On the 30th November and 1st December, the whole of Year 8 had the opportunity to visit the Science Centre over at Winchester.
Students shared their thoughts on what they enjoyed about the trip:
"The Planetarium was fun because we could visually see what is out there as we moved through the universe, with all the different planets. I also enjoyed the science section with all the things you can interact with. (Jewles Hickman 8Wilson)
"The best bit was controlling the robot. Overall it was a fun day and I had lots of laughs with friends, whilst learning lots of science too." (Noah Thompson 8Wilson)
The trip was a great success and on both days two coaches full of excited students left school after tutor time, returning at 3pm. The trip consisted of a 45 minute excellent Planetarium experience, where the students learnt about constellations, the planets, about our Sun and what a black hole is - a well-presented show aimed at KS3 student’s curriculum content.
The Science Centre also had two interactive areas, where students spent half an hour at a time immersing themselves in the exhibits related to STEM topics. One area was specifically for Exploring Space. The other area included science concepts such as Forces, Sound, Environmental issues and the interaction of organisms in various habitats. The exhibits all had a link to future careers in STEM, so students could see where the science they are learning could lead on to.
The final session included a workshop to build their own bottle rocket in teams, ensuring it had the necessary specifications to go fast and win the final race. The rockets were then launched across the room on strings above using fuel (all fired by the Centre staff!). The students all had a fun filled learning experience and they followed this up back in school with poster designs of their rockets.
Mrs J Tyler (KS3 Science Lead)