Science Department

Scientific Marvels

Science Week gave pupils an opportunity to engage with a wide range of exciting experiments in the labs at lunchtime, from forming a cloud inside a bottle to watching cornflour dance on a speaker to exploring the effects of static electricity with a Van de Graaff generator! Each activity invited pupils to try out the experiment before reading an explanation of the science behind the fun. The event was arranged by Dr Christie and run with the help of Year 10 and 11 pupils. Four Year 8 girls won first prize for the University Challenge at the 2019 Salters Festival of Chemistry by creating an almost perfect rainbow using colourful liquids of different densities. A team of four also took part in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s national ‘Top of the Bench’ competition after earning their place by winning Manchester Chemquiz last summer. Girls have taken part in various Olympiads and Challenges designed to stimulate their creative thinking and provide opportunities to extend their knowledge and interest in science beyond the curriculum. This year’s British Biology Olympiad results were the best the Girls’ Division has ever had! Subhi Loganathan received a Gold Award, Nicola Li and Khadija Ali received Silver, and Zara Walsh and Fatima Naeem received Bronze. In the Year 10 Biology Challenge, Girls’ Division pupils received 5 Silver, 18 Bronze, 16 Highly Commended and 17 Commended certificates. Students in Year

Year 10 pupils who achieved Silver in the Biology Olympiad.

Yasmin Rose (Y10) won the Jacqui Clee Award for Student Achievement at Top of the Bench

Chemistry Olympiad Girls 13 also took part in the Chemistry Olympiad: Fatima Naeem and Millie Wood achieved Silver, while Zinneerah Bax, Aiman Ibrahim, Nicola Li, Subhishka Loganathan, Aliyah Patel and Jemima Thompson received Bronze certificates. Pupils have also benefitted from a range of science clubs and extra-curricular events throughout the year. The Girls’ Division series of Arts and Sciences Enrichment Lectures (see page 4) featured talks on dark matter and dark energy, synthetic biology and the experiences of a woman in science, while regular lunchtime Café Scientifique events offered further opportunities for development beyond the classroom.

“I really enjoyed the Big Bang exhibition in Birmingham. We had a great time seeing the different exhibits and all the amazing technology. I also learnt new things about future STEM careers and it was an interesting experience overall.” Zahra Shahzad, Year 9