Plumtree Primary School Pupils blast-off with Science Taster Day!

Ratcliffe College have well established links with primary schools in the local community and run regular taster days which provide pupils with practical experience of what it is like to study here. When pupils are invited in, they get a real feel for our campus and facilities as well as meeting the staff and getting a flavour of various subjects through exciting activity sessions.

On Thursday 21^st March 2019, we invited 23 pupils from Plumtree Primary School, together with their teachers, Mr Osborne and Mr Moss, to join our Science Department for a selection of thought-provoking workshops exploring the topic of Forces.

Mr Chorley, Head of Science, kicked off the day with three introductory experiments:

1- how a push from the air can speed things up
2 – how a magnetic force can slow things down
3 – how air pressure (or lack of!) can change the shape of an object

Mr Chorley said: “Having been wowed by the sight of magically expanding shaving foam and air-powered toilet roll, the children were then ready to launch into their science workshops!”

The first activity explored the ways objects pass through liquid and investigated the effect their shape has on this. The pupils dropped marbles covered in Playdoh into different liquids, and recorded how long the marbles took to fall depending on both the shape of the surrounding Playdoh and the thickness of the liquid.

The second activity enabled pupils to design and build an air powered rocket that could fly as far as possible using the force of compressed air.  The rockets were given some fantastic names by the children – including, Roots and Wings (the Plumtree Primary School motto), Blue Venom, Rocket Ralph, Bob and The Big One, to name but a few. The aptly named Shooting Star rocket was the winner of the competition, with superb streamlined shape, well positioned fins and brilliantly constructed aerodynamic cone.

Mr Chorley said: “Congratulations to all the children. They were a credit to Plumtree Primary School throughout the day. Their impeccable behaviour and manners were evident from the moment they arrived and ensured the day was so enjoyable.  Thank you for making our day together so much fun.”

If you’d like to book your child onto a taster day with Ratcliffe College click here to contact us and arrange a date that is suitable for you.

We currently have additional spaces in year 5, 6 and 7 but demand is high so click here to make an application and get the process moving now.