Selsted Scientists

During National Science Engineering Week, Pent Valley Technology College hosted a science session for Selsted Primary School pupils wishing to learn about sound and communication. Ironically four of the primary school pupils were on a sponsored silence for Comic Relief – but their minds were open even if their mouths stayed shut.

To teach the twentytwo young pupils how sound waves work, Pent Valley science teacher Mrs Debbie Downey employed a well-known device - the humble Slinky. She asked two Year 10 volunteers to stretch out a Slinky across three desks. They then moved it upwards and sideways by various degrees to simulate the frequency of a sound wave with the pupils guessing which movement was correct. Later in the lesson, Mrs Downey recorded the children’s voices via a microphone and displayed them on a screen, where pupils were able to observe the sound waves of their voices.

A competition to see who could produce the loudest sound and who could produce the sound with the highest pitch, were both won by the girls. Finally the pupils had to identify a number of animal sounds, ranging from whales to wolves. The pupils left with smiles on their faces and heads full of information.

National Science and Engineering Week is an annual ten day events where across the country, thousands of experiences celebrating science, engineering and technology take place. The event also embraces the importance of these subjects in our lives.

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