British Science Week 2024
British Science Week is a ten-day celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) that took place from 8 - 17 March!
This year marks the week's 30th anniversary, with its launch having taken place in 1994. Since then, the British Science Week organisation has encouraged young people to explore STEM topics and get inspired by the possible careers on offer. This year was no different!
The theme for 2024 is Time with a national poster competition. We've been thrilled to see the entries from our academies and wish them the best of luck in the competition that's running until 28 March.
Our academies have been up to a great number of unique and interesting activities, from museum visits, to special experiments and university guest speakers.
How long are different animals pregnant for? How quickly does a seed sprout? Why are there 24 hours in a day? Why do we have leap years? What is our circadian rhythm, and where does it come from? These are just some of the questions that our students explored during the week.
Sam Mortimer, Director of Science at Co-op Academies Trust, said:
“It’s been incredible to see the variety of ways students and teachers across the Trust have embraced British Science Week - from developing special lessons across the curriculum, to inviting parents in for events, to having farmers and university professors put on shows and meet with our students."
“The total amount of time and effort that went into all the events and activities happening across the Trust is staggering, and shows the dedication of the staff in our academies. Whatever it was that you did, thank you for inspiring our future scientists!"
A spotlight on just a few of the things that happened:
At Co-op Academy Failsworth, KS3 and KS4 students worked for over 6 weeks on a STEM fair project, which they then presented to the judges from local colleges.
At Co-op Academy Nightingale, KS2 students took part in astronomy and history of science workshops with academics from the Universities of Hull and York.
At Co-op Academy Grange, KS3 students read about the impact of screen time on sleep during form, looked at different ways to measure time in maths, and the importance of seasonal food in food technology.
At Co-op Academy Portland, KS1 students were visited by “Science Farm Live”, learning about an average day for a farmer and the life cycles of some of the animals. In lessons, they explored how a reaction between.
At Co-op Academy Bebington, students from KS3 through to KS5 explored the theme of time across the curriculum: from looking at journeys in maths, to looking at exposure in art and photography; from time zones in geography, to speed in PE.
At Connell Co-op College, KS5 students visited the Manchester Museum and heard researchers from the University of Manchester speak on their current projects, whilst others were visited in school by physiotherapists and PhD chemistry students.
Check out some more of their brilliant activities: