Bring the excitement of animal encounters to your students with our interactive workshop, featuring hands-on experiences with mini- beasts, reptiles, mammals, and birds. At Primary Workshops for Schools, our Animals Encounters workshops can cover a range of curriculum-based topics, including Rainforests, Mini-beasts, Nocturnal Animals and Lifecycles. Sessions include a mixture of mini-beasts, reptiles, mammals and birds, and we actively encourage direct handling!
Perfect for enriching curriculum topics or to celebrate World Animal Day.
We can cater to a single class or multiple classes, so whatever your requirements, we can create a workshop to suit.
The Animal Encounters workshop links to a number of curriculum-based topics, including Rainforests, Mini-beasts, Nocturnal Animals, and Lifecycles.
Who is it for?
Our exciting Animal Encounters workshop helps children learn about animals in a safe, controlled environment. Our sessions are fully interactive, and we make time for every child to touch or hold the animals. This close-up experience helps to build confidence, as well as making the day truly memorable.
Our Animal Encounters workshop is the perfect workshop for World Animal Day, to enhance curriculum topics or even as a reward.
How it works
What makes our Animal Encounters Workshop stand out?
At Primary Workshops for Schools, we provide an opportunity for children not just to talk about animals but also to see, touch, and even hold them. Led by experienced facilitators, our Animal Encounters workshop is a hands-on, fully interactive session designed to build knowledge and confidence. Every child is given the opportunity to safely handle or observe a wide variety of animals in a calm, supportive setting.
We don’t just show animals. We build a structured learning experience around them. The result is a workshop that leaves a lasting impression on every child involved.
The importance of interacting with animals
Direct interaction with animals sparks curiosity, encourages empathy, and creates an understanding and a powerful emotional connection to the natural world. Children retain more when they learn through experience, and few experiences are as exciting as holding a snake or watching a giant snail up close.
Handling animals also supports social and emotional growth. Many children overcome fears or hesitations through the guided, safe handling of unfamiliar creatures. This builds confidence, resilience, and pride in facing something new, offering benefits that carry over into other areas of school life.
How Our Animal Encounters Workshop Can Help
For Children
For children, the benefits are immediate and wide-reaching. They learn key facts about animals, such as lifecycles, habitats, diet, and classification, all while seeing those facts in action. More than that, they gain confidence, develop empathy, and build resilience through direct contact with the animals.
For Schools
Animal Encounters isn’t just fun. It’s also purposeful. It connects directly to National Curriculum objectives in science and supports key areas such as:
- Communication
- Language development
- Personal, social & emotional
- Understanding of the world
- The expressive arts
- Observation skills
- Identification
- Comparison skills
- Habitats
- Evolution
- Observation skills
- Identification
- Comparison skills
- Habitats
- Evolution
- Observation skills
- Identification
- Comparison skills
- Habitats
Our Artists
Our workshop facilitators are very knowledgeable in animal care and education. Our team is trained to work with children of all ages and abilities, and they know how to build trust and excitement while keeping safety at the forefront. They are also fully enhanced DBS-checked and passionate about delivering a calm, structured, and memorable experience.
Enjoy customised experiences
No two schools are the same, and no two workshops need to be either. We tailor our Animal Encounters workshops for schools to suit your needs, including:
- Age group focus – sessions adapted for EYFS, KS1, or KS2
- Topic Links – from Rainforests and Habitats to Life Cycles and Mini-Beasts
- Session lengths – we’ll shape the day to fit your timetable
- Special events – perfect for World Animal Day, Science Week, or reward days
Let us know your goals, and we’ll help you design a day that fits your space and schedule.
Why Choose Primary Workshops for Schools?
Proven reach
We’ve delivered creative learning experiences to over 2.5 million children across the UK. Many schools rely on us for engaging, reliable, and high-quality workshops.
High satisfaction rating
Our workshops maintain a 98.2% satisfaction rate. Teachers love the way our sessions captivate children, reinforce curriculum points, and leave a lasting impact.
Curriculum-led
Every workshop is rooted in National Curriculum objectives. We combine entertainment with genuine educational value, making learning stick in the most exciting way possible
Trusted professionals
Our facilitators are enhanced DBS-checked, trained, and experienced in school environments. They bring expertise, enthusiasm, and a calm, professional approach to every session.
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Bring Animal Encounters to your school today!
Give your children a learning experience they’ll never forget! Our Animal Encounters workshop blends hands-on learning, real-world science, and personal growth, all in one exciting school day. Get in touch with us today to check availability, send your enquiries, or reserve your preferred date.
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