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Interactive curriculum workshops – Bath Spa University

Choose from a range of workshops to inspire your talented students.

Aimed at sixth form and college students, these workshops are available for delivery at our Newton Park and Locksbrook campuses, as well as off-site.

Due to their popularity, we can't guarantee that we'll be able to accommodate every request, but we'll do our best!

Browse our list of subject workshops below:

Business and Management

Are your students destined to be entrepreneurs, CEOs, or marketing directors? Whatever their aspirations, give them a taste of the range of skills they can develop to make their mark on the business world.

Accounting

Workshop: Can Accounting Be Fun?

Accounting is often seen as a boring subject, but is it? In this workshop, we'll focus on making accounting interesting, accessible, and yes, maybe even a little fun.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Business and Management (Accounting) course.

Entrepreneurship

Workshop: Prototyping Solutions for Business Problems

Through "junk modelling" and a "build to think" approach, we'll use common materials to explore everyday problems, develop creativity, and form entrepreneurial ideas. 

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Business and Management (Entrepreneurship) course.

Fashion

Workshop: Trend Analysis in Fashion

We want students to know that they can pursue their individual interests as part of a fashion career. We'll gather a variety of visual materials to identify current fashion trends as a vital first step on the path to a career in fashion.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Business and Management (Fashion) course.

International

Workshop: Why is International Business Important?

What makes an internationally successful business? How do businesses operate around the globe? This workshop helps students understand the importance of global markets and how this knowledge can impact their career development.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Business and Management (International) course.

Law

Workshop: The Art of Negotiation

Negotiation isn't just for lawyers – it's a highly transferable skill. We'll explore the meaning of negotiation, different kinds of outcomes, and how to prepare for negotiation in this practical workshop. Students will also get the chance to try some mini-negotiating exercises.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Business and Management (Law) course.

Creative Computing

Could your students join the next generation of digital creatives? If they've ever wondered how to code beautiful apps, bring stories to life through animation, or build intuitive smartphone games, this workshop is a must. No coding experience required!

Creative Computing

Workshop: Adventures in Virtual Reality – from Shaky Beginnings to the Future of Gaming

You might be surprised to know that virtual reality traces back to 1957. This workshop reveals the key milestones that took virtual reality from science fiction to reality. We'll also consider what the future has in store for this popular "new" technology.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Creative Computing courses: Animation, Gaming, and Web Technologies.

Criminology

Our popular Criminology course enables students to investigate, scrutinise, and understand the causes and consequences of crime. We explore issues at local, national, and transnational levels to challenge conventional notions of criminality.

Criminology

Workshop: Dying for Justice – Uses of Capital Punishment

Though abolished in the UK, opinion polls often show that many are in favour of capital punishment. This workshop looks at punishment in modern societies, how it's applied, and the debates around execution as a criminal penalty.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Criminology course.

Education

We're committed to bringing the education professionals of the future together in a community of research and practice, and we've been training students to this end since the 1940s. Set your students on the path to excellence in education with one of our workshops.

Early Childhood Studies

Workshop: What is Childhood?

Using video footage, we'll explore issues such as children’s voice, participation, creativity, and play, and ways that children engage with space and place. We'll question and challenge perceptions of children and constructions of childhood.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies course.

Education Studies

Workshop: The Museum of Education

The education sector as a career option is great for educators, policy makers, activists and researchers. In this workshop, we'll inspire curiosity and raise awareness of education and its implications. Pupils will consider which artefact from their education they would add to a Museum of Education, and why. 

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Education Studies course.

English and Creative Writing

It starts with a love of books. Voracious reading becomes an exploration of shared worlds and - perhaps - a desire to craft stories to share in turn. Our courses are concerned with developing this passion for literature and fiction into a profession. How do writers experiment with philosophical and political ideas, history, and social justice? Writing as a skill informs a range careers, from scriptwriting, to journalism, to teaching, and so much more.

Creative Writing

Workshop 1: Storytelling in the Twenty-First Century

Have stories changed with the advent of new technologies? Which aspects of storytelling have remained constant? In this lively workshop, we'll create interactive, immersive stories using the latest platforms.

