National Science Week @ Rehoboth Christian College 2019
This year for National Science Week there was plenty going on at Rehoboth, from water rockets to exploring technology that allows us to identify and treat rare genetic diseases. Students had opportunities to broaden their understanding of Science and the impact of scientific discovery and innovation on the world.
Bottle Rockets with Curtin University (Year 8-9)
The Curtin STEM Outreach Team came down to spend the day building and testing water powered bottle rockets with our Year 8 and Year 9 students. Students engaged with the design process, tested prototypes and applied basics laws of physics to produce some fairly impressive rockets -– some going as high as 30 metres!
‘We got told about the parts of the rocket, given some supplies and had to build our rockets to our design. Then we hooked it up to a pump to add air to the water to build up pressure and then it took off! My favourite rocket was Sally and Emily’s, they made it Woolworths-themed with an ooshie on top. Also some self destructed which was good fun’ – Anna
Rocket Investigation (Year 7)
What ratio of bicarb and vinegar will make your rocket fly the highest? How does the angle of launch affect the distance the rocket travels? What effect does fin design have on rocket flight? The Year 7s had the opportunity to spend the week honing their science inquiry skills through this exciting investigation.
‘I enjoyed watching the rockets accidentally fail and seeing all the soda fizzle out. Someone’s rocket went all the way to the fence which was pretty awesome. The most challenging part was losing our bottle and having to start again from scratch’ – Ruth
‘My favourite part of the investigation was seeing how far the rockets went and seeing some of the disasters. The most difficult part was getting the right pressure and knowing when to let the rocket go, how to adjust things to make it go further’ – Joash, Caleb, and Ethan
Huntington's Forum at Harry Perkins (Year 10)
Six of our Year 10 students had the opportunity to attend this forum at the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research in Nedlands. The day included an open panel with members of the Huntington’s community, sessions with experts looking at the disease and treatments before spending time in the lab getting hands on with some of the biotechnology techniques used in research. For those students interested in medical careers or work in community support it proved an invaluable experience.
‘Working in the lab was my favourite bit. The tour of the different labs and seeing how research is done was really, really cool. Being able to see the stuff instead of just hear about it was awesome. It was also really insightful to talk with people who have the Huntington’s disorder at the same time as hearing from the scientists who are working to solve the problems and help them’ – Amelia
‘The tour of the laboratories was really interesting; I enjoyed the opportunity to see what it’s like to be a medical researcher. Also, the sushi was really good’ – Chelsea
Scitech Incursion (Year 7-10)
Careers in STE[A]M. For those who don’t know STE[A]M stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics. There is a big move toward careers in fields that come under these headings and this Scitech incursion was all about giving students insight into the types of jobs and careers they might one day be a part of. Interactive and inspiring, it is always a worthwhile experience to get the team at Scitech out to our school.
“The free draw app was cool to see how AI can learn from human input. It was cool to see how AI is changing jobs in the future’ – Zac
Science Roadshow (Year 9)
Who doesn’t love a science show? This year we decided it was time to take science on the road (or across the oval in the case of Kenwick Primary). Our Year 9 students practiced and rehearsed experiments, demos, questions, and their presenting skills over the first three weeks of Term 3 in order to be ready to show off their science skills to the Primary School. Five groups made their way to Kenwick Primary on Thursday and captured the attention of the Year 4 class. Friday saw another troupe of Year 9 scientists make their way to the Wilson Campus to entertain and awe the Year 3, 4, and 5s. The road shows were a real success and we look forward to more opportunities to interact with our Primary Schools.
‘It was really good. I enjoyed having the freedom to choose our topic and work at our own pace.
It was also very fun to present – the kids were more entertained than I thought, which was cool. My group also worked really well together so the only hard thing was finding what experiments would work best’ – Natalia
‘Kids got really into it and it was cool to see the kids engage with science. Hopefully it sparks their interest in science’ – Kayla
‘It was awesome how keen the students were to see High School kids and learn from us. I loved being interactive with them and the opportunity to do the teaching with them’ – Maggie
‘My favourite thing was seeing the little kids’ reactions when we presented out experiments’ – Wil
‘I think it was cool to learn about things that kids would enjoy. We had to think like a Year 4 and work out what they would engage with. It was cool working with a different group that I wouldn’t have expected to work with, we worked really well together. It was really entertaining to see the kids’ reactions to our science show’ – Tayla
