I think that is a good idea iab. When I was in school we did something similar (albeit more lowtech) We went and visited an aluminum sand caster to see the process. Then we all went back to the studio and designed something for sand casting that was no bigger then 6x6x6 and we all got to cast it. It was a great learning experience and the school of course showed off the results.
Experiences over toys. Experiences you can take with you, the toys stay at the school.