STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths) is a collective term used to describe these related subjects and their importance in education, careers and addressing global challenges. STEM subjects are hugely important in terms of innovation and problem-solving in today's world. Each class has spent time over the week learning about STEM through tasks that have been designed to illustrate and build on the skills necessary to solve problems and work in teams.
Our Year 3 pupils were visited early in the week by Ali from STEM Innovation Ltd. During the visit they learnt about why STEM is important for us to learn, the uses it has in today’s technology and how it will influence the jobs of the future.
They also completed a task based on Bernoulli’s principle using their knowledge of science and engineering and demonstrated how observation and team work were vital when designing and engineering projects. Once they had completed the project, Ali talked to the pupils about how quickly technology changes and improves and looked at the example of the robot K1. To finish off, Ali demonstrated some magic and how STEM can be involved in tricks and had a lot of fun in the process!
Our pupils told us: "It was really fun learning science with Ali! We can see how STEM is important and can now try experiments at home. It was very exciting! I loved K1 and the moves it could do!"
One teacher commented: "Ali was really engaging and really good with the children. He was patient and accommodating for those that needed more time to think or needed additional support. The children thought the workshop was brilliant and were buzzing afterwards. It was well planned and gave them enough time to do what was needed as well as incorporated good scientific knowledge and best practice for undertaking experiments."
Throughout the week, pupils put their STEM knowledge and skills to the test. Examples included researching boat designs and then creating their own using tinfoil, then testing how they coped with differing amounts of weight and analysing how they could be improved. They also learnt about fluid densities and how fluids with different densities behave when they are combined.
Coding is a really important skill that we develop at Denmead. During the week, all pupils used the ‘Lego Spike’ kits to develop and apply their knowledge of coding. Using the specially designed kits, they use instructions to build and then program their models to move and function correctly in a real world application. We also learnt about civil engineering and completed engineering challenges by building bridges where the pupils had to apply their knowledge and understanding of forces and their distribution.
We were also very lucky to have ENSO Energy come in to tell us about how important sustainable energy is. ENSO Energy are a national energy firm that are building a solar farm in the local area that will supply energy to 12,300 homes! The kind staff talked to our pupils about what renewable energy is, how we can continue to work towards achieving ‘net zero’ and also about the technology and jobs of the future.
