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Could you make a cardboard marble run that kept a glass ball moving for nearly 20 seconds?
Or a straw structure that could bear a weight?
That’s what students on a STEM Day did this week – along with a catalase experiment, measuring the acidity of a mixture and deciphering ancient cyphers.
The event run by the Wellington College Student Alliance featured lessons in chemistry, biology, DET and maths.
There was also a session run by Taylor Wimpey West London, who talked about what housebuilders take into account when buying a development, roles within the construction industry, and set the students a challenge to build a weight-bearing tower out of straws and tape.
The DET lesson gave the students 40 minutes to make a marble run out of card, straws, tape and glue. Working in pairs, the aim was to keep the marble moving for as long as possible, with Lewis and Douglas from Ranelagh School in Bracknell taking the prize with a marble that ran for 19.87 seconds.
Student Sophie said: “I liked trying the equipment. We used a gas measurer, which I had not done before.”
Jay added: “I liked mixing dangerous chemicals together.“
Deanna Taylor, a teacher at Emmbrook School, Wokingham, said: “It was eye opening in terms of the resources and the students have been fully engaged all day. It has been outstanding.”
Teacher Laura Tudor, from Sandhurst School, said: “They have enjoyed being in small groups with room and time to think and get hands-on and do practical things all day.”
The schools involved included Kings Academy, Gordons, Ranelagh and The Forest, with 84 students attending along with their teachers.
