The end of this week is going to leave Woolomin Public students seeing stars and rockets, as astronomy and aerodynamics take centre stage over an exciting two days.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The kids will be piling the winter warmers into their bags on Thursday morning, with parents not expecting them to come home that night as they spend the evening camped under the stars in the school yard as part of the Astronomy Camp, before waking up to launch rockets into the sky.
Principal Leisa McMahon said the events will be a “wonderful learning experience that is far removed from an ordinary two days at school.”
On Thursday night Indigenous astronomer and local elder Len Waters will share stories about the importance of stars and astronomy to Indigenous culture, before they will get an even closer look at the night sky through telescopes, under the guidance of the Tamworth Astronomy Club’s Matt Dodds.
Read more:
There will be no tired eyes on Friday morning as the students are already brimming with excitement to host the inaugural Aeronautical Velocity Challenge, an Australia-wide initiative focusing on addressing Australia’s shortage of scientists and engineers.
Teacher Kimberley Nagle said there will be over 120 students from eight schools, Woolomin, Duri, Attunga, Somerton, Currabubula, Nundle, Dungowan and Peel High taking up the challenge.
“This is a wonderful learning experience for our students as they collaborate in groups of four to design, engineer, test, refine and problem solve,” Ms Nagle said.
“Through the design process, our students learn about maths and physics, and the many variables that affect the flight of these rockets – conversations about the fin and nose cone design, as well as the air to water ratios ton fuel the rockets fro kids as young as five has already been phenomenal and inspiring.”
An esteemed judging panel made up of Russell Hodgkins from AVI Skills, Ian Jones from BAE Systems, and John Press, a licensed Aircraft Engineer specializing in Avionics willmark the students “not only on the success of their rockets, but also on their explanation of their design process, the aesthetic of their design and the way they support other teams.”
Winners of the Velocity Challenge will go through to the State Finals in Wollongong next week.
