10 March marked the start of British Science Week. We celebrated with a wide range of activities across all disciplines for students of all ages. Prior to the start, students were encouraged to produce a piece of art promoting Diversity & Inclusion in STEM and to provide an opportunity for collaboration between subjects through the Beyond Boundaries Art competition. The entries were on display in the corridors for students and staff to view.
The first of the form time activities was a 100 question quiz on all things science related; collective nouns, films, real and fictional scientists and do you know your ‘ology’s?, Then we had several mornings of ‘Tweet’ of the day – birdsong from a variety of different birds from around the world and finally Physics podcasts for all.
- Each lunchtime there were different activities taking place:
A fingerprint treasure hunt – find and match the fingerprints put up around school; - The egg drop challenge – take 20 minutes, straws, string and sticky tape to make a device to protect an egg when dropped out of the window!
- Straw rockets – roll one small piece of paper, design your fins, remember the nose cone and then launch with the aid of a straw; how far can it fly?
- Blubber glove – Polar bears and seals amongst other animals that survive in very cold environments all manage to keep warm, but how?
- Biology show – This dissection certainly drew in a crowd, who knew there was so much to see in a piglet!
- Physics show – How many inflated balloons can you get into a small flask? Amazing things happen when everyday objects get really cold, bananas, oranges and squash balls lose their normal squidgy properties and shatter like glass!
Other activities included a Head of Biology talk about The Secret Lives of Fish and a Head of Physics talk about The Physics of Earthquakes. We then had a special visit from Ollie Shorthose (OG 2014) to give an insight into his robotics research – demonstrating a fantastic robot hand that he has designed and the possibilities of a life-changing future for prosthetics.
