Dear Teacher,
Schools are entering one of the busiest terms of the year, with exams, sports days, and school tours fill the April, May, and June calendar. To support planning during this busy period, the National Museum of Ireland has updated its primary and post‑primary schools programme with a range of engaging, curriculum‑linked experiences. These including orienteering and buttermaking workshops, self‑guided visits, and popular guided tours such as Art History, Military History, and how people lived in rural Ireland in the past. We are also introducing a new post-primary tour at Collins Barracks, Far From Home: Migration in 20th Century Ireland. Taking place across our Dublin and Mayo sites, these visits offer meaningful, hands‑on learning that fits perfectly with end‑of‑year school activities.
Don’t miss out—start planning your museum adventure today!
-
What's on for Primary Schools at the National Museum of Ireland
-
What's on for Post Primary Schools at the National Museum of Ireland
BOOKINGS & ENQUIRIES:
We are delighted to announce our new booking system! Teachers can now make a booking request directly through the webpage of their preferred tour or event.
-
If you have any queries for the Dublin sites, please contact the Bookings Office at bookings@museum.ie
-
For the National Museum of Ireland at Turlough Park, please email BookingsCountryLife@museum.ie or call (094) 90 31751.
See the full schools programme for the NATIONAL MUSEUM OF IRELAND at:
Some highlights for PRIMARY LEVEL include:
MEET & GREET: Dead Zoo Lab Explorers
10:30 & 11.45, Thursdays & Fridays - May & June slots now available
(The Dead Zoo Lab at Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7)
Teachers, have you ever wondered what it’s like to stand face-to-face with a dodo skeleton or examine the fossil bones of the giant Irish deer? Your class are about to find out! Begin your visit to the Dead Zoo Lab at Collins Barracks with a Meet & Greet with a Museum Educator. Book now to avoid disappointment!
SELF-GUIDED VISIT: Resources at the Dead Zoo Lab
Museum opening hours - limited availability!
(The Dead Zoo Lab at Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7)
Let the Museum and its collections capture the imagination of your pupils with a self-guided visit to the Dead Zoo Lab. Activity sheets are a great way to learn, explore and enjoy the objects and themes of the collections. Describe your favourite animal and become a wild life champion with a curriculum-linked activity sheet.
WORKSHOP: Biodiversity in Turlough Park Booked Out!
10am to 11am or 11.30am to 12.30pm, Thursday 30 April
(National Museum of Ireland, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co Mayo)
Come explore biodiversity on the grounds of the National Museum of Ireland – Turlough Park. This workshop is an outdoor, hands-on, full of fun activities investigating minibeasts and wildflowers with Dr. Karina Dingerkus and the Education team.
ORIENTEERING on the grounds of Turlough Park
10am to 11:00am | 12.00noon to 1pm | 1.30pm to 2:30pm | Wednesday, May 20 & Thursday, May 21
(National Museum of Ireland, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co Mayo)
Learn some basic map reading and navigation skills and complete an orienteering course around the grounds of The National Museum at Turlough Park House. This work in the Museum will be supported by staff and students from ATU’s Mayo campus, Mayo Sports Partnership and will coincide with World Orienteering day.
WORKSHOP: Buttermaking
10:00 to 11.20 | Every Thursday in May
(National Museum of Ireland, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co Mayo)
Learn about traditional customs through discussion, demonstration, observation and creative exploration. Discover the tradition of butter making and how to make your own butter in this hands-on workshop.
TOUR: Seasonal Nature Tours
10:00 and 11:30, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays
(National Museum of Ireland, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co Mayo)
Tour the grounds of Turlough Park with an experienced Museum Guide. Find out about nature and biodiversity on a seasonal woodland walk. Discover what trees are on site and how to identify them at different times of the year and then figure out what animals and plants are here and what we can do to protect them.
Morris & Me Tapestry Workshop: The Art of Flowers & Collage with William Morris Booked Out!
