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Dear Charles Darwin,
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Welcome.
Welcome to the June 2011 newsletter from The Charles Darwin Trust packed full of interesting news and resources.
This newsletter will continue to be delivered to your inbox regularly to let you know about forthcoming events and share the Trust's ideas on how Darwin can inspire learning about science and the natural world.
Great science thinker
Worms, beetles, bees collector,
Exploring nature
Haiku by Young Experimental Scientist from Swindon Academy.
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Swindon Key Stage 2-3 Transition Project
Swindon Young Experimental Scientists were at it again this year. Many of last year's Year 6 pupils wanted to be involved this year and formed part of the 40 Year 7 pupils acting as 'experts' and coaching a group of 110 Year 6 pupils from several feeder primary schools. Pupils looked at earthworms, bees, bird beak variation, seeds and life cycles, how science is communicated and can be researched on the web, and setting up a thinking path like Darwin. On the second day, pupils shared and discussed their insights and met Randal Keynes, one of our Trustees and great-great grandson of Charles Darwin. The schools will now be building on this work to integrate Year 6 into secondary school life.
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A Year 6 and Year 7 pupil discuss what they can see in the home-made wormery as part of the Young Experimental Scientists Key Stage 2-3 transition project at Swindon Academy ©The Charles Darwin Trust 2011 |
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Internal development day at Down House
The Trust had an internal development day for its educators at Down House in May. This was an opportunity for us to share knowledge and best practice, and to get feedback and share ideas on how to improve and develop our work. We were joined by English Heritage Education staff, with whom we are building a good working relationship. It was a packed day, with one session run over our twenty-minute lunch. There were many highlights, but one that stands out was walking the Sandwalk where Darwin walked every day. There we mulled over our work just as he mulled over his. Thoughts that came out of this thinking time have set us a new challenge: how to encourage Darwin-Inspired Learning more widely in schools. We are holding another day for local secondary schools at Down House in July.
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One of our resources on the internal development day at Down House, Sarracenia or pitcher plants in Darwin's greenhouse. © The Charles Darwin Trust 2011.
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Ancestor's Trail
This event in the Quantock Hills in Somerset, held on 29th May, is becoming an annual "Pilgrimage to the Dawn of Life". 150 people from all over the UK, including our Director, walked the longest trail representing the human evolutionary journey: 13 miles from Kingston St Mary to Kilve beach. Entertainment was provided along the trail and at the evening celebrations. Listen to Ramblings with Clare Balding on the Ancestor's Trail on BBC iPlayer. Keep an eye out for next year's walk and see our page on the Ancestor's Trail website.
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The Dawn of Life? Kilve beach, the end point of the Ancestor's Trail in the Quantock Hills of Somerset. ©The Charles Darwin Trust 2011. |
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Rap Guide to Evolution
The Wellcome Trust have funded the production of videos for each track from Baba Brinkman's Rap Guide to Evolution. The Trust was invited to the launch at the Prince of Wales Cinema off Leicester Square on May 25th and one of our Trustees, Randal Keynes, introduced Baba. The videos look great, they are by turns funny and thought-provoking, as are the lyrics. Uniquely, the tracks are also peer-reviewed by evolutionary biologists! Only two videos are so far finished and posted on the Rap Guide to Evolution website, but they will eventually all be available with annotated lyrics for use by teachers.
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Baba Brinkman performing Rap Guide to Evolution. © Baba Brinkman 2011. |
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We hope you have found this newsletter informative. Please contact us if you have any questions about the work of the Trust.
The Charles Darwin Trust
info@charlesdarwintrust.org
www.charlesdarwintrust.org
http://twitter.com/darwintrust
www.facebook.com/charlesdarwintrust
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