School Children Gain Priceless Knowledge From the Royal Mint Education Resource
02 Jun 2008
The Royal Mint is proud to announce the launch of its engaging education resource aimed at Key Stage 2 students throughout the United Kingdom. Comprised of nine challenging activities, the resource looks at coin design, the history of coinage and coins from around the world, bringing the curriculum to life and helping children to view the world around them in new and interesting ways.
Working with education expert Marie Joubert at the University of Bristol's Graduate School of Education, the Royal Mint has developed structured lesson plans which meet curriculum requirements for the core subjects of Science, Mathematics and English,as well as Literacy, History, Citizenship, Geography, Art and Design & Technology. The lessons explore how language related to money has influenced common expressions in the English language, how the shape and size of coins differs across the globe , and how coin designs are one of the few works of art carried in the pockets of the general public.
The importance and history behind coin design is of particular relevance following April's announcement that the reverse of the United Kingdom's coinage has been redesigned for the first time in 40 years.The new reversedesigns were created by 26-year-old graphic designer Matthew Dent and will appear in circulation later this year.Matthew first became interested in coin design in the school playground,when a friend showed him one of the new 5p coins that had just entered circulation.
Dave Knight, Director of Marketing said: 'The Royal Mint is delighted to offer an education resource which not only informs children about the world around them, but also offers an insight into the significant heritage of coin design.We hope that the resource acts as a useful tool to help teachers meet the objectives of the National Curriculum and that our lessons are enjoyed by children for many years to come.'
The Royal Mint education resource is available to schools across the United Kingdom by calling 0117 922 7799 or visiting www.royalmint.co.uk/lessonplans.Comprised of nine activities, the education resource incorporates lesson plans, detailed notes for teachers, resource and pupil sheets.Accompanying PowerPoint presentations are also available for download from the Royal Mint website.