10:00 & 12:00 on selected dates throughout May
(National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7)
This 45 minute creative workshop will explore the life and work of William Morris, a key figure in the Arts and Crafts Movement. Pupils will learn about Morris' love of nature and design, and how his legacy continues to inspire artists today.
GUIDED TOUR: Recovered Voices: Stories and Experiences of the Irish during World War One
Selected times & dates throughout April, May & June
(National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7)
Join an experienced Museum guide for this interactive tour that focuses on the people involved in World War One and how the War impacted their lives. This tour seeks to demonstrate the all-encompassing nature of the First World War and includes stories of nurses, doctors, prisoners of war and ordinary soldiers.
GUIDED TOUR: Guided Tour: Game, Set, Match: The History of Sports in Irish Society
Selected times & dates throughout April, May & June
(National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7)
From hair hurling balls dating from the 1500s to ladies camogie dresses from the 1960s, join Museum Guides on an engaging and interactive tour focuses on the development and evolution of Ireland's sociatal and sporting past.
GUIDED TOUR: Prehistoric Ireland - Stone Age and Bronze Age peoples
Tuesday 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00, Wednesday 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00, Thursday 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00
(National Museum of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2)
The Prehistoric Ireland guided tour explores the jobs of the archaeologist and historian, and the role of the National Museum of Ireland – Kildare Street. Strongly linked to the National Curriculum this tour focuses on Stone Age and Bronze Age peoples. Pupils will engage with artefacts from Mesolithic fish traps to Bronze Age swords and shields, using key objects from the Museum’s handling collection for a hands-on learning experience.
GUIDED TOUR: The Vikings in Ireland
Tuesday 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00, Wednesday 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00, Thursday 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00
(National Museum of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2)
The Vikings in Ireland, session explores the three main activities of the Vikings in Ireland Raiding, Trading and Settling, using the Museum’s unique collection of artefacts. Pupils will explore how these artefacts can tell us about Viking burial customs and beliefs, their society and politics, and the new inventions and materials that they brought to Ireland through travel and trade across Europe and the Middle East.
SELF GUIDED TOURS at Kildare Street
(National Museum of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2)
Book a self-guided on-site visit for your class and capture the imagination of your students, make learning fun, and discover what your class can learn from the Museum.
Some highlights for POST PRIMARY LEVEL include:
SELF GUIDED VISIT: Dead Zoo Lab
Tuesday and Wednesday Mornings at 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00.
(Dead Zoo Lab, Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7)
Discover the Dead Zoo Lab at the National Museum of Ireland at Collins Barracks with your students in a self-guided visit. Self-guided visits are a great way for students to engage with the Museum's Natural History collections. As part of Science Week 2025 and in partnership with the Midlands Science Festival, we welcomed Transition Year students from St Mary’s Secondary School, Edenderry, to work with us and develop a new resource for exploring the Dead Zoo Lab. With the Museum's science educators and graphic designers they tested and workshopped with us on the creation of this new journal for students to use when exploring the natural history collections.
RESOURCE: What are Natural History Scientific Collections
(Natural History online)
Discover the scientific collections of the National Museum of Ireland at Merrion Street and go behind the scenes of the Museum with talks from our Tales from the Decant Series.
ORIENTEERING on the grounds of Turlough Park
10am to 11:30am | 12.00 to 13:30 | Wednesday, 20 May and Thursday, 21 May
(National Museum of Ireland, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co Mayo)
Learn some basic map reading and navigation skills and complete an orienteering course around the grounds of The National Museum at Turlough Park House. This work in the Museum will be supported by staff and students from ATU’s Mayo campus, Mayo Sports Partnership and will coincide with World Orienteering day.
WORKSHOP: Traditional Buttermaking
10:00 or 11:30 - Every Thursday in May 2026
(National Museum of Ireland, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co Mayo)
Join museum educator Fiona Deacy as she discusses the origins of buttermaking in Ireland and explores the science, history, and cultural significance of dairy production. Students will get the chance to churn cream into butter using traditional methods and also gain insight into the processes our ancestors relied on.
GUIDED Top 10 Tour: Highlights of the National Folklife Collection
10am or 11:30am, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays
(National Museum of Ireland, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co Mayo)
Learn and develop an understanding about traditional lifestyles including trades, customs, life in the home, clothing, farming and fishing. Gain a fresh perspective on society, economy, culture and politics in Ireland from 1850 to 1950 by examining the various objects on display in the National Museum of Ireland at Turlough Park.
GUIDED TOUR: ar From Home: Migration in 20th Century Ireland
Selected times & dates throughout April, May & June
(National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7)
On this tour, students will explore how objects can tell us about ourselves and our history, and how movement – both in and out of Ireland – has shaped the country’s identity and everyday life. We discover the lives of the Irish diaspora in Britain and America at the start of the 20th century, including their role in the Irish War of Independence. We discuss how foreign influence affected design in Ireland, as well as the importance of the international community for achieving recognition of the fledgling Irish state. We will also explore the experience of emigrating from Ireland in the 1950s, as well as the decision in the 1970s to join the European Economic Community, later know as the European Union, and recent trends of migration to Ireland in the 21st century.
GUIDED TOUR: Sliotars, Sashes and Symbols: Shaping Irish Identity
Selected times & dates throughout April, May & June
(National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7)
On this tour we look at how the meaning of ‘being Irish’ has evolved since 1900 through the new Changing Ireland galleries. We examine how Irish governments, organisations and ordinary people have attempted to shape national identity through language, culture, sports, and religion. Looking at how Ireland presented itself as an independent nation on the world stage, we explore how Irish identity was seen abroad. We address how issues of identity and belonging have had serious implications at home, focusing on the conflict in Northern Ireland in the second half of the 20th century. Finally, we look at what it means to be Irish today, in all its complexity.
GUIDED TOUR: 1913 - 1923, A Decade of Military History
Selected times & dates throughout April, May & June
(National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7)
Students are introduced to the experiences of ordinary Irishmen and women involved in World War I, the 1916 Rebellion, the War of Independence and Irish Civil War, and how all these events affected combatants and civilians alike.
GUIDED TOUR: Leaving Certificate History of Art
Tuesday 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00, Wednesday 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00, Thursday 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00.
(National Museum of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2)
Take a closer look at how passage tombs were constructed and decorated in the Stone Age and how some of Ireland’s gold objects were made and used in the Bronze Age right up to the creation and design of Early Christian treasures, including the ‘Tara’ Brooch and the Ardagh Chalice. This tour is specifically designed to cover key objects that appear on the History of Art Leaving Certificate specification and can be tailored to focus on Pre-Christian Art (c. 4,000BCE - 500 CE) including objects such as the Knowth Macehead and Broighter Hoard, or Insular Art (c.500 - 1100s) including such objects as the Derrynaflan Paten and Saint Patrick's Bell Shrine.
VIRTUAL SESSION: Leaving Certificate Art History
Thursday 10:00 & 11.30 | Thursday, 21 May
(National Museum of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2)
You and your Leaving Cert Art Students can join Museum educators for a live online virtual session broadcast direct to your classroom. This online virtual session will examine key artefacts from the Museum's collection that are part of the Leaving Certificate Art History specification. The development of art in Ireland will be examined from Neolithic to Medieval Ireland using high quality photography to examine artefacts, such as the 'Tara' Brooch and Ardagh Chalice, up close. When booking, please advise of topics that you would like to be covered as part of the session such as time period, artefacts, art styles, and themes. Virtual sessions can be tailored to focus on Pre-Christian (c. 4,000BCE - 500 CE) or Insular Art (c.500 - 1100s)
SELF GUIDED TOURS at Kildare Street
(National Museum of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2)
Book a self-guided on-site visit for your class and capture the imagination of your students, make learning fun, and discover what your class can learn from the Museum.
Subscribe to our Teachers’ Newsletter to receive regular updates direct to your inbox from the National Museum of Ireland with our latest events, resources and activities for schools