One small step for man, one giant leap for Year 4!

Pupils in our Junior school had a great time learning about space last week with astronomer ‘Starman’ Dennis Ashton.

The girls in Year 4 were shooting for the stars during a special lesson in their Science and Explorers topic, taking part in a ‘Star Talk’ with Dennis. In addition to being one of the most experienced astronomy and space science presenters in the UK, he is also a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and a STEM science ambassador.

Star Talks are interactive Astronomy and Space Science presentations for any size of audience and age group, including a packed schedule of looking at the very latest images from NASA, ESA and ground-based observations for the most up-to-date information on the galaxy around us, a Q&A session where Dennis can answer burning questions with his thorough expertise, audience activities such as ‘Build a Planet’, and looking at 3D images of the Moon, Mars, and the International Space Station. For an even richer experience, Dennis also uses his own astrophotographs in the show.

Year 4 were fascinated to learn about a variety of space-related topics. They saw video showing the zero gravity on space stations, wore 3D glasses to see a view of the Earth as if they were actually there, and took part in a miniature version of the training real-life astronauts have to go through. The talk additionally incorporated exciting aspects of history and physics, such as events in space like the Moon landing set out in a timeline, and the rotation of the Sun, Moon and Earth.

We’re sure to see more aspiring astronauts in the Junior school after Dennis’ visit!