05 November 2020
The pace in the Science Faculty has been frenetic so far this term. Year 12 students have completed all their summative tasks and are revising for their final examinations. Traditionally, exams in the sciences are towards the end of the examination schedule.
The Year 7 and 8 students are focused on their learnings about the solar system and astronomy. There are currently ten 10-inch reflecting telescopes at Finniss for our Year 8 students to use, and on a clear night the students have been able to see Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, Uranus, and the Moon. For those inclined to return, we have focused on a galaxy and a nebula which are visible later in the evening.
At the beginning of this term, the Science Faculty was gifted a beautiful Orrery from Fraser Connel (Year 10) and his family. This will be a valuable resource particularly for our Year 7 students as they learn about the solar system and moons. It is great to be able to see the planets and moons moving in relation to each other and on behalf of the Science Faculty, I extend my sincere thanks to the Connel family.
In Week 2 of this term, all students in Years 7 to 10 sat the International Competition and Assessment for Schools. This was the first time the competition was held online, and the boys performed well. Among the cohorts, St Peter’s College students were awarded 11 High Distinctions (top 1% of entrants) and a further 62 Distinctions (top 10% of entrants). A link to ICAS results will be on each student’s Learning Curve page in the weeks to come.
Year 7s will spend the next few weeks competing in the Rocket Car Challenge, where they will be tasked with designing a vehicle in which to place a rocket motor. Typically, the average speed of each vehicle is around 140 km per hour. A well-crafted design will travel at over 160 km per hour. The current record is 199 km per hour. Good luck to all Year 7 students as they compete in this challenge.
Karl Grice
Head of Sciences