2. Singing Together (14 Oct and 2 Nov 2011)

3. Myerscough Residential school (3-5 April 2012)

4. Workshop/Seminars on being a Chair, Secretary and Groups Coordinator of a

   U3A and on the functioning and objects of Networks. (17 Nov 2011)

5. Short Course on Ruskin at Clitheroe (Mon, a.m. 21 Nov – 12 Dec 2011)

The North West Region of U3As is holding a residential school from Tuesday 3rd to Thursday 5th of

April 2012. A range of courses including topics in archaeology, creative writing, introductory

Egyptology, geology, golf, literature/philosophy, and science will be offered. The cost will be £185

for residential students or £145 for day students (including coffees, lunches and teas) except for the

“golf” option where a surcharge of £30 will be charged to cover the additional facilities costs. Most

courses have limits on the number of participants. Allocation will be on a first come first served

basis. The venue as in previous years will be Myerscough College, Bilsborrow, just off the A6

between Preston and Garstang. The college is a most attractive rural venue offering excellent

facilities on a large campus. There are extensive gardens with a garden centre open to the public, a

nine-hole golf course and leisure complex. Accommodation is in modern single en-suite rooms with

shared kitchens. Please note that towels are not provided by the college, so please pack your own.

The residential blocks are situated adjacent to a car park but are a 200 metre walk from the dining

room, lecture theatre and study rooms. The teaching rooms are well equipped with facilities for

presentations. In addition to the daytime courses there will be evening activities including a guided

walk, a talk of general interest and a social evening. Completed application forms, together with a

non-returnable deposit cheque for £40.00 made payable to “NW Region of U3As” should be sent to

“The Chairman NW Region of U3As, 18 Davenport Road, Heswall, Wirral. CH60 9LF”. Queries to

davidstarling@fastmail.fm or 0151 342 6077.

The following courses will be offered:-

Archaeology – The course will explore the archaeology of Britain from the early Neolithic to the

later Bronze Age. It will be suitable for both beginners and those with some knowledge of the

period. The evidence of early settlements and burials will be summarised by discussing excavations

in various parts of Britain, including Wiltshire, Orkney and Dartmoor. We shall build further on this

by looking at detailed aspects of life, trade and warfare in prehistoric times. The emergence of

complex social networks around the working of bronze and gold will be discussed.

Tutor Carol Allen

Creative Writing – New writer or old hand? Wanting a nudge? Scared to begin?

Come along and experiment with new plots, new styles and new companions. Above all, come and

enjoy writing. All you need are paper, pen and enthusiasm. We will work in large and small groups

and alone, sharing ideas, writing, gaining helpful feedback and reading aloud. Feel free to bring any

books you have found useful.

Tutor Maggie Smith

Geology – The Lake District is a glacial-eroded anticline with intensely folded rocks of

Ordovician/Silurian age in the centre, surrounded by flat-lying Carboniferous limestones and

Permo-Triassic sandstones. We shall concentrate on the eastern edge of the National Park, visiting

the Penrith-Shap area to investigate the forces and processes which formed the slates north of

Kendal, the Shap Granite, the unconformity beneath the limestones at Shap Wells Hotel and the red,

desert sandstones near Penrith. The full day field trip will be supported by indoor slide presentations

and practical sessions, using rock and mineral specimens and geological maps, to build up a

geological history of the Penrith-Shap area. Tutor Chris Arkwright

Golf – This course will include: a) The golf putting skills clinic – covering fundamentals of aim and

distance control; b) golf swing lesson with video analysis in the Academy; c) chipping skills –

learning the different shot types – lob, chip and bump’n’run; d) pitching - understanding keys to

controlling yardage. There will also be playing sessions on the nine-hole course.

Tutor John Barclay, Golf professional at Myerscough

An Introduction to Ancient Egypt

The group will explore the relationship between the philosophy and the fiction of philosophers who

are also novelists, and focus on the work of Iris Murdoch and Jean-Paul Sartre. It will be a mix of

presentation and discussion. The course will appeal to those who enjoy fiction. No experience in

philosophy will be assumed. It is suitable for all. Beginners are welcome, though previous

experience will be welcomed also.

