Pelaelo Junior Secondary School

Our visit to Pelaelo Junior Secondary School proved the most challenging for the team. Working with 335 students for 7 hours in total we learnt how much energy is required for teaching! Covering ages 12-15, we split the students into three separate groups, better tailoring the workshops to suit each year group. 

Two workshops which we delivered were particularly well-suited for these age students. Firstly, our ‘Life on Mars’ product-design inspired challenge, in which the students are tasked with designing a product which would solve a problem humans would face where they would build a life on planet Mars. These involve tackling the lack of oxygen, extreme weather conditions, lack of communication systems, water and shelter among others. The students spent 30 minutes in teams drawing, developing their ideas and producing creative products! We come by each team, asking further questions to make sure they have considered practicalities, sustainability and other important issues. Finally, we encourage the students to get up and present their ideas, giving them confidence as they speak in front of their peers proudly about their work. This is one of the team favourites, and we are always blown away by the brilliant drawings and ideas. 

The pupils with their ideas for Life on Mars

Secondly, the ball run challenges students to build a paper run for a ping pong ball which will ensure the ball is moving on the run for the longest time. We begin by teaching about friction and gravity, and provoking thoughts into how the students can increase friction to make the ball travel slower. We’ve seen speed bumps, crumpling the paper, reducing slopes, and adding twists to make the ball travel for a longer time.

Paper ball runs

During our lunch break, we were shown the school gardens, which contained 216 plots, allocated to the students studying agriculture. Growing green beans and onions accounted for 25% of their exam. It was inspiring to see the students spending their free time at lunch tending to their produce and growing some very large onions! 

Besides the aforementioned workshops, we covered wireless power transfer using a fabric maze, the oldest students got to build paper loudspeakers, we built a balloon car and much more.