the day and investigate why putty production was so important for the mill in the Second World War. Find out about the Horne family, use maths to weigh out a week’s […]

What did the Victorians do at Thwaite Watermill? Follow the lives of the family, the servants and the workers of Thwaite Watermill as the production of putty becomes more mechanised. Use real family stories to experience life as a Victorian servant, carrying out kitchen and washing duties in the mill manager’s house. KS1 will have […]