This workshop takes children into the fascinating world of the knots which sailors must learn to tie for everyday sailing operations.

Ropes and knots are used especially on sailing vessels, and sailors need to master knot-tying techniques before setting sail. Over the course of their careers, sailors are sure to face many unexpected situations, and the better they are at knots the more chance they have of coming through them successfully

Here, children from the 3rd cycle of primary education (ages 10-12) learn to tie three sailing knots (the figure-eight knot, the reef knot and the bowline knot) and what they are used for. This helps them with coordination, manual dexterity and control.

The sailing knots workshop can be supplemented by a treasure hunt or a guided tour of the museum

In days gone by the stars were the SatNav of sailors. They used the stars to guide them, with instruments such as the quadrant, the astrolabe and the sextant. In the northern hemisphere they used Polaris, the Pole Star, to tell where north was, while in the southern hemisphere they used the Southern Cross as their guide.

This activity for secondary school pupils begins with a guided tour and then gets them to build their own astrolabe, nocturnal and sundial, which they learn to use with the help of an exercise book.

The Port of Bilbao is one of Europe’s most important Atlantic trading ports. Indeed, Bilbao was a port before it was a city.
But today’s port facilities, based in Santurtzi, Abanto-Zierbena and Getxo, are very different from the original port in the heart of Bilbao itself.

Pupils first visit the Port Centre, an exhibition on the Port of Bilbao which forms part of the permanent collection of the Museum, then go on to a workshop on sailing knots covering the figure-eight, reef and bowline knots.

Did you know that … today there are more than 60 species make up the fauna and flora of the Ria de Bilbao?

In the workshop “I live in the estuary” we will talk about this ecosystem and its extraordinary environmental recovery.

This activity begins with a guided tour of the museum focused on the environmental recovery of the river estuary and on its current ecosystem. It ends with a physical and chemical analysis of the water quality using a sample taken from the river just outside the museum.

This activity, carried out jointly with Bilbobentura, offers the possibility of enjoying some of Bilbao’s historical and architectural landmarks, from a different perspective. We will begin the guided activity in the Museum and then enter the Ria with canoes, SUP (Stand Up Paddle) or by bike to admire the changes that have transformed Bilbao on the spot.

* ACTIVITY ONLY AVAILABLE BETWEEN APRIL AND OCTOBER

In this activity pupils discover how wooden ships were traditionally built by 20th-century shipwrights in Bizkaia.

The workshop begins with a guided tour of the permanent exhibition and Erain, where there is a further exhibition and a live workshop.

Pupils then get the chance to put what they have learned into practice and build a half-hull model of a small Basque whaling boat known as a txalupa.