Workshop 2: Be a Creative Professional

The creative industries are the fastest-growing sector of the UK economy. Publishing - one of the largest contributors - includes books and magazines, multiplatform journalism, digital content and social media. Find out more about combining passions and interests with valuable, transferable skills in this expert-led workshop.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Creative Writing course.

English Literature

Workshop 1: Gothic Literature and Dis-Ease

The undead, the uncanny, the inhuman, the infected, the diseased, the disturbing, the degenerate - Gothic texts propel us to the dark side of human nature. This workshop introduce readers to the Gothic and its status as an index of cultural dis-ease.

Workshop 2: Literature in the World

Ocean plastics, #metoo, #blacklivesmatter - literature invents worlds, and is also intimately connected to the world "out there". We'll engage with contemporary concerns about race, environment, gender, and social justice in this workshop.

Workshop 3: What is a Shakespeare Play?

Did Shakespeare create the works that bear his name? We'll consider the various people and agencies that are involved in creating Shakespeare's plays, and reflect on how new knowledge might change our perceptions of them.

Workshop 4: So You Think You Know What a Book Is?

In the digital age, it’s increasingly tricky to define what a book is. Is it words, or just a container of words? How might we read the relationship between words and their physical form? This hands-on workshop enables students to explore these and similar questions by examining rare books, experimental books, and electronic books.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) English Literature course.

Film, Television and Digital Production

Our courses offer students the chance to become multi-skilled and experienced in a wide range of related disciplines. They can work alongside industry professionals to gain practical experience, and take a scholarly approach through the lens of media and production.

Film and Screen Studies

Workshop: Remakes and Remixes in a Transnational Context

Drawing on global examples such as the "Man with a Movie Camera" remake, this discussion workshop considers how the Internet has facilitated remakes. We'll use the documentary "Remix, Remake, and Rip-Off," to consider intertextual borrowing in Hollywood and Turkey.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Film and Screen Studies course.

Film, TV and Digital Production

Workshop 1: Visual FX: An Introduction

This workshop looks at the incredible world of visual FX for film, and how to acquire the skills to design and create stunning visuals for productions.  

Workshop 2: The World of Post-Production

We offer valuable insights into the post-production industry and what skills students need to flourish in this integral aspect of filmmaking.

Workshop 3: The Art of Foley

Foley has been an integral part of film and TV since the 1930s. It’s an aspect of post-production audio that is creative, requires a keen imagination, and a sharp eye for detail. This workshop delves into the mind of a Foley artist and how the process is carried out in TV and film. 

Workshop 4: Stop-Motion Animation

Stop motion has been a key part of cinema for decades and with the recent success of 'Kubo and the Two Strings,’ stop motion has been going from strength to strength. We'll delve into the full process of creating a stop motion production.

Workshop 5: Sound Design – Bringing Visuals to Life

Lightsabers, portal guns, dragons… all of these started life as an image on a screen. This workshop picks apart iconic objects and creatures and demonstrates how sound designers work their craft to bring these to life.

Workshop 6: Colour Grading – an Introduction

Colour grading is a fundamental aspect of post-production. This workshop looks at how colourists use their colour manipulation skills to enhance the final picture and aid storytelling.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Film, Media and Production course.

Media Communications

Workshop 1: Why Media Representations Matter

What we see and hear, and just as importantly, what is ignored and overlooked in the media, helps us make sense of our world. This interactive workshop asks students to consider the people, places, and stories that are visible and invisible.

Workshop 2: Advertising in the Entertainment Industries

We'll explore the key practices associated with the role of advertising within and across entertainment forms, such as films and television, considering the question of why advertising changes and how it impacts its audiences.

Workshop 3:  Immersive Promotion: Marketing VR & AR Experiences to New Audiences

What is the future of virtual and augmented reality across the media industries - and who are these technologies for? We'll explore the emerging creative sector of immersive media, including VR film, AR games and mixed reality art exhibitions, and consider how we can find and build a diverse audience for this emerging media form.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Media Communications course.

Geography

Are your students interested in how our lives vary across the globe, and yet are interconnected? Are they keen to tackle environmental challenges? We offer a taste of vital fieldwork that can create a positive impact.

