Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths.

Glasgow Science Centre visited the school at the beginning of the STEM week. On Monday they talked about the body and how it works. On Tuesday they held a workshop where the class tested their balance, strength, concentration, speed and dexterity.

In class we each made a Lorax Grass Head and looked at what is needed to make grass grow. We also made Whisper-ma-Phones, like the Once-Ler had, from paper cups and string. The class are more aware of what helps to make sound travel and have had fun whispering messages to each other.

On Wednesday morning we had a visit from Michael Horne, an Electrical Engineer, who talked to the class about his job and the skills required before he set them a task to be completed on the laptops and I-pads while answering the children’s questions. On Wednesday afternoon we had Mr Grant, a Computing Scientist, who discussed different types of networks and through a practical activity showed the children how the internet works.

On Thursday morning we carried out an experiment on water filtration to see which material worked best. In The Lorax the Humming Fish had to leave because of water pollution, how could we have helped? Choosing  small stones, large stones, sand or paper  the children voted which they felt would best filter the dirty water; the paper worked best. Putting all 4 together we watched how clean the water came through and discussed when people might need to filter water this way. In the afternoon we had a mechanic, Mia, who was able to share her experience of working in a garage for a large well known company. A few of the children were surprised when the mechanic turned out to be female and they liked sharing stories with her about the cars their family own.

Our final day was Friday, Laura-Ann Horne, a Pharmacist, visited the class to discuss her occupation, illness and safety issues relating to medication. The children managed to ask questions for 45 minutes! They learned lots and are very keen to find out more about how the body works. Which is great as we are planning to develop this further in Term 2.

Maths is a subject covered daily in school so for the children this was nothing new. However they did become aware of how important the subject is if wishing to pursue a career in the other areas covered this week.

A great time was had by all and for many it was an opportunity to show off the skills and insight they have into the world of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. Well done P4/5K!