Preparatory reading:

‘Under the Net’ Iris Murdoch 1954 + any other novel by iris Murdoch

‘Nausea’ Jean-Paul Sartre 1938 + any other fiction or drama by Sartre

‘Metaphysics a Guide to Morals’ Iris Murdoch 1992 (not an easy read but please dip into it)

‘Sartre, Romantic Rationalist’ Iris Murdoch 1953

Tutor Meg Shaw

Over the last sixty years there have been many major discoveries in the physical sciences. Many of

these have lead to or look likely to lead to major technological applications. The course, which will

be suitable for interested amateurs, will take examples of such discoveries and consider both the

underlying scientific advance and the way in which it has then been developed and applied. Most

have been recognised by Nobel Prizes. The topics covered will include: a) lasers, leading to their

current proliferation in size and application; b) transistors and integrated circuits leading to both

computers and precision clocks, GPS and length measurement systems and c) exotic structures such

as fullerines, carbon nano-tubes and grapheme, leading to new materials. No prior knowledge of the

individual topics will be assumed and there will be plenty of time for questions and discussion.

Tutors John Ellison, Tony Kelly, Derek Melluish

APPLICATION FORM

NW U3A RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL

Tuesday 3rd to Thursday 5th April 2012

AT MYERSCOUGH COLLEGE

Bilsborrow, Preston, Lancashire, PR3 0RY

Please return this completed form, giving your preferred course (at least both first and second

preferences please) by 10th November 2011 together with a cheque for a non-returnable deposit of

£40 payable to 'NW Region of U3As and send it to:

Chair NW Region of U3As, 18, Davenport Road, Heswall, Wirral. CH60 9LF.

Queries to: davidstarling@fastmail.fm or 0151 342 6077

Name:

U3A:

Address:

Post code:

E-mail address (please print):

Do you have any special dietary requirements?

Do you want overnight accommodation or only meals (excluding breakfast)?

Any preference for accommodation (eg ground floor required)

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT YOU NEED TO BRING YOUR OWN TOWEL.

Preferred courses (please indicate preference by number)

Archaeology Creative Writing Geology

Golf An Introduction to

Ancient Egypt

Novelists and

Philosophers

Sixty years of science

All courses have limits on the number of participants. Allocation will be on a first come first served

basis.

Thursday 17th Nov 2011 Cross Street Chapel, Manchester (on Cross Street opposite St. Ann St.)

Free to NWU3A members (including lunch) but numbers per U3A will be limited if the day is

oversubscribed.

The morning sessions are for chairpersons, secretaries and interest groups co-ordinators

of U3As, or those who want to know more about these roles. It is a chance to share

experience and also to identify future needs.

Coffee 10.30

11.00 Welcome and Introduction

11.15 Conference for Committee Officers – 3 parallel groups of chairpersons, secretaries,

groups co-ordinators

Lunch 12.30

Symposium on the Future of Networks

Local neighbourhood consortia, ‘Networks’, have been a feature of the U3A movement since

before the formalisation of Regions, and continue to evolve. The afternoon session is a

symposium where ideas are to be shared about their function and development.

13.30 Introduction – W(h)ither networks?

13.45 Present and Future for neighbourhood groups - Discussion / fact finding

15.00 Plenary

Tea 15.30

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Application Form to be returned asap

Name ………………………………. U3A…………………………..

Address

Post Code

Telephone ………………………………..

Email ………………………….. ………………………….

Please use a separate application form for each person & indicate the morning group that you

wish to join – chairpersons or secretaries or groups co-ordinators.

Send to – Mrs M Shaw 17 Pagefield Cres. Clitheroe, Lancs BB7 1LH

margretshaw@fsmail.net

Clitheroe Library. Four Monday mornings 21:28 Nov: and 5:12 Dec.2011 10am-12noon

Timetable

1 Introduction ‘A Man of his Time?’

2 Ruskin and Art

3The Nature of the Gothic

4 Social Conscience ‘The Ruskin Legacy’

This is a shortened version of the residential course at Myerscough Easter School 2010. Please read

the chapter ‘The Nature of the Gothic’ in ‘The Stones of Venice’ J Ruskin 1851. It is reproduced in

many essay collections but let me know if you have any difficulty getting a copy. In addition to this,

any of Ruskin’s books, essays or lectures would be useful, as would looking at the paintings of

Turner and the Pre Raphaelites.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

APPLICATION FORM

Short Course – Ruskin and his Legacy

Name…………………………………………………………………….

U3A……………………………………..

Contact:telephone and/or email

……………………………………………………………………………….

Free to Clitheroe U3A members. Members of other U3As are welcome for a visitor’s fee of £5 in

total. (cheques payable to ‘Clitheroe U3A’ or pay at the first meeting)

Book by email margretshaw@fsmail.net or return to Mrs M Shaw 17 Pagefield Cres Clitheroe BB7

1LH