Geography

Workshop: Geography Experience Day at Newton Park

Experience Geography fieldwork through digital mapping and geographical information systems in three key areas - Physical Geography, which focuses on the physical environment, Human Geography, which focuses on how people affect and are affected by the environment, and Global Development and Sustainability - the environmental, social, economic and geopolitical challenges facing the developed and developing world.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Geography courses: Physical Geography, Human Geography, and Global Development and Sustainability.

History, Heritage and Politics

How is the past celebrated, obscured and recreated? What about new forms of political debate and activism? These workshops could propel your students into rewarding work in industries including development, charity and social enterprise, and PR.

Heritage and Public History

Workshop: How Is the past Made Visible in the Present?

This workshop explores the ways in which we both encounter the past, and present it. This is a great opportunity for young historians to get to grips with new kinds of material - not just written sources - and think about the ways in which we capture a sense of past lives and experiences.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) History course.

History with Politics

Workshop: For Some Time There's Been No History... How Politicians Use the Past

All politicians make use of history in their appeal to different publics - but whose history? How do they do this? Are fake news and alternative facts really new phenomena? This workshop explores these topical ideas, so be prepared for a lively debate!

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) History with Politics course.

Journalism and Publishing

Could your students bring stories to life, whether fictional, factual or historical? Do they dream of a career as a writer, digital marketer, copywriter, bookstore owner, editor, blogger or journalist? These workshops will help them get to grips with shaping stories for print and digital.

Creative Writing and Publishing

Workshop 1: Be a Creative Professional

The creative industries are the fastest-growing sector of the UK economy. Publishing - one of the largest contributors - includes books and magazines, multiplatform journalism, digital content and social media. Find out more about combining passions and interests with valuable, transferable skills in this expert-led workshop.

Workshop 2: Be a Publisher – How to Make Creative Decisions That Work

How do creatives come up with ideas? And how do they turn those ideas into a commercial product, whether a book, magazine, online shop, or awareness campaign? This hands-on workshop introduces students to the process of generating ideas for a publication and selecting content for a particular audience - two key skills used by publishers.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Creative Writing and Publishing course.

English Literature and Publishing

Workshop 1: So You Think You Know What a Book Is?

In the digital age, it’s increasingly tricky to define what a book is. Is it words, or just a container of words? How might we read the relationship between words and their physical form? This hands-on workshop enables students to explore these and similar questions by examining rare books, experimental books, and electronic books.

Workshop 2: Be a Creative Professional

The creative industries are the fastest-growing sector of the UK economy. Publishing - one of the largest contributors - includes books and magazines, multiplatform journalism, digital content and social media. Find out more about combining passions and interests with valuable, transferable skills in this expert-led workshop.

Workshop 3: Be a Publisher – How to Make Creative Decisions That Work

How do creatives come up with ideas? And how do they turn those ideas into a commercial product, whether a book, magazine, online shop, or awareness campaign? This hands-on workshop introduces students to the process of generating ideas for a publication and selecting content for a particular audience - two key skills used by publishers.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) English Literature and Publishing course.

History and Publishing

Workshop 1: Be a creative professional

The creative industries are the fastest-growing sector of the UK economy. Publishing - one of the largest contributors - includes books and magazines, multiplatform journalism, digital content and social media. Find out more about combining passions and interests with valuable, transferable skills in this expert-led workshop.

Workshop 2: Be a Publisher – How to Make Creative Decisions That Work

How do creatives come up with ideas? And how do they turn those ideas into a commercial product, whether a book, magazine, online shop, or awareness campaign? This hands-on workshop introduces students to the process of generating ideas for a publication and selecting content for a particular audience - two key skills used by publishers.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) History and Publishing course.

Journalism and Publishing

Workshop 1: Be a Creative Professional

The creative industries are the fastest-growing sector of the UK economy. Publishing - one of the largest contributors - includes books and magazines, multiplatform journalism, digital content and social media. Find out more about combining passions and interests with valuable, transferable skills in this expert-led workshop.

Workshop 2: Be a Publisher – How to Make Creative Decisions That Work

How do creatives come up with ideas? And how do they turn those ideas into a commercial product, whether a book, magazine, online shop, or awareness campaign? This hands-on workshop introduces students to the process of generating ideas for a publication and selecting content for a particular audience - two key skills used by publishers.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Journalism and Publishing course.

Music

Music at Bath Spa ranges from performance and composition to opportunities to work with film, new media and dance. These workshops offer a taste of music production, music therapy, sound design, and careers in music.

