Science Week commenced on Monday 13 March and you could feel the excitement in the air. Pupils from all year groups got to experience a wide range of activities and talks. This year we followed the theme of Connections by inviting St Catherine’s and RGSG Dubai to join us for several of our Science Week activities.
On Monday, Year 4 boys were joined virtually by RGSG Dubai to listen to an enlightening talk on AI and robotic interface by Mr Rajah. In our ever-increasingly technological world, it is no surprise that this was a topic that pupils found particularly interesting. In the afternoon, Year 6 were joined by St Catherine’s to take part in a DNA practical experiment in the lab. Pupils worked collaboratively extract DNA from strawberries and it was wonderful to hear the scientific discussions taking place.
Tuesday’s Science Week activities kicked off with a presentation by Mrs Kasparis, who shared her knowledge about magnetism and the role it plays in MRIs. This talk certainly fuelled the boys curiosity and there was ample opportunity to ask lots of questions. Boys also had an opportunity to look at the work of scientists in the underground laboratory at Boulby as part of a national event and they were delighted to have their many of their questions answered live.
Year 6 boys were enthralled by the talk provided by Mrs Critchlow on Tuesday afternoon. She shared her work from around the world. She explained how samples of water are collected and the DNA extracted and magnified to identify species of animals living within each ecosystem. The boys were fascinated to find out how computer sciences and biology can be intertwined.
On Wednesday, Year 4 listened attentively to Mr Stephens who spoke about Hyperloop and how it might work, as well as environmentally friendly ship navigation. The boys had plenty of questions as these topics are such a cutting edge ideas and they could have easily spent the whole day talking about it.
Year 1 & 2 were treated to a visit from a Small Animal Vet (Mrs Stephens) on Thursday. Mrs Stephens explained the different types of vets and what her role involves. She then shared the story of her newly acquired kitten, Kenny. Kenny came to the vet with a serious leg break and had to have it amputated. As sad as this may sound it means Kenny is now pain free and has been very resilient, finding new ways to move around. The boys were thrilled to meet Kenny, who sat on Mrs Stephens lap throughout the talk.
On Thursday afternoon, St Catherine’s joined us once again for some exciting practicals. The pupils paired up and rotated round the labs to take part in variety of Forensic Science experiments. Dusting for fingerprints seemed to be a class favourite!
The Science Fair on Monday 20 March was a culmination of all the hard work of the pupils, and a chance to showcase their knowledge. Throughout the day Years 3-6 set up their science experiment boards ready for voting. The pupils from pre-prep, Prep and St Catherine’s thoroughly enjoyed going round the LPS and learning about different topics, as well as taking part in the practicals. We are extremely impressed by the quality of the work produced and the thought that evidently went into making and setting up the different projects – what an excellent way to end Science Week!
