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Reception pupils from St John’s Primary School in Keynsham are being inspired by rockets, planets and the moon due to their current topic about space. To blast off into the theme, they dressed up in space clothes and spent a day learning and experimenting with rockets.

As part of their studies the children were delighted to see a rocket, made from a bottle filled with water and launched using a bike pump, special valve and lots of energy, being launched high above the playground. While the children stood at a safe distance, a visiting physicist who oversaw the experiments got quite wet as the rocket took off and come back to earth on the school field. Pupils then used their numeracy and literacy skills to describe how high the rocket went.

Back in the classroom, the space studies continued with the chance to make and launch smaller rockets using straws, pipettes and the pupils’ own breath. This was followed by an investigation into how different sized moon craters are formed, including dropping ‘meteorites’ onto a moon-like surface to see how craters of different sizes could be formed.

Conveniently, a clear evening and the appearance of Venus in the sky, allowed children a good opportunity to put their new-found passion for space into practise. “I actually saw a planet,” enthused Eilish.

“St John’s welcomes many volunteers to enrich the children’s school life, with some listening to the children read, while others help with arts and crafts, cooking or running clubs after school,” explained Headteacher, Claire Graham.

www.stjohnskeynsham.co.uk

St John’s Primary is currently looking for governors who play an important role in the life of any school by providing support and challenge to the Headteacher and ensuring that children are given encouragement to succeed in all areas of education.Volunteers are invited to contact the school office for more information or email email hidden; JavaScript is required.