STEM Club The Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths Club started up again on the 21st October for Year 9 pupils. This club is run every other Wednesday after school from 3.30pm-5:30pm to promote the STEM subjects. In the club, students encounter fun activities to develop their understanding of how things are made and how they work. Activities include making rockets and tower structures, programming robots to undertake a variety of tasks, including playing football and designing and building an electric powered vehicle. The activities are vast and varied and there is no cost incurred by students. The next meeting is on the 3rd November. If you are interested please contact Mr Scott for more information.
A selection of products from the STEM Club
Charlie Develops High Performance Sporting Products From 20th to 23rd July, Charlie Hirst, enjoyed a unique learning experience at The University of Manchester. Sponsored by The Drapers‘ Company and working with the University‘s Centre for Textile Science and Technology, the course gave nearly 50 aspiring 15 to 17 year old students the opportunity to learn about the vibrant, innovative and global industry of sports materials, which brings together science, technology, engineering and imagination to develop high performance sporting products.
Charlie celebrates his success
Over the four days, the students had an introduction into this fascinating subject, with lectures on subjects including electronic solutions for sports textiles, and a demonstration by Speedo of their high performance textiles which reduce drag. A visit to Sigmatex, one of the world‘s leading carbon fibre convertors, gave the students an insight into carbon fibre composite manufacture.
Charlie Hirst (Contd/…) Students had a hands-on experience working in teams to complete a challenge which involved designing, making and testing an innovative pattern for a rugby ball. Throughout the course the students developed life skills such as teamwork, communication, problem solving and time management. At the same time they got to sample university life, whilst finding out about relevant engineering degrees and future training routes. Social activities included a film evening and a sports night. On the final night, The Smallpeice Trust hosted a conference style dinner and disco, where students and supervisors had the opportunity to socialise and share their experiences of the week. Spokesperson for The Smallpeice Trust, Claire Fisher commented, ―We are delighted to be working with the university to provide students with a valuable insight into the rapidly changing and increasingly sophisticated technology used in sports materials. We hope the students now have a clearer understanding of the exciting career opportunities available to them in this sector.‖ Outreach Administrator for the School of Materials, Karen Donnelly-Bale added ―It is really important to improve awareness of high performance textile technology among young people, as they will be developing the science and engineering applications of the future. We are very pleased to have been able to do this on the Sports Materials course in Manchester‖ The Sports Materials course is run by the independent educational charity, The Smallpeice Trust, as part of an ongoing programme of residential courses to help young people aged 10 to 18 learn and develop skills in engineering, design, technology and manufacturing. Through running over 32 residential courses and STEM enrichment sessions, The Trust has reached out to around 15,603 students across the UK in the past year. The new course timetable for 2011 will be launched in September. Places are allocated on a first come, first served basis. To find out more, visit www.smallpeicetrust.org.uk, or telephone The Smallpeice Trust on 01926 333200.