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History Lab
Extend historical and critical thinking skills
Designed for high-ability learners, History Lab challenges students to analyse evidence, evaluate significance, debate interpretations, and extend their historical knowledge.
This History curriculum-aligned program for secondary students explores how primary sources, historical interpretations and museum narratives contribute to our understanding of the past.
Through engagement with authentic museum objects, exhibitions and curatorial perspectives, students develop historical inquiry skills, learning to formulate meaningful historical questions to undertake their own investigations.
This workshop is free for Victorian schools as part of the Victorian Challenge and Enrichment Series (VCES).
Students will experience
Analysing authentic objects from the Immigration Museum collection.
Investigating the work of historians, curators, and museum professionals.
Exploring how historical narratives are constructed and communicated.
Collaborating with peers to build and challenge historical arguments.
Developing their own lines of historical inquiry.
Visiting the museum’s galleries to deepen their knowledge.
Students will learn
How historians use evidence to construct interpretations of the past.
How museums collect, preserve, and interpret objects to communicate stories about the past.
How different perspectives shape our understanding of the past.
How to evaluate the significance of people, events, ideas, and movements.
How to question assumptions, think critically and investigate complex issues.
Students will be provided
A booklet that guides them through the galleries and fosters historical inquiry.
Students will need
Pen or pencil.
Availability
Terms 1–4, Monday to Thursday
Duration: 90 minutes
Student information
Years 7 to 10
Minimum 15 students
Maximum 30 students
Bookings
No cost for high-ability students in Victorian government schools
Book online or call 13 11 02
Workshop
Presented by a museum educator
Victorian Curriculum Links
History: Levels 7 and 8
Historical Concepts and Skills
develop and use historical questions to inform historical investigations (VC2HH8S01)
explain the features, content and context of historical sources (VC2HH8S03)
explain the perspectives, beliefs, values and attitudes of people and groups based on evidence from a range of sources (VC2HH8S05)
analyse historical interpretations and debates (VC2HH8S06)
analyse the significance of individuals, events, sites, developments and/or cultural achievements (VC2HH8S09)
History: Levels 9 and 10
Historical Concepts and Skills
formulate, refine and use historical questions to inform historical investigations (VC2HH10S01)
analyse the purpose, features, content and context of historical sources (VC2HH10S03)
evaluate the value of sources for use as evidence to interpret historical significance, continuity and change, and causes and consequences (VC2HH10S04)
analyse the perspectives, beliefs, values and attitudes of people and groups based on evidence from a range of sources (VC2HH10S05)
evaluate historical interpretations and debates (VC2HH10S06)
evaluate the significance of individuals, groups, movements, events, developments and ideas (VC2HH10S09)
Accessibility
Please view our accessibility page for general information. A sensory map of Melbourne Museum can be found on our Visual Stories page where step-by-step visual and written access guides are available. Contact our team on 13 11 02 or email us at [email protected] to discuss how we can support your visit.
Museums Victoria Learning Access Fund
The Museums Victoria Learning Access Fund aims to enhance access to our museums (Melbourne Museum, Scienceworks and Immigration Museum), programs and events by offering free or subsidised education programs for eligible schools. Find out more about the fund.
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