On 26th February 2016 Dr Diane Turner (Dr Di) visited Pendragon Pre-school in Papworth Everard, Cambridgeshire to kick-start their project on space. The children (including Diane’s twins) were able to identify Earth, the Moon and Mars and compared rocks from Earth with the lunar and Nakhla meteorites from The Open University outreach meteorite collection.
There were excited discussions on how we can get samples of rocks from other planets which led on to rockets of course! After practicing making rocket fuel from bicarbonate of soda and vinegar, the presentation ended with the successful launch of a rocket in the playground, that flew higher than the school roof!
Diane then moved on to Year 1 of Pendragon Community Primary school with the meteorite collection to conclude their project on space. The entire meteorite collection was intensely examined by the students with the favourites being Barwell L5 ordinary chondrite which destroyed a car engine in 1965, the Waber impact glass beads and Tektite and how they were formed and discussions on how large iron meteorites like Gibeon that could have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs.
