Workshops and Taster sessions

Earthquakes are one of the most complex and dangerous geological hazards that we face. As more and more people live near fault lines, the chance for a disaster increases. Join Jack McGrath, a PhD student studying in the School of Earth and Environment, as we look at how we can use satellites to more about what causes earthquakes, how we can respond to an earthquake occurring, and how we can find out where might be at risk.

For KS4/5 students, duration 60 minutes.

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

Learn the techniques of earthquake location using real data from a seismic monitoring network in Turkey deployed as part of a research project led by Leeds University. We will use P and S-waves and you will pick the arrival times at the seismograms. From the difference in travel times of these waves you can obtain the source location of the earthquake. We bring all the materials – you just need to provide pencils, rulers and pairs of compasses.

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

Suitable for KS4 and KS5 pupils. Duration 60-90 minutes. 

This presentation explains how magnetic fields play a crucial role in protecting planet Earth and everyone living on it.  You will learn about the different magnetic fields in our solar system and why they are different. To do so we will embark on a journey from space to the deepest and most remote regions of the planets.

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

Suitable for KS4/5 students. Duration 40mins 

In the last twenty years, earthquakes have caused the deaths of nearly 1 million people and volcanic activity has resulted in hundreds of thousands of people being evacuated from their homes. These events also cause major economic disruption, with aftereffects ranging from the destruction of buildings and infrastructure to airspace closures.

Earth scientists are at the forefront of international efforts to monitor our hazardous planet using satellites, and are now providing critical information to decision makers around the world so that they can prepare for, and quickly respond to earthquakes and eruptions. This lecture will demonstrate how satellites are used to monitor tiny ground movements with extraordinary accuracy and explain how understanding these movements can help us forecast where future earthquakes will occur and when volcanoes might erupt.

For KS4/5 students, duration 40 minutes.

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

This presentation will describe how we can detect the motion, shape, and structure of tectonic plates.  You will learn about the different observations that fed into the development of plate tectonics, and how these continue to inform our understanding of planet Earth.

Suitable for KS4/5, 45 mins.

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

This presentation gives an overview how active volcanoes are monitored with modern geophysical methods, and how volcanologists interpret the data in terms of volcanic processes. You will see several examples from Soufrière Hills volcano in Montserrat, West Indies, and even listen to volcanic tremors.

You will learn how researchers at Leeds University use these results to inform the Government about the state of volcanic activity and how they are able to warn the people of Montserrat about imminent eruptive activity.

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

Suitable for KS4 and KS5 students, duration 1 hour.

This presentation explores how geophysical methods can be used to map the tunnels of burrowing animals, without ever disturbing their habitats. You will learn about how radar instruments can X-ray the ground, and shed some light on the subterranean worlds of moles and meerkats.

For KS4/5 students, duration 40 minutes.

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

This presentation shows you what it’s like to be a volcanologist working in the field, exploring what happens when a volcano erupts near where people live. You’ll see examples from the 2018 Kīlauea eruption in Hawai'i that destroyed 600+ houses, and from Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua where an active lava lake has been releasing poisonous gas for hundreds of years. You will learn about some of the tools which Earth scientists use to measure volcanic gas, and how we can use drones to get a better idea of how a volcano is erupting.

For KS3/4 students, duration 30 minutes.

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

The living world was subjected to a number of rapid warming-driven mass extinctions during the late Palaeozoic-early Mesozoic (280-180 million years ago) that nearly extinguished animal life from the planet. Why was life pushed to the brink so often during this period of Earth history and what were the lasting effects, both evolutionary and ecologically, from these crises?

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

Suitable for KS3 - KS5 pupils.  Duration 45 minutes.

There is also the option to have greater input from final year undergraduates by offering a placement to a student on one of the ‘Into Schools’ modules. The placement student would spend from 20 to 60 hours in the classroom, and develop and deliver learning resources with your guidance.

For more information contact the module managers:

'Geographers into Teaching' module – contact Owen Radford-Lloyd

'Earth and Environmental Sciences into Schools' – contact Phil Murphy

Enthusiastic university students are great role models. If you’d like to help your students make sense of the many degree options available to students interested in Geography, Geology, Environmental and Climate Science or Sustainability, why not invite one of our student ambassadors to come and speak with them face-to-face? Our specially trained student ambassadors talk about their experience at university, and why they chose to study their subject.

Please contact Sarah Coletta Lead Outreach Officer for Environment for further details.

Suitable for KS3 - KS5 pupils.  Duration 40 minutes.