Intro to Blenheim Palace: inside and out
in French and / or English KS1 & 2
From keys to costumes - An introduction to Blenheim Palace for Reception & Key Stage 1 & 2
Maths & English
The aim of this tour is to give young children a chance to look closely at
the Palace both inside and out. In particular the children are encouraged
to observe and comment on different shapes and colours, to describe
features of the Palace, to do some simple maths and to learn a little
about who lives at Blenheim Palace. This tour can be completely in
English or completely in French or in a mixture of the two languages.
The tour covers:Maths
Simple counting, addition and subtraction - for example:
 Can the children say what number is one more than a given
answer or one less (une plus)
 Identification of odd and even numbers (numéros impairs)
 Children will be asked what is half of or a quarter of a given
number (demi, quart)
 Identification of shapes such as squares, rectangles, triangles,
circles, cubes, pyramids and spheres (pyramide)
 Children will be asked to show that they understand position,
directions and movements e.g. ½, ¼, ¾ turns.
The gate to the East
Courtyard
Language
Observation, identification & description: Colours in the building (rouge, noir)
 Shapes in the stonework and windows (ovale)
 Identification of old and new (nouveau, vieux)
The Palace front door key
Speaking and listening
 Describing & identifying furniture and decoration in the
Long Library, adjectives & nouns( longue bibliothèque)
 Spelling simple words & learning new vocabulary
 Commenting on size of a room or painting or key (clé)
 Comparing a room at school with a room at the Palace
(Palace Great Hall v. School Hall, longer or shorter, higher or
lower, or Footman's uniform v. school uniform)
 Using French where possible e.g. colours, size (petite ou
grande), objects (chaise, fenêtre, portière.)
The Long Library
What the day involves
School groups usually arrive in the morning (although of course afternoon visits are also welcome)
and are met by a member of the Education Department speaking English or French or a mixture of
the two as required. If they wish, the group may leave their bags, coats etc. in the classroom (if
available) and the group will then be escorted to the East Courtyard for the start of the tour. The
tour will last approx. 30 minutes. The children are encouraged to ask and answer questions. The tour
includes the East Courtyard and the Great Court which are both outside and the Great Hall and Long
Library which are inside the Palace. The tour finishes in the Chapel with a short review. The children
are then free to take a train ride to the Pleasure Gardens (Butterfly House and Adventure
Playground) so they are suitably exhausted for the journey back to school.
Suggestions for follow up work in school
1. Draw the school front door key and the Palace front door
key. Talk about how the two keys are different and if they
are in any way the same.
2. Give each child some modelling clay and let them make a
key either like the Palace key or like their own key.
3. Make a colour wheel of all the colours they can
remember seeing at the Palace.
4. Talk about all the shapes they saw at the Palace, then
using these shapes build a picture of the Palace.
5. Draw a picture of the Palace and add simple labels in
French of words used during the visit.
Planning a visit
If you would like to find out more or to book a visit then please contact:-The
Education team, Mrs Wiseman & Mrs Keaney
Direct dial: - 01993 810535
email: - [email protected]
An example of a
colour wheel