Year 9 boys engaged in some serious scientific study while also having a great deal of fun during a four-day trip to Paris.
The half-term trip included visits to La Villette (a park housing the biggest Science museum in Europe), Le Bourget Air & Space Museum and a full day at Disneyland Paris.
The first day was spent travelling, including a ferry crossing. Day two featured an especially packed programme: not only were there the visits to Le Bourget and to the attractions at La Villette, including the planetarium, but there was also an evening meal at a Parisian restaurant and a trip to the Montparnasse Tower.
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Physics teacher Gillian Deakin, who organised the trip, said: “This was a study tour specially designed to be relevant to the Key Stage 3 programme of study and to the new GCSE requirements for Biology, Physics and the Combined Science. Elements of the Le Bourget visit were also relevant to Design & Technology.”
At Le Bourget, the emphasis was on energy, motion and forces, with boys learning about:
- Gravity and its effect on bodies in the solar system
- Satellites
- Using energy
- Turning forces.
The La Villette Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie visit covered energy as well, with specific topics including nuclear physics and satellites. In addition, at La Villette boys were able to learn about the earth and its atmosphere, focusing on our planet’s structure and on the weathering and formation of rocks. And they looked too at the structure and function of living organisms, finding out about topics such as: cell structure and stem cells; relating cellular structure to organs, biotechnology and DNA.
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On day three, the boys headed to Disneyland Paris and had their evening meal in the theme park. The final day included an opportunity to visit a hypermarket en route to the Calais ferry terminal.
“The trip went extremely well, with boys taking full advantage of the opportunities to learn, while also enjoying themselves tremendously,” said Miss Deakin.