Schools and teachers
The Jocelyn Bell Observatory in Toulouse welcomes classes from primary school to sixth form. Sessions are prepared with you and run by trained members of the association : they do not replace your lesson, they give it something real to look at.
What a session brings, by year group
The precise mapping to the official curriculum is still to be confirmed with the association, key stage by key stage. Until it is, this page describes the themes covered without citing a curriculum reference.
In practice
Supervision. The association provides the guides and the equipment. Supervision of the class remains the responsibility of the school, at the ratios in force for a school outing.
The weather decides. Observing depends on the sky. A session may be cancelled a few hours beforehand if it is overcast : we tell the lead teacher as early as we can, and offer a fallback date at the time of booking. Part of the programme takes place indoors and does not depend on the weather.
Lead time. Allow several weeks between the request and the session. The volunteers are students : exam periods and university holidays lengthen the wait.
Cost. School sessions are part of the association’s paid services. The rate depends on the format and the travel, and is given to you in reply to your request. Paid services fund the free activities.
Resources and class area
Once the session is booked, your class is given access to the observatory’s class area : a preparation guide, a quiz to do in class before or after the visit, the sky chart of the day and results by class. Access needs a login, sent with the booking confirmation.
The teaching pack sits with the other resources on the Teaching resources page.
Book for a class
Tell us the year group, the number of pupils and the period you would like. The outreach team comes back to you with a proposed outline and a rate.
