What a fantastic, science-filled week we have had! Here is an insight of some of the exciting things we have been up to this week...

Monday:

We started off science week observing some amazing science experiments with Mrs Tarpey and Mr Palmer. We really enjoyed watching the helium-filled, giant fish flying around our heads, we discussed the forces involved in the movement of the fish around the hall. We also saw dancing raisins...DANCING RAISINS?! This was a result of carbon dioxide bubbles elevating the raisins to the surface before popping and allowing the raisin to drop to the bottom of the glass. We watched Mrs Tarpey make a lava lamp, witnessed floating oranges (orange skin acts like a life jacket, trapping air to make the orange buoyant) and much, much more! As a class, we completed a plant engineering challenge, where we had to create a plant using only four pieces of scrap paper and scissors- no adhesives allowed! We used our designing skills and our ability to bend, stretch, squash and twist the paper to ensure all the parts stayed together. This really tested our teamwork, problem-solving and creativity skills. In the afternoon, we experimented making casein plastic- an environmentally friendly plastic made of milk and vinegar. This resulted in chemical reaction, forming curd and changing the pH of the milk, as a result, our liquid solution curdled and then formed a solid. Over time, we have observed this and it has become hard. We learnt that this was how people used to make plastic items such as buttons, jewellery and ornaments... we thought it was far too smelly and crumbly for that now!

Tuesday:

To start our Tuesday, we were really lucky to have some special visitors to talk about their STEM careers. We had to guess their career based on clues from our questions and from the clues/props they shared with us. We were so inspired by their careers and the impact their industry has on making our planet so amazing and their efforts in sustainability. We also began our investigation to test the bounciness of different balls. We designed and made our own ramps which we used to roll different types of balls down and measured the distance they travelled after hitting the wall- it seems that rubber balls are very bouncy! During PE, we did a science orienteering activity where we using our teamwork skills to find and answer questions related to our science learning this year- it was great fun! 

Wednesday:

On Wednesday we explored microscopes: what they are, why they are used and who might use them. We then made our very own magnifying glasses using a droplet of water on plastic to show that the curved (convex) surface bent the light towards our eyes, making the text underneath seem larger- try this again at home to show your family and friends! We then explored different samples through the microscopes and classified seeds based on our new observations. After all that excitement, we were really lucky to get the opportunity to visit the science dome where we watched a projected weather show in the planetarium and learnt all about the water cycle. 
 

Thursday:

On Thursday we continued our learning of different STEM careers- ask us what STEM is! We learnt about different people, their jobs and their skill sets. We also discussed stereotypes and how anyone can be whatever they want to be if they work hard. We then compared the skills of some inspiring people to experiences where we have shown the same skills to help us realise that we are all capable of achieving great things. Throughout this week, we have experienced the different strands of science: biology, chemistry and physics. We reflected on our knowledge of each of these, collating ideas and recalling our science knowledge within each of these strands and began to make connections between them. 
 

Friday:

Today we had a celebration assembly where we shared our amazing science work and experiences this week. We also showcased our learning highlights in a fantastic piece of writing. This afternoon, we worked as a team to make a marble run, discussing forces and the physics behind our ideas. We came across a few obstacles so used our problem-solving skills to help us get the marble to travel as far as possible through the run. We want to say a huge thank you to Mrs Tarpey for organising such incredible experiences for us this week- we have had a blast! 
 

Hope you all have a lovely weekend. 
 

Miss Bennett