Topic Boxes

The current offer of topic boxes (available on a half-term basis) offered by Bradford District Museums and Galleries is as follows:

World War Two (NEW FOR 2025-26 ACADEMIC YEAR)
Get hands on with World War Two: learn about the Bradford Blitz using photos from the Bradford Photo Archive, try on a helmet or a land army girl’s coat, have a go at working out some rationing puzzles, try your hand at morse code, and see what’s inside a soldier’s kit bag or an evacuee’s suitcase.

Vikings and Anglo Saxons
Go back in time to Bradford 1000 years ago to learn about the district in the age of the Vikings and the Anglo Saxons. Who were the Vikings and Anglo Saxons and where did they come from? How did they live? What did a Viking or Anglo Saxon farm or house look like? What words do we get from them? What local place names around Bradford came from the Vikings or the Anglo Saxons? Who did they trade with and what did they believe in? Learn the answer to all these questions and more with this hands on topic box all about Viking and Anglo Saxon Bradford.

Stone Age
This topic box comes in two parts and features a mini archaeological dig, in which students can dig for Stone Age objects before learning what they are and what they were used for during the Stone Age. Using problem solving skills, enquiry and comparison, students can discover the difference between hunters and gatherers, solve some Stone Age problems, and find out what every day life was like for someone during Bradford at this time.

Bradford District History
Explore the history of Bradford District and how it has changed over time through a focus on 5 time periods: the Stone Age, the Romans, the Tudors, the Victorians, and the Second World War. This box features real and replica artefacts from all 5 time periods and students can get hands on with the story of how Bradford changed from a small settlement, to a booming industrial city.

Romans
Explore the Roman fort of Olicana and discover why the Romans built a fort in what today is Ilkley. Use the artefacts to learn about life inside both a Roman town and a Roman fort, plot routes on Roman roads, get hands on with some miniature Roman armour, learn the truth about Roman hygiene and discover the story of Cartimandua.

Industrial Revolution
Learn the story of Bradford’s woollen heritage and find out how Bradford went from a small settlement with cottage industries, to woolopolis: a city booming with mills. Get hands on with some of the jobs people did everyday in the mill, such as spinning and weaving, and learn what life was like for mill workers in the 19th century. Find out if children could go to school, if they had school meals, what their home would have looked like, and what social reformers such as Margaret McMillan did about this. This box also explores the impact of Asian communities in Bradford and how they link to Bradford’s textile heritage.

Polar Explorer
This box contains all the things a polar explorer such as Ernest Shackleton might have taken with him on his voyage to Antarctica in the early 20th century. Work out what each object was used for and why it was needed. Each object comes with a fact file that details what it is and contains some enquiry questions to discuss in class, as well as a suggested activity.

Grace Darling
Discover the story of Victorian lighthouse keeper’s daughter Grace Darling, who became famous for her involvement in rescuing survivors from a paddle steamer that had shipwrecked off the coast of the Farne Islands. This handling box is full of everyday Victorian household items that would have been found in a Victorian house, such as Grace Darling’s. Find out what each object would have been used for and discover how a Victorian house is different from a house today.

Civil War
This topic box aimed at Key Stage 3 students, looks at the key figures and events of the English Civil War, with a particular focus on the link to Bradford and Bolling Hall Museum, which was used as a Royalist base during the Siege of Bradford. The box contains QR codes which link to exclusive digital content filmed at Bolling Hall. These videos explore the story of the building in connection to the Civil War and its events in Bradford in the 1640s, as well as the local ghostly legend surrounding the Royalist leader the Earl of Newcastle.  

Contact us on learning@bradford.gov.uk to find out more or book a topic box