From the Head of Science
Jennifer Selinger – Head of Science
View From the Kleinlehrer Family Science Building
What do onions, solar lights, bottles of coke, billiard balls, the Moon and platters of junk food have in common? They could all be seen at our Science Week celebration last week! We started the festivities off with a Scavenger Hunt around the school, sending students off to solve the riddle of the location of various foods, and then to return with the elements that made up the name of the food (can you work out the elements in ONION?)
We followed this with Solar Buddies, a student initiative (thanks Asha Friedman, Jessica Beutum and Tallulah Stein). The students listened to a talk about their peers in Zimbabwe who needed safe lights to study by. They then constructed solar lamps and included a note to the user – reaching out across continents to fellow students. The lamps are very well constructed and I am sure the notes will be appreciated!
Wednesday saw the Science Show draw large crowds, and we are almost certain they did not just come for the ice cream. We failed to knock Mr Peacock out with a bowling ball, balanced coins on coat hangers, froze daffodils, made magnets and keys dance and generally had a good time with Science. The audience was appreciative!
Thursday’s extravaganza was the Ms Selinger’s Super-Secret STEM Challenge. This year the participants were required to extract as many elements as possible from the surface of the Moon, using only the items provided to them. The Herdan brothers faced off as their teams vied for the prize and a tie was declared when Jesse’s team’s scoop and balloon glove combination was compared with Dylan’s team lassoing the whole table. The teachers did not have a chance to demonstrate their device as we ran out of time so we officially declare the teachers to be the winners as usual, although the prizes went to the enterprising and creative students.
On Friday, it was standing room only in K20 as the students poured in to participate in the Annual Science and Maths Trivia Quiz. If we continue to grow in this event we may have to relocate to the Angles Leadership & Learning Centre as we had no space left in the room at all! A favourite question, that was still provoking questions after the quiz, was the requirement to draw an octothorpe. Most groups were not successful. Would you have been? (NO Googling allowed!). Meir won the day, although it was a near-run thing, and a great deal of arguing, laughing and puzzling was heard.
As usual the week was a team event in the Science Department, but a super special thanks goes to Sarah Bishop, who designed and organised most of the events and Rochelle Hunter, our Lab Technician, who sourced, purchased and organised all of the diverse materials needed for the week. It wouldn’t happen without them.
