Education sessions for home educated children

Bookings for sessions for 2024-2025 will open at 9am on 20^th May
Scroll down this page for more details including topics, session dates, and how to book

These sessions are aimed at families who home educate. If you are a teacher at a school, please see our school page for more details (click here). Sessions require pre-registration. Unregistered children will not be allowed to participate. Home education classes are designed to build on one another, and you can (if registered) attend all the age-appropriate sessions, or if you prefer, just register for one or two.

These sessions do not include entry to the zoo. There is no fee for the sessions, but participants must arrange entry separately either by paying standard entry fees (click here for prices), organising themselves with 15 people to qualify for our group rates (click here for group details), or using zoo passes (click here for details)(recommended if you plan on attending more than one session) to gain entry to the zoo.

Are you interested in a free STEM project and contest open to home educators?
The Colchester Zoo STEM Design Challenge is open to home educators, schools, and other children’s education groups. Resources are delivered digitally and virtually and there is no need to visit Colchester Zoo to participate. Find out more about this excited project, and register to participate on the STEM Design Challenge page.

2023-2024 Home Education Sessions

There are a few limited places left for our April 2024 and May 2024 sessions! Sessions run on:
April – Mon 15^th, Tues 16^th, Wed 17^th 2024 and May – Mon 13^th, Tues 14^th, Wed 15^th 2024

Sessions will run on three days each month (Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday), the sessions offered are identical on each day. Each day will have sessions aimed at different age ranges – 5-7 year olds, 7-11 year olds, and 11-16 year olds.

If you are intersted in these sessions for APRIL 2024 or MAY 2024 please email education@colchesterzoo.org to check if there are any spaces left for the age of your child(ren). Spaces are very limited and some ages/days of the week are already completely full.

2024-2025 Home Education Sessions

Bookings for these sessions will open at 9am on Monday 20^th May
We are unable to reserve places or book you in before this time.
The registration form to book you place will be available on this webpage at that time.

Regular Session Topics 2024-2025

5-7 year old sessions take place on:
Monday 12:00-12:45 pm OR 1:00-1:45pm; Tuesday 12:00-12:45pm; Wednesday 1:00-1:45pm

7-11 year old sessions take place on:
Monday 2:00-2:45 pm; Tuesday 1:00-1:45pm OR 2:00-2:45; Wednesday 2:00-2:45pm

11-16 year old sessions take place on:
Monday 3:00-4:00 pm; Tuesday 3:00-4:00 pm; Wednesday 3:00-4:00 pm

Click below to download a PDF of all the session topics, and a description of what will be covered for each age group.

Colchester Zoo Home Eds 5-7 sessions 2024-25 Download

Colchester Zoo Home Eds 7-11 sessions 2024-25 Download

Colchester Zoo Home Eds 11-16 sessions 2024-25 Download

Session Dates for 2024-2025:

September – Mon 2^nd, Tues 3^rd, & Wed 4^th 2024
October – Mon 7^th, Tues 8^th, & Wed 9^th 2024
November – Mon 4^th, Tues 5^th, & Wed 6^th 2024
December – Mon 2^nd, Tues 3^rd, & Wed 4^th 2024
January – Mon 6^th, Tues 7^th, & Wed 8^th 2025
February – Mon 3^rd, Tues 4^th, & Wed 5^th 2025
March – Mon 10^th, Tues 11^th, & Wed 12^th 2025
April – Mon 28^th, Tues 29^th, & Wed 30^th 2025
May – Mon 12^th, Tues 13^th, & Wed 14^th 2025

2024-2025 Session Registration

Home Education Session Terms & Conditions:

Unexpected Circumstances: Sessions sessions are offered in good faith on the assumption that Colchester Zoo will be open and visitors will be allowed to attend sessions. Please be aware, that due to potential unforeseen circumstances (e.g. government restrictions, severe weather events, etc.) there may be unexpected changes to sessions dates and/or topics. Additionally, due to situations outside of Colchester Zoos’ control, as a last resort, sessions may be cancelled. We will endeavour to avoid this wherever possible, and strive to keep registrants updated if this occurs.

Age to Attend Sessions: The sessions are divided into different age groups because this lets us tailor the session to include terminology and activities which are better suited to different age ranges. However, the ages we provide are just guidelines of where we will be targeting the information/activities, not firm requirements. To ensure the smooth running of the session, and for the benefit of all participants, we request younger/older children do not attend if they would be disruptive to the rest of the group.

Adult Supervision: All children attending sessions must be accompanied by an adult.

Minimum Class Size: Colchester Zoo reserves the right to cancel a class, no less than 4 days prior to the first class of the month, if registration is under five participants. In this event, you will be notified via the email you provided when you registered. You will also be given the option to attend the other date the same session is offered (e.g. if the Monday session is cancelled you would be offered a space in the Wednesday class if you so wish).

Maximum Class Size: Classes have a maximum of 25 participants. If a class is full, you will be put on a waiting list and contacted if there are any cancellations. Being on the wait list does not guarantee you will be able to attend the session.

Unattended Sessions: If you are unable to attend a session, please inform Colchester Zoo via email (education@colchesterzoo.org) as soon as possible. This will allow them to contact someone on the waiting list to let them attend. If you repeatedly do not attend sessions you are registered for, without letting the zoo know, you may be removed from future sessions.

Please note – Home Education sessions are free of charge. However, Registration for sessions does not include entry to the zoo. Participants must arrange entry to the zoo separately; either paying entrance price, organising themselves independently into a group of 15 (to qualify for group rates), or using zoo passes (gold cards) (see above for further details).

Home Education