Commercial Music

Workshop: Portfolio Careers for Creative Musicians

The modern musician needs a wide range of skills to succeed in the digital world. If your music stars are smart, flexible and prepared to work across disciplines, there has never been a better time for them to build the transferable skils they need for a sustainable career in the creative industries. This workshop offers a taster on where to begin.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Commercial Music course.

Creative Music Technology

Workshop: Creating Stories with Music Production

Great music productions are able to capture our imaginations and tell detailed stories through the use of skilful sound and production techniques - beyond lyrics or musical style. This workshop introduces listening and interpretation skills, thus enabling students to enhance storytelling in their own music productions.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Creative Music Technology course.

Music

Workshop: The Power of Music as Therapy

This practical workshop offers an introduction to the work we do in our Community Music modules - the power of music as a therapeutic intervention for a range of communities - from young pupils with special needs and learning difficulties, to the elderly with dementia.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Music course.

Performing Arts

We immerse students in rigorous practical training to become versatile, creative and employable performers, directors, and writers, capable of working across a variety of genres and repertoires.

Acting

Workshop 1: Audition Preparation

From gaining a place on a course to securing the next acting job, auditions are the one certainty in the life of an actor. This workshop will guide students through the dos and don'ts of a successful audition.

Workshop 2: The Moving Performer

This practical workshop gives an introduction to movement approaches useful for the performer, teacher or director. We'll draw on various somatic, dynamic and partnering frameworks as tools for building performer-presence, trust, confidence, agility, and expressive range, and for devising performance work.

Workshop 3: The Text Detective (Student-Led)
Run by our third year students, this workshop brings students to their feet to explore the rhythm and images in Shakespeare's plays. It's designed to bring both a greater understanding and greater interest in the work by allowing students to physically explore the language.

Workshop 4: Shakespeare and Hip-Hop (Student-Led)
Eminem and Shakespeare are not so different: both use rhythm and rhyme to communicate meaning and emotion. Students will learn to break down Shakespearean texts using the conventions of hip-hop; they'll then have the opportunity to stage a short scene using these conventions. This workshop is also run by our third years.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Acting course.

Comedy

Workshop: The art of stand-up comedy

This practical workshop introduces a range of concepts, principles, structures and techniques that inform modern stand-up performance. We'll draw on students' own unique comic personas to present short "scratch" solo performances generated from simple games and exercises.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Comedy course.

Dance

Workshop 1: Bespoke Workshop

Tailor your own contemporary workshop from a range of exciting options including performance skills, technique training, choreography, somatic practices, digital performance practice, and repertoire. Get in touch with us to arrange the workshop of your choice.

Workshop 2: Create. Perform. Transform.

This fast-paced practical workshop gives students an opportunity to build their skills in contemporary dance techniques. They'll learn a series of exciting new sequences and get the chance to develop their own material. The workshop culminates in a live performance, showcasing what's been created.  

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Dance course.

Drama

Workshop: Performance Making

Musical theatre, physical theatre, devising, and ensemble work - take your pick! We offer workshops in each area to demonstrate the possibilities for students creating exciting performance work that can challenge and entertain in equal measure.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Drama course.

Festivals and Events

Workshop: How to Survive the Elements When Your Event is in a Field

Discover the practical challenges of running an event in the great outdoors during a typical British summer!

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Festivals and Events course.

Theatre and Digital Production

Workshop: How to Make Props, Costumes and Sets

Delivered by a team of practitioners with a wealth of industry experience, these interactive workshops are designed to give students a taste of basic prop making, making costumes, staging blood, set design, lighting and sound.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Theatre and Digital Production course.

Psychology

Whether the focus is neural mechanisms or complex human relationships, understanding the mind and human behaviour from a range of perspectives and methodologies opens doors to employment in industries ranging from advertising to health.

Psychology

Workshop: Human Memory

This workshop will explore the nature of human memory, especially in the context of how it differs from other types of memory (e.g. that of computers). The focus will largely be on the shortcomings of human memory and the possible reasons behind them.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Psychology course.

Religions, Philosophy and Ethics

Challenge your students to reflect on their own beliefs, values and assumptions by exploring fundamentally different ways of seeing and explaining the world. Our courses consider practical responses to current issues through projects with environmental charities, faith groups, and community organisations.

