Over the past three weeks, the Science and English Departments have joined together to create a learning experience where S2 pupils explored and wrote about the discoveries of three Scottish scientists who made a huge impact in their field of study.
- In Physics, pupils learnt about James Clerk Maxwell’s theory of colour by using LED lights to investigate the mixing of colours and discovered why we see so many different colours,
- In Biology, pupils set up a mock nutrient agar plate to test antibiotics for its effectiveness against the growth of bacteria and learnt about how Sir Alexander Fleming saved millions of lives through his discovery of penicillin,
- In Chemistry, pupils studied the work of local scientist Anna MacGillvery Macleod who was an authority on brewing and distilling. Pupils set up a fermentation experiment in a bag using yeast and Frosties.
The writing competition was then launched to all S2 pupils in English last week. They were challenged to write creatively about a Scientist of their choice. The pieces have ranged from drama scripts and short stories describing their discoveries to newspaper articles and biographies about their lives. Their English teacher will shortlist their pieces and Miss Machin will decide which two most creative in the entire year group will be entered into the Scotland-wide S2 competition “Science: Fiction: Make: Believe” ran by The University of St Andrews.