Religions, Philosophies and Ethics

Workshop: Encounters with Ideas

How do key thinkers, past and present, help us analyse climate change, identity, or human rights? This workshop explores ethical, religious and philosophical approaches to some of the major challenges of our age.

Run by specialists from our BA (Hons) Religions, Philosophies and Ethics course.

Science and Environment

Do your students want to challenge the problems facing us as a species? These workshops give them a taste of what they can achieve by exploring the natural world on our doorstep.

Biology

We offer a range of workshops either at school venues or on our campuses. These could include:

  • DNA extraction and analysis
  • Cell theory and microscope work
  • Human physiology; measurement of heart rate, reaction time
  • Microbiological skills; growing and staining cultures

Run by specialists from our BSc Biology programmes.

Environmental Science and Conservation Biology

Workshop: Is Environmental Disaster and Ecological Collapse Inevitable? (online)

Designed for 6th form pupils at a Careers festival. This will cover:

  • How to increase our understanding and knowledge
  • What is Environmental Science/Conservation Biology?
  • How can modern approaches make a positive difference to the environment and help save the planet?

Workshop: Why do we need our pollinators? (online)

This short workshop offers an introduction to bee ecology and their importance as pollinators, along with a discussion of study and career opportunities in ecology.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Environmental Science course.

Food with Nutrition

Workshop: Food and Nutrition in Practice (in person)

We'll deliver an introduction to food product development followed by interactive sessions on key topics such as sensory analysis and microbiological techniques. We'll also explore the use of nutritional software to design foods.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Food with Nutrition course.

Workshop: An Introduction to Food Product Development (online; 30-45 minutes)

This workshop will take you through the stages of development of a product. It will also discuss the challenges industry faces in the development of products that are low in fat, sugar and salt.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Food with Nutrition course.

Workshop: Sensory Evaluation (in person; 1-1.5 hours)

Sensory perception is the stimuli a person takes in, processes and understands through their five senses. Sensory evaluation is a scientific discipline that analyses and measures human responses to the composition of food and drink, e.g. appearance, touch, odour, texture, temperature and taste. The interactive session will highlight the different sensory evaluation techniques that are used to evaluate foods.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Food with Nutrition course.

Workshop: The Effect of Macronutrients on Metabolic Rate (in person)

In this practical workshop, we'll measure metabolic rate using spirometers, and compare our findings after the consumption of high carbohydrate, high protein and high fat snacks.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Human Nutrition course.

Workshop: Energy Balance and Body Composition (in person)

This workshop covers the principles of energy input and energy expenditure to test for energy balance. We'll also look at the effect of body composition and physical activity on energy output, using specialist nutrition analysis software.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Human Nutrition course.

Lecture: Nutrition, Physical Activity and Mental Health (online; 30-45 mins)

This will be an interactive lecture looking at the scientific evidence unpinning the role of nutrition and physical activity on the prevention, development and treatment of depression and anxiety.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Human Nutrition course.

Lecture: Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity (online; 30-45 mins)

This will be an interactive lecture looking at the scientific evidence unpinning the role of nutrition and physical activity on the prevention, development and treatment of obesity.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Human Nutrition course.

Lecture: Nutrition, Physical Activity and Non-communicable Diseases (online; 30-45 mins)

This will be an interactive lecture looking at the scientific evidence unpinning the role of nutrition and physical activity on the prevention, development and treatment of non-communicable diseases.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Human Nutrition course.

Sociology

Are your students keen to explore societies, cultures, groups, and the social issues that can make the world a better place? Sociology can inform an array of careers, including those in human resourcs, marketing and public relations, media and journalism, social, youth and community work, health, law, and policing.

Sociology

Workshop: Selves of the Shelves – What Does Our Clothing Say About Us?

What we wear can have cultural and political implications. This workshop considers the influences on the clothing and accessories we buy. We'll explore if being 'in fashion' still has meaning in an era of globalised digital and social media, within the context of longstanding debates on taste, style and identity.

Run by specialists from our BSc (Hons) Sociology course.

Speak to the team

If you'd like us to deliver a virtual presentation or workshop, please get in touch. We look forward to hearing from you!

Email: educationliaison@bathspa.ac